DJ Premier’s Hip Hop 50: Volume 1 EP is the first of 10 to kick off Mass Appeal’s celebration of the genre’s 50th year anniversary which is August 11, 2023. There is a different producer at the helm of each EP DJ Premier is the first one. Subsequent EPs will be released over the year”Remy Rap” featuring Remy Ma and Rapsody is Premier in his boom bap element. Both wordsmiths pulverize the eternal criticism leveled at women rappers with mighty bars that seem to never end. Maya Table is the director and sticks to the rap video blueprint with all three of them filmed against the backdrop of the city. The song and video have the rhythmic impact of a bomb and it all happens in less than three minutes. The EP is nice but “Remy Rap” suggests that Premier may need to work with Remy and Rapsody together again because the appeal begs for more from them. 

Gang Starr’s “Mass Appeal” was inspired by the duo’s disenchantment with the sounds of mainstream radio. The song was an attempt to mock what they perceived to be the politics of the music industry. They surpassed their intentions when “Mass Appeal” entered the Billboard 100. But the biggest achievement of the song went beyond chart placements and reminded hip-hop fans of the special chemistry between DJ Premier’s indelible beats and Guru’s palpable raps. Hard To Earn was their fourth album and was one more reason 1994 was so important to hip-hop. In 2019, the seventh and final Gang Starr album, One of the Best Yet was released with posthumous vocals from Guru who passed in 2010. 

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[youtube id=”Sff7Kc77QAY”] Run The Jewels see a new world without class restraints in their video for “Ooh LA LA” featuring Greg Nice and DJ Premier. The people shed their currency and dance in the streets as Killer Mike and El-P walk through the crowds. “Ooh LA LA” debuted on the season finale of Netflix’s Ozark. The duo shot the video just a few weeks before the outbreak of the pandemic. They are giving away activity books to help fans get through the quarantine.  

[youtube id=”-iNpdrhzDxI”]Guru’s son Keith Casim takes center in the Gang Starr video for “Bad Name.” He gets a haircut and the transformation emphasizes how much he looks like his father. DJ Premier calls Spice Adams for his blessing of the song and Adams proves that breakdancing isn’t just for teenagers. Gang Starr’s One Of The Best Yet is one of the year’s biggest surprises.