S. Samuel
[Each week, SOHH asks two entertainment personalities to name their Top 5 rappers of all-time. To make things tricky, we've created a "Hall of Fame" of emcees (see right) who are universally respected and therefore may not be mentioned. After Young Money's Gudda Gudda dished out his top picks, West Coast rapper/actress Somaya Reece unloads her fave five.]
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Big Pun. He really paved the way. What he did for us Latins was such a big thing. So he’s always going to be one of the best. Not only did he rap amazing rhymes, it’s just what he was able to break culturally was such a big deal. You can’t argue with that. Big Pun was so amazing and is still so amazing to me. -
Crooked I. You know I love Crooked I. He’s my boy. He’s a really good friend of mine. Crooked is just ridiculous when he raps. I really love Crooked. I’ve known Crooked for a long time and he’s really good.
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Talib Kweli. I have to put Talib Kweli in there. That’s a no-brainer.
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Lauryn Hill. If we can name girls, then I’m going to say Lauryn Hill. How could you not put her in your Top 5? She was so empowering [to] girls. She was empowering to children too. Lauryn stood up for women in her music.
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MC Lyte. I have to make sure and name MC Lyte for sure. She is a hip-hop pioneer. I grew up listening to a lot of MC Lyte because one of my sisters was so obsessed with her. It was so funny. She didn’t even speak good English but she knew all of MC Lyte’s songs. I really want to include Nas, Eminem and Tupac but they’re in the Hall of Fame!
Big Pun. He really paved the way. What he did for us Latins was such a big thing. So he’s always going to be one of the best. Not only did he rap amazing rhymes, it’s just what he was able to break culturally was such a big deal. You can’t argue with that. Big Pun was so amazing and is still so amazing to me.
Crooked I. You know I love Crooked I. He’s my boy. He’s a really good friend of mine. Crooked is just ridiculous when he raps. I really love Crooked. I’ve known Crooked for a long time and he’s really good.
Talib Kweli. I have to put Talib Kweli in there. That’s a no-brainer.
Lauryn Hill. If we can name girls, then I’m going to say Lauryn Hill. How could you not put her in your Top 5? She was so empowering [to] girls. She was empowering to children too. Lauryn stood up for women in her music.
MC Lyte. I have to make sure and name MC Lyte for sure. She is a hip-hop pioneer. I grew up listening to a lot of MC Lyte because one of my sisters was so obsessed with her. It was so funny. She didn’t even speak good English but she knew all of MC Lyte’s songs. I really want to include Nas, Eminem and Tupac but they’re in the Hall of Fame!
