Rapper’s Delight

by Sugarhill Gang

I said a hip hop a hippie to the hippieTo the hip, hip hop, you don’t stopA rockin’ to the bang bang boogie say upchuck the boogieTo the rhythm of the boogity beatnow what you hear is not a test--I'm rappin’ to the beatand me, the groove, and my friends are gonna try to move your feetsee I am wonder mike and I like to say helloto the black, to the white, the red, and the brown, the purple and yellowbut first I gotta bang bang the boogie to the boogiesay up jump the boogie to the bang bang boogielet's rock, you don’t stoprock the riddle that will make your body rockwell so far you’ve heard my voice but I brought two friends alongand next on the mike is my man hankcome on, Hank, sing that song

Check it out, I'm the C-a-s-an-the-o-v-aand the rest is f-l-yya see I go by the code of the doctor of the mixand these reasons I'll tell ya whyya see I'm six foot one and I'm tons of funand I dress to a tya see I got more clothes than Muhammad Ali and I dress so viciouslyI got bodyguards, I got two big carsthat definitely ain’t the whackI got a Lincoln continental and a sunroof Cadillacso after school, I take a dip in the poolwhich really is on the wallI got a color TV so I can seethe Knicks play basketballhear me talkin’ bout checkbooks, credit cardsmore money than a sucker could ever spendbut I wouldn’t give a sucker or a bum from the Ruckernot a dime till I made it againya go hotel motel what’cha gonna do today (say what)ya say I’m gonna get a fly girl gonna get some spankin’drive off in a def OJeverybody go, hotel motel holiday innsay if your girl starts actin’ up, then you take her friendmaster gee, am I mellowIt’s on you so what you gonna do

Well it's on n on n on n onthe beat don’t stop until the break of dawnI said m-a-s, t-e-r, a g with a double “e”I said I go by the unforgettable nameof the man they call the Master Geewell, my name is known all over the worldby all the foxy ladies and the pretty girlsI'm going’ down in history

This section of the song has no references:

Lyrics.doc

We're treacherous trio, we're the serious jointa from sun to sun and from day to dayI sit down and write a brand new rhymebecause they say that miracles never ceaseI've created a devastating masterpieceI'm gonna rock the mike ‘til you cant resisteverybody, I say it goes like thiswell I was coming home late one dark afternoona reporter stopped me for a interviewshe said she's heard stories and she's heard fablesthat I'm vicious on the mike and the turntablesthis young reporter I did adoreso I rocked a vicious I’m rhyme like I never did beforeshe said damn fly guy in love with youthe Casanova legend must have been trueI said by the way baby what's your namesaid I go by the name of Lois Laneand you could be my boyfriend you surely canjust let me quit my boyfriend called SupermanI said he's a fairy I do supposeflyin’ through the air in pantyhosehe may be very sexy or even cutebut he looks like a sucker in a blue and red suitI said you need a man who's got finesseand his whole name across his chesthe may be able to fly all through the night

and let me tell ya something we're a helluva crewonce a week we're on the streetjust a-cuttin' the jams and making it freefor you to party ya got to have the moviesso we'll get right down and give you the groovefor you to dance you gotta get hypeso we'll get right down for you tonightnow the system's on and the girls are thereya definitely have a rockin affairbut let me tell ya something there's still one factthat to have a party ya got to have a rapso when the party's over you're making it homeand trying to sleep before the break of dawnand while ya sleeping ya start to dreamand thinking how ya danced on the disco scenemy name appears in your mindyeah, a name you know that was right on timeit was phase two just a doing a dorockin ya down cause ya know we couldto the rhythm of the beat that makes ya freak

come alive girls get on your feetto the rhythm of the beat to the beat the beatto the double beat beat that it makes ya freakto the rhythm of the beat that says ya go onon n on into the break of dawnnow I got a man coming on right nowhe's guaranteed to throw downhe goes by the name of wonder mikecome on wonder mike do what ya like

like a can of beer that's sweeter than honeylike a millionaire that has no moneylike a rainy day that is not wetlike a gambling fiend that does not betlike Dracula with out his fangslike the boogie to the boogie without the boogie banglike collard greens that don't taste goodlike a tree that's not made out of woodlike going up and not coming downis just like the beat without the sound no soundto the beat beat, ya do the freakeverybody just rock and dance to the beat

LYRICSThis is another section of the song

which contains no references.

well like Johnny Carson on the late showa like Frankie Crocker in stereowell like the Barkly's singing holy ghostthe sounds to throw down they're played the most

its like my man captain skywhose name he earned with his super spermwe rock and we don't stopget off y'all I'm here to give you what'cha gotto the beat that it makes you freakand come alive girl get on your feeta like a Perry Mason without a caselike Farah Fawcett without her face

like the barkays on the mikelike getting right down for you tonightlike moving your body so ya don't know howright to the rhythm and throw down

LYRICSThere are no references in this last

section of the song.

Bibliography• Go here ¤

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Sugarhill GangThe Sugarhill Gang is famous for creating the first ever hip hop single, « Rapper’s Delight ». The producer Sylvia Robinson created this group, bringing together Wonder Mike, Master Gee, and Big Bank Hank. These three were pioneers in the early rapping community, when hip hop was just beginning. “Rapper’s Delight” sky-rocketed hip hop music and culture. The song was very popular, and sold over two million copies. If you look at rap’s history, you’ll see that “Rapper’s Delight” wasn’t actually the first rap record ever; it was, however, the big jumping off point. Now, rap and hip hop are two of the most listened to genres of music, first made popular by this song. For more information on their effect on hip hop: http://www.oldschoolhiphop.com/artists/emcees/sugarhillgang.htm

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Giacomo Casanova• Giacomo Casanova was an author and

adventurer in the 18th century. Most people have heard Casanova’s name, often used nowadays to be synonymous with “womanizer”. In fact, that is the way his name is used in this song; the rapper is calling himself a man of seduction.

• This is actually a double reference because Hank borrowed rhymes from a guy who went by Caz- short for Casanova, and this was his way of paying homage to that man.

• For more information on Casanova, check out http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/casanova.htm Back

Muhammad Ali

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Muhammad Ali was a very successful boxer. Born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Ali was a tough kid. His skills led him to become one of the most famous, and mostmemorable boxers in history.

http://www.ali.com

Master GeeUnlike most other types of music, rap songs make references to the actual rappers themselves. This technique is seen several times through out this song, and it makes it seem much more casual. The literary device here is an allusion; this means that there is a reference to something.

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AABBCC Rhyme SchemeRhyming is a popular literary technique in poems and songs, especially this specific rhyme scheme. It is used several times throughout this song, along with some other rhyme schemes. A helpful website if you’re trying to come up with rhymes is: http://rhymezone.com/

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AnaphoraAnaphora is the use of repetition. It occurs when the same word or phrase repeats over and over again.

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MetaphorThe metaphor, “he’s a fairy” is sometimes used to imply that someone is homosexual. This is derogatory, and is often seen as offensive. This song seems to be one of those cases.

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Joint-First PersonThis whole song is written in first person, swapping narration between three people. This is seen by the use of the pronouns “me” and “I”. The narrator is announced throughout the song.

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Farrah FawcettFarrah Fawcett was an actress with a huge career. Towards the start of her career, she posed in a red bathing suit for a poster and it sold over 8,000,000 copies. One of her most famous quotes was, “The reason that the all-American boy prefers beauty to brains is that he can see better than he can think.” She died in the summer of 2009 from cancer. To learn more about her life and her career, check out http://IMDb.com

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Perry MasonBACKPerry Mason is actually a fictional

character, from the television series with the same name as this character which came out in 1957.

Johnny CarsonJohnny Carson was a Tonight Show host. He had a stunning television career before this, ranging from series to hosting other network shows. He has won six Emmy Awards. Johnny died in 2005 of natural causes. If you’d like to find out more about his career, go to:

http://www.johnnycarson.com/carson/bio_johnny.jsp

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Frankie CrockerFrankie Crocker was a famous disc jockey and radio show host of a Harlem-based station. He died in 2000 from pancreatic cancer.To see pictures of Frankie, or learn more about his death, see: http://www.frankiecrocker.net

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