We are, yeah I said it, we are

September 22, 2009 11:28 AM

Comedian Affion Crockett, most remembered for appearing on MTV's "Wild 'n Out"and for his impressions of Jay-Z, manages to play Jay, Kanye and Chris Brown in a spoof of Jay-Z's song with Rihanna, "Run This Town".
posted by cashman (15 comments total)

There was an incredible piece on NPR this weekend about the use of occult imagery in Jay-Z's music and videos. Connections to the Five Percenters and Crowley and the Ordo Templi Orientis. Great stuff.

Now that I think about it, it would have made a great post here. Hrm.
posted by mr_roboto at 11:43 AM on September 22 [4 favorites]

Aries Spears can do an impression of Jay-Z, too - right after he warms you up with his impressions of LL Cool J, Snoop Doggy Dogg, and DMX...
posted by the painkiller at 11:55 AM on September 22 [5 favorites]

oh wow. that's kind of amazing.
posted by shmegegge at 11:59 AM on September 22

From NPR article: "I think he's a keen observer of everything going on around him. He's a master at using subversive imagery. You don't find your way to Five Percenter material unless you are very aware of what's going on around you."

That is such bullshit. Anyone growing up in NY during the 80s and 90s knew about the Nation of Gods and Earth. So much hip hop released within that time frame is gibberish unless you know your Alphabets and Mathematics. You had to be fucking blind to miss it. I am the last to say Jay-Z isn't shrewd observer, but this is a really stupid example.
posted by milarepa at 11:59 AM on September 22 [2 favorites]

Aries Spears is not funny.

This parody however, was. Especially when they chased the TMZ photographer down. I liked that bit.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 12:00 PM on September 22

Aries Spears is not funny.

I don't think he was trying to be.

Really dead-on impressions there, especially Snoop and Jay-Z.
posted by splice at 12:41 PM on September 22

Now that I think about it, it would have made a great post here. Hrm.

This recent thread was pretty close...
posted by Ian A.T. at 1:26 PM on September 22

That was almost too well produced for me to understand as satire.
posted by MarvinTheCat at 1:34 PM on September 22

Yeah, seriously. The Nation of Gods and Earths pretty much dominated East Coast hiphop for the longest. There was a small time group who dropped Math in nearly every song... oh that's right- Wu Tang Clan.

What's next? Terrorist Fist Bump = Secret Masonic Handshake?
posted by yeloson at 4:10 PM on September 22

Well, in fairness to the author, he does recognize that "Of course, Five Percent Nation teachings have had a deep impact on hip-hop for many years. Though not a Five Percenter himself, Jay-Z was born and bred in New York, the birthplace of the movement. So it's common to find such references in rap."

Hint: I thing the whole thing might be intended to be..... humorous?
posted by mr_roboto at 4:12 PM on September 22

Actually Jay-Z was down with Jaz (see originators for extra corniness) who was affiliated with Dr. York Pork. I guess he has a keen sense of observation to appear in a video like that.
posted by milarepa at 4:42 PM on September 22

As often happens, I like the lyrics better in the parody version than the original.
posted by Hollow at 4:49 PM on September 22

Well, they're obviously stretching the Five Percenter material a lot in the NPR article, but I do think his Crowley hoodie in the linked video is something to scratch your chin over.
posted by Roman Graves at 5:12 PM on September 22

This is as a good a place to ask as any:

The local radio station alters Kanye's line "Everybody on my dick, no homo" to "Everybody on my [silence], no [unintelligible]" Anyone else heard this version? Wtf is the last word? It doesn't rhyme with "O."
posted by desjardins at 5:47 PM on September 22

desjardins, sometimes they reverse words instead of bleeping/silencing them, I haven't heard the radio version, but wouldn't be surprised if it sounded like "omoh" or something of that kind.
posted by dearsina at 2:16 AM on September 23