Rock and Rap continue to have a love-hate relationship and the tension between the genres has taken centerstage as KISS frontman Gene Simmons blasted N.W.A for being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Ice Cube fired back, claiming that Rock is more about a spirit than a genre of music. Simmons has since retracted his statements, but the stank is in the air.
Legendary guitarist Tom Morello, who actually inducted KISS into the Hall in 2014, comes to N.W.A’s side in the battle.
“While N.W.A may not be in line with the letter of rock and roll, they are certainly in line with the spirit of rock and roll,” he says to Rolling Stone. “Much more so than many acts in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame who play guitars through Marshall amps. I think N.W.A is rock & roll as fuck and deserves to be there.”
The Rage Against the Machine member shared these sentiments earlier on Instagram when he posted a picture of the World’s Most Dangerous Group.
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“Beyond ANY shadow of a doubt the most ‘rock n roll’ segment of the 2016 Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony was N.W.A,” he writes for the caption.
Morello, who has been a member of Audioslave and performs solo as The Nightwatchman, received the Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award from WhyHunger? for his work raising awareness about poverty and hunger. While N.W.A has battled a thug image its entire career, Morello says that there is a real threat to society that everyone must face.
“Poverty and hunger are not these facts that just came with the universe,” Morello says. “They’re man-made, and they’re a crime. I feel that WhyHunger? are crime fighters of the highest order, and it’s my pleasure to be affiliated with them.”
To read the entire interview, visit Rolling Stone.
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See Tom Morello’s post about N.W.A being Rock and Roll below:
