It has emerged that Grandmaster Melle Mel has claimed that the likes of Kendrick Lamar, Nas and other successful contemporary rappers aren’t greats because they “talk a lot of s**t”.
The comments come as part of the Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five rapper’s interview with, The Art Of Dialogue, which has gone viral due to a string of controversial takes on other rappers. It contained a scathing critique of the artists included in Billboard’s ’50 Greatest Rappers of All Time List’, one of which was Eminem, who Mel claimed is only classed as a “Top 5” rapper because of his skin colour.
“Obviously, he’s a capable rapper,” Mel explained. “If you was talking about sales, he’s sold more than everybody. If you were talking about rhyme style, okay he got a rhyme style. But he’s white. He’s white!”Mel came at 48 on the list.
Elsewhere, Mel commented on the work of Jay-Z, who came top of Billboard’s list, before tearing into Kendrick and Nas, who came in second and third, respectively.
“What did Jay-Z say that you could consider truly great? You just like the song,” Melle opined. “As far as how I felt about hip-hop, I’ve never liked what nobody was doing. I don’t even like the s**t that I did after I did it. I’m trying to do some other s**t. It tarnishes the game and then it tarnishes society as well. Don’t take hip-hop all that serious. The bottom line to all of this, whether you believe there’s one great MC or whether you believe that there’s 500 great MC’s, this is just some n***a talking s**t.”
Afterwards, he maintained that Jay-Z is the only rapper who can get away with “talking s**t”. He then explained that he thinks “the streets is f****d up” because people are taking what people such as Kendrick and Nas say seriously.
He said: “This is just some n***a talking s**t and everybody is caught up in all that s**t. Jay-Z, that n***a can talk s**t. Who’s the number two guy on that list? [Kendrick Lamar] is just another n***a talking s**t. I’m not gonna put him number two. [Nas] another n***a talking s**t… How you gonna take a n***a talking s**t that serious? Who is this n***a and what has this n***a done for you to take whatever has come out his mouth serious? That’s why the streets is f****d up.”
Earlier this month, Public Enemy’s Chuck D defended Mel for his comments about Eminem and Kendrick Lamar in The Art Of Dialogue.
“Understand Melle Mel was so dominant over the rest of the pack in the first five years of records its hard to comprehend for born after MC folk,” Chuck wrote. “Its why i call him Wilt Chamberlain and Wilt had a crate of critiques for the rappers after him including ME. Just Let Mel be Wilt lol.”
