Source: Kevin Rawls / Radio One Houston
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas — and regardless of the holiday, no one wants a boring, lifeless party. Sure, classic holiday hits like “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town” and “Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer” gets the nostalgic spirit going, but ain’t no party like a hip hop Christmas party, cause a hip hop Christmas party don’t stop.
There’s nothing like the feeling of holiday joy topped off with rhythmic jingles from artist who rarely get jolly. Take Run DMC for example. When they hit the scene back in the early 80’s, they were the most street and “rough around the edges” artists the industry had ever seen. So imagine the energy shift when the legendary group dropped their holiday themed tracks, like “Christmas In Hollis”.
The group single handedly ushered in a genre that is now known as hip hop Christmas music. In an interview with The WrapUp, Revered Run said of the 1987 classic song,
“Don’t put me up against Nat ‘King’ Cole. I may be the first to make a rap Christmas song, but I’m not ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. “I sat there with a pen. I remember bacon, eggs and jelly and I wrote the rhyme within one minute. I called him (Adler) back, and I think there was a Holy Ghost takeover because the rhyme was very much spiritual and beautiful. I thank God for that moment of giving me that rhyme.”
Hip hop holiday tracks always have a relatable story of some sort, compared to the classic Christmas tracks that shares tales of a fantasy Winter wonderland world. Hit the flip for more rhythm & blues and base knocking holiday songs that’ll guarantee a soulful Christmas.
Merry Lit-Mas! 13 Hip Hop Holiday Songs That’ll Have Your Yuletide Jumping was originally published on globalgrind.com
