Taboo, an emcee and member of The Black Eyed Peas, recently spoke with VladTV about the shift in attitude towards dancing within Hip Hop over the years.
Speaking to a turning point in the way that Hip Hop dancing was perceived, Taboo referenced Ice Cube’s disparaging lyrics towards dancing in his 1990 hit “Jackin’ For Beats.” “I was a big Cube fan, I loved Ice Cube,” Taboo said, “but as a dancer, we took it kind of personal, we were kind of scared, ‘cause Cube was hard. He said, ‘I leave the dancing to the brothers with the funny haircuts.’” The original lyrics that Taboo referenced come in the second verse of the Kill at Will track when he raps “I don’t party and shake my butt / I leave that to the brothers with the funny haircuts.”
Continuing with a separate example of Cube’s comments towards dancers, Taboo also mentioned the West Coast emcee’s “The Nigga Ya Love To Hate” song, pulled from a separate album, AmeriKKK’a Most Wanted, released the same year. “Then he said, ‘I don’t wanna see no more dancing, I’m sick of that shit!’ Taboo said, “so everybody’s like, ‘oh shit, Ice Cube’s sick of us dancing.’
The Black Eyed Peas emcee added that the popularity of another West Coast Hip Hop performer in MC Hammer built on the partial demise of dancing within the culture. “Then Hammer came in, then it got it a little corny” he said. “It started getting cheesy, it started becoming really cartoony, ‘cause Hammer was dope when he first came out. But then it got to the point where the music switched and it was no longer about having a good time, it was not about that. Now it was like, ‘I’m hard, my money, my bitches, the car I’m driving, the Moet I’m drinking,’ it became a little more about a party scene but no more dancing. Now I’m gonna sit in the VIP section, smoke blunts, pop bottles, and just chill, fuck dancing, I’m gonna just do my two-step over here. So it switched, which is cool, but Hip Hop culture started shifting into something else. And then, it became about no more dancing.”
Taboo also spoke about the history of dancing within the career of Tupac. “You know who’s a pretty dope dancer though?” he said, “[he] was a dancer before he was an emcee, Tupac. Tupac was a dope ass dancer for people that don’t know, before he was ‘Thug Life’ and before he did Juice, Tupac was dancing for Digital Underground and before that he was in school—like Juilliard type school—with Jada Pinkett. So he was like a classical type of dancer.”
The Los Angeles native finished with an acknowledgement that despite its lack of popularity in the mainstream, he continues to dance when performing. “I miss it, I still do it in my shows ‘cause I can still rock. I don’t care because I know that my style of dance is like a freestyle battle type of dance, I’m not on some like One Direction type of shit.”
Video of the VladTV interview can be streamed below.
We know that pac was a dancer, he looked fuckin gay back then with the dances and the eye shadow. I wonder if dude was gay. No hate!
whoa chill with that gay talk Pac was far from gay, y’all kids may not know that but dancers use to get all the girls, Big Daddy Kane danced, break dancing was super popular and Michael danced it was cool back than but it also wasn’t on that sack crap kids are doing now so chill with that gay talk smh
Wack crap*** typo
If your contemplating on what the sexuality is of a been dead over a decade now hiphop legend based of the fact he was a dancer you might want to look in the mirror and do some soul searching man.
You came to a hip hop site and insinuate that one of our legends is gay? One of the hardest niggas ever to rep this craft? GTFO.
Dancing was part of the culture, its HIP HOP, its music, you may not see it as often anymore homie but it is one of the main elements.
pac was a fuckin kid back then grew up and seen how racist this system is and stopped doing it
Cube was on point dont try and justify you shaking your butt by dragging Tupac name in this like my man on here said Pac was young and woke up quick and neer did that crap again if dancing is you be you
I agree with Anonymous tupac suspect.
Kinda gay.
quez is a straight fag
jealous
Doesn’t matter if PAC was dancing or sucking dick all his life.
The truth is he was the hardest one ever to do it he worked hard he was fighting for our freedoms and even gave his life away for us and hip hop.
If you don’t respect that go die,.
‘even gave his life away for us’
He got shot after attacking a member of the Crips. What part of the struggle is that?
Every Sunday, do you go to church and pray to 2pac? lol Thank you for all those wildly profane songs Pac, and for dissing Biggie, and for Gang Related. That movie helped me through some harsh times in the hood.
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well seems some acters rappers are skard of myers and jasons. same ppl that say they want to kill ppl over over.even with movies about it.
who cares if 2pac was a faggot he made good music
So what if 2Pac was gay a lot of artist,actors etc are gay
HAHAHAHA No wonder Suge green lit his bitch ass.
Dancing is one of the elements of HipHop culture and dancing is also a part of African American culture, it wasn’t untill the savage self destruction of so called Gamgster Rap that dancing became unpopular in HipHop.
ballet dancing?
tupac was not hood just a good actor people need to get over it the truth is in your face that thug life was a movie role he couldn’t let go I guees it made him feel like a man instead of a ballet dancer and poet.v and he was a avg rapper
You are an idiot.
“classical type of dancer”
pac in tights
ICE WAS A BITCH WITH A JHERI CURL FUCK OUTTA HERE THE REALEST GANGSTAS DANCED BACK IN THE DAYS WITH BREAKING AND BACK IN THE EPMD AND BIG DADDY KANE DAYS…