''Yo! MTV Raps'' is an American two-hour

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

program, which first aired on

MTV Europe MTV Global (formerly as MTV Europe) is the international version of the American TV channel MTV, a 24-hour music and entertainment TV channel that began broadcasting on August 1, 1987, as part of the worldwide MTV network. Initially, MTV serve ...

from 1987 to mid-90s and on

MTV US MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

from August 1988 to August 1995. The American version of the program (created by

Ted Demme Edward Kern Demme ( ; October 26, 1963 – January 13, 2002) was an American director, producer, and actor. Early life Demme was born in New York City, the son of Gail (née Kern) and Frederick Rogers Demme. He grew up in Rockville Centre, New ...

and Peter Dougherty) was the first hip hop music show on the network, and was based on the original

show, which first aired one year before the American version. ''Yo! MTV Raps'' produced a mix of rap videos, interviews with rap stars, live in-studio performances (on Fridays), and comedy. The show also yielded a Brazilian version called ''Yo! MTV'' and broadcast by

MTV Brasil MTV Brasil was a Brazilian over-the-air television network owned by Grupo Abril focused on the youth. The network was launched on 20 October 1990, as the first specialty television network to broadcast over-the-air, becoming the local version ...

from 1990 to 2005. MTV Germany also broadcats in 2023 as music program and playlist.

Hosts

The U.S. version was originally hosted by

Fab 5 Freddy Fred Brathwaite (born August 31, 1959), more popularly known as Fab 5 Freddy, is an American visual artist, filmmaker, and hip hop pioneer. He is considered one of the architects of the street art movement. Freddy emerged in New York's downtown ...

. Later, the show's main host was

Doctor Dré André "Doctor Dré" Brown (born December 5, 1963) is an American rapper, radio personality and former MTV VJ. Early life André Brown was born and raised in Westbury, New York, on Long Island. Career In the early 1980s, Doctor Dré was a DJ ...

and Demme's high school friend, Ed Lover who both hosted together on weekdays. Soon they were joined by Doctor Dre's Original Concept group member T Money.

proceeded to host on weekends. The original line-up of the show, starring only Fab as the host, premiered on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

on August 6, 1988. On the weekday version dubbed, ''Yo! MTV Raps Today'' (which debuted on March 13, 1989), Ed Lover created his own dance called the ''Ed Lover Dance'' (which was typically featured on Wednesdays) that became somewhat popular in the 1990s. The Ed Lover Dance was performed to the track "The 900 Number" by

The 45 King Mark Howard James (born October 16, 1961) professionally known as The 45 King (also known as DJ Mark the 45 King), is an American hip hop record producer and disc jockey (DJ) from The Bronx borough of New York City. James began DJing in The Bron ...

History

In 1987, French journalist and producer Sophie Bramly developed the program ''Yo!'' for the then nascent MTV Europe and she hosted it. Afrika Bambaataa is the first guest. Later

N.W.A N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip hop group whose members were among the earliest and most significant popularizers and controversial figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, and the group is widely considered ...

Public Enemy "Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe ...

LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, along ...

, Ice-T,

De La Soul De La Soul () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative ...

, Eric B. & Rakim,

EPMD EPMD is an American hip hop duo from Brentwood, New York. The duo's name is a concatenation of the members' names "E" and "PMD" or an acronym for "Erick and Parrish Making Dollars", referring to its members: emcees Erick Sermon ("E" a.k.a. ...

Ultramagnetic MCs The Ultramagnetic MCs is an American hip hop group based in The Bronx, New York City. Founded by Kool Keith, the group also includes Ced Gee, TR Love, and Moe Love. Tim Dog became an unofficial member in 1989. In 1990, DJ Jaycee was added as ...

were invited. The year after that,

Run-DMC Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history of ...

hosted the pilot episode in the US. Also featured in the pilot were

DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince were an American hip hop duo from West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consisting of rapper Will Smith (the Fresh Prince) and disc jockey Jeff Townes (DJ Jazzy Jeff). Active full time from 1986 to 1994 and occasion ...

. Eric B. & Rakim's video for the title track of the album '' Follow the Leader'' was the first video to be shown on ''Yo! MTV Raps''. The pilot was one of the highest rated programs to ever air on MTV at that point. Only the

Video Music Awards The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category) ...

and

Live Aid Live Aid was a multi-venue benefit concert held on Saturday 13 July 1985, as well as a music-based fundraising initiative. The original event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 fami ...

received greater ratings.

Shinehead Shinehead (born Edmund Carl Aiken; 10 April 1962 in Kent, England) is a British Jamaican reggae singer/toaster/rapper. Career He began his music career by performing for different New York City reggae dancehall sound systems in the 1980s, mo ...

's "Chain Gang" was the first video to be shown during a regular-season episode. Meanwhile, Ice-T's "

High Rollers ''High Rollers'' is an American television game show that involved contestants trying to win prizes by rolling dice. The format was based on the dice game shut the box. ''High Rollers'' debuted on July 1, 1974, as part of NBC's daytime lineup. ...

" was the first video to be played during the weekday show. The classic Yo! MTV Raps logo was created by early graffiti writer, Dr. Revolt. The animated show open was produced by Nigel Cox-Hagen and animated by Beau Tardy.

''Yo! MTV Raps'' and the spread of hip-hop

The advent of ''Yo! MTV Raps'' in the late 1980s was crucial to the spread of hip-hop around the world. Through

MTV Asia MTV was a pan-Asian music pay-television channel which launched on 3 May 1995 as a standalone pay television channel. It was owned by Paramount Networks EMEAA. History MTV Asia was officially launched on 3 May 1995 as a 24-hour English-languag ...

, and MTV Latino, African-American and Latino style and sound were instantly available to millions of people across the globe. This helped to create a worldwide appreciation and interest in the hip-hop scene, which is something that was celebrated on the ''Yo! MTV Raps'' 20th anniversary.

Rivalry

Video Music Box ''Video Music Box'' is an American music television program. The series is the first to feature hip hop videos primarily, and was created in 1983 by Ralph McDaniels and Lionel C. Martin, who also serve as the series' hosts. It aired on the New Yo ...

'' being the first contender, in January 1989, former rival

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

created competition when the network premiered ''

Rap City ''Rap City'' is a music video television program block that originally aired on the Black Entertainment Television (BET) network from August 11, 1989, to November 8, 2008. The program was an exclusive showcase for hip hop music videos, and featu ...

''(was a two-hour-long program, now an hour-long show as of July 2009). The show was the longest-running hip-hop program because of its 19-year run (ending in 2009). While ''Yo! MTV Raps, which is now discontinued, generally focused on the rap scene from the East Coast, ''Rap City'' also included videos from up-and-coming underground rappers from different regions of the US.

"Down With MTV"

One of the most popular artists to be featured on ''Yo! MTV Raps'' was Naughty by Nature. When MTV started its ''Down With MTV'' advertising campaign in 1992, Naughty by Nature's smash hit " O.P.P." was used as the basis.

Censorship and declining popularity

The ratings fell after pulling

's video "By the Time I Get to Arizona" in 1991, claiming it was too violent. ''Yo! MTV Raps'' also came close to refusing to air the video for

Cypress Hill Cypress Hill is an American hip hop group from South Gate, California. They have sold over 20 million albums worldwide and have multi-platinum and platinum albums. They are considered to be among the main progenitors of West Coast and 1990 ...

's "

How I Could Just Kill a Man "How I Could Just Kill a Man" is the debut single by Hip hop music, hip hop group Cypress Hill from their eponymous debut album, ''Cypress Hill (album), Cypress Hill'', and was their first major hit in 1991. It was released as a double A-side to " ...

." It was only after an intervention from Vice President of Music and Artist Development at MTV, Sheri Howell, that MTV changed their minds. By around 1992–93, MTV aired ''Yo! MTV Raps'' only once a week, for two hours, on Fridays after midnight.

The end of ''Yo!''

''Yo! MTV Raps'' had its series finale on August 17, 1995. Numerous high-profile names in the world of hip-hop closed the show out with a

freestyle rap Freestyle is a style of improvisation, with or without instrumental beats (Mystrodamus), in which lyrics are recited with no particular subject or structure and with no prior memorization.Kevin Fitzgerald (director), '' Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme' ...

session. Salt-N-Pepa holds the distinction of appearing on the first (technically, the first episode to feature Fab 5 Freddy) and last episodes of ''Yo! MTV Raps''. From 1996 to 1999, MTV repackaged it as simply ''Yo!'' The repackaged version was far more stripped down. ''Yo!'' had a weekly slate of special guest hosts. For instance,

Angie Martinez Angela Martinez (born January 9, 1971) is an American radio personality, rapper, singer, and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice of New York" during her two-decade tenure at New York City station HOT 97 (WQHT), she left that position in 2014 to join ...

and

Fatman Scoop Isaac Freeman III (born August 6, 1971), better known by his stage name Fatman Scoop, is an American rapper, promoter and radio personality famed for his on-stage rough, raw loud voice. He is known for the song " Be Faithful", which topped the c ...

served as its hosts. By 1998, ''Yo!'' had no guest hosts and became a one-hour program airing late Friday nights at 1 a.m. or 1:30 a.m. (

Eastern Standard Time The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 U.S. states, states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and ...

). In 2000, MTV's outlet for hip-hop videos became ''

Direct Effect In European Union law, direct effect is the principle that Union law may, if appropriately framed, confer rights on individuals which the courts of member states of the European Union are bound to recognise and enforce. Direct effect is not e ...

'', known since 2006 as ''

Sucker Free ''Sucker Free'', known as ''Sucker Free Daily'' on weekdays and then ''Sucker Free Countdown'' on Sundays, is MTV2's sole hip-hop video block. Previously, ''Sucker Free'' aired weekdays for one hour, then eventually sporadically until the week le ...

''. It aired three times a week at around 7:00 PM (

). It is one of the few music video outlets for MTV besides its late-night/early-morning music video rotation hours, as MTV continues to focus on non-music video programming, especially

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

shows.

Revival of sorts

''Yo! MTV Raps'' made a comeback of sorts, after an eight-year hiatus during the '' Jackassworld.com: 24 Hour Takeover'' in February 2008. It had Steve-O (alongside

Sam Maccarone Sam Macaroni (born March 14, 1975 in San Jose, California) is an actor, film director, and writer. He wrote, directed and stars in '' National Lampoon's TV: The Movie''. In the film, he plays Jeffrey Sutton, Dick Weston Fernandez and Chad (in ' ...

) promoting his new rap album, doing freestyles, and showing his new music video. The old set was carefully recreated, with

Johnny Knoxville Philip John Clapp (born March 11, 1971), best known professionally as Johnny Knoxville, is an American stunt performer, actor, writer, producer, and professional wrestler. He is best known as a co-creator and star of the MTV reality stunt show ...

joking that Mike Judge created a brand new ''

Beavis & Butthead ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' is an American adult animated series created by Mike Judge. The series follows Beavis and Butt-Head, both voiced by Judge, a pair of teenage slackers characterized by their apathy, lack of intelligence, lowbrow humor, ...

'' episode with them critiquing Steve-O's rap video.

20th Anniversary

In April 2008, ''Yo! MTV Raps'' celebrated its 20th anniversary by making a comeback on MTV. MTV's show ''

'' transformed into ''Yo! MTV Raps'' and featured classic hip-hop music videos as well as current hip-hop videos. Fab 5 Freddy,

and Ed Lover contributed to the tribute of the show. At the end of April 2008, MTV aired ''Yo!'' countdown shows and featured the top moments from the show during its airing on MTV.

30th Anniversary

''Yo! MTV Raps'' was revived for a new generation in 2018, celebrating the 30th anniversary at Brooklyn's Barclays Center on June 1, 2018. The live show featured Big Daddy Kane and the Juice Crew, Eric B & Rakim, Doug E. Fresh, KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions, EPMD, Flavor Flav, and many more. It also featured past hosts and DJs who helped shepherd the series, like Fab 5 Freddy, Ed Lover, Doctor Dré, T Money, Skribble, Red Alert, and Chuck Chillout. Tribute videos from artists like Eminem, Method Man, and Redman also commemorated the occasion.

''Yo! MTV Raps'' International

In Spring 2019, Viacom International Media Networks relaunched the series with local versions in the UK, Germany, South-East Asia, and pan-African versions on MTV Base and MTV Africa. The Format and editorial of the series were headed by British TV producer Darcy Thomas. This also followed with a bi-weekly spin-off show ''Yo! MTV Rates'' hosted by Snoochie Shy and Poet, which aired in the UK and was also produced by Darcy Thomas for two seasons (16 episodes).

MTV Classic

Following the launch of

MTV Classic MTV Classic may refer to: *MTV Classic (American TV channel), a television channel that replaced VH1 Classic on August 1, 2016 *MTV Classic (Australian TV channel), a television channel previously named VH1 Australia until May 2010, and shut down i ...

on August 1, 2016,

blocks have consistently aired on the network under the name ''Yo! Hip Hop Mix''. When broadcast, however, this is merely an automated playlist of rap/hip-hop videos from the 1980s to the early 2000s.

Pluto TV

A ''Yo! MTV Raps'' channel was added to

Pluto TV Pluto TV is a free, ad-supported video streaming service owned and operated by the Paramount Streaming division of Paramount Global. Co-founded by Tom Ryan, Ilya Pozin and Nick Grouf in 2013 and based in Los Angeles, California, in the United Sta ...

following Viacom's purchase of the service.

Paramount+

On February 24, 2021, it was announced that ''Yo! MTV Raps'' would be revived on

ViacomCBS Paramount Global (doing business as Paramount) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate owned and operated by National Amusements (79.4%) and headquartered at One Astor Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York. It ...

' streaming platform

Paramount+ Paramount+ is an American subscription video on-demand service owned by Paramount Global. The service's content is drawn primarily from the libraries of CBS Media Ventures (including CBS Studios), Paramount Media Networks (formerly Viacom Media ...

, formerly CBS All Access. On February 17, 2022, it was announced that Conceited and DJ Diamond Kuts would host the revival. On May 2, 2022, it was announced that the revival would premiere on May 24, 2022.

References in popular culture

*In the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

sitcom-drama ''

Doogie Howser, M.D. ''Doogie Howser, M.D.'' is an American medical sitcom that ran for four seasons on ABC from September 19, 1989, to March 24, 1993, totaling 97 episodes. Created by Steven Bochco and David E. Kelley, the show stars Neil Patrick Harris in the ...

'' from around the same time, Doogie is frequently seen wearing a ''Yo! MTV Raps'' white T-shirt, among other colors. *A ''

Magic: The Gathering ''Magic: The Gathering'' (colloquially known as ''Magic'' or ''MTG'') is a Tabletop game, tabletop and Digital collectible card game, digital Collectible card game, collectable card game created by Richard Garfield. Released in 1993 by Wizards ...

'' podcast is named "Yo! MTG Taps", a reference to the "tapping" mechanic used in the game. *There was a set of ''Yo! MTV Raps'' trading cards which featured the various hosts of the show and many of the artists whose videos were featured on the show. *In the

Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...

song "

It Was a Good Day "It Was a Good Day" is a song by American rapper Ice Cube, released on February 23, 1993 as the second single from his third solo album, '' The Predator'' (1992). The song peaked at No. 7 on the ''Billboard'' Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and No. ...

", the show is referenced in the lyrics "Went to Short Dog's house, they was watchin' ''Yo! MTV Raps''". *In the

Juelz Santana LaRon Louis James (born February 18, 1982), better known by his stage name Juelz Santana, is an American rapper and member of East Coast hip hop group The Diplomats, also known as Dipset. He is best known for his appearances on Cam'ron's 2002 si ...

song “Good Times”, the show is referenced in the lyrics "'Memba them ol' "''Yo! MTV Raps''" man, I hope they bring ''Yo! MTV'' back".

References

External links

Yo! MTV Raps 20th Anniversary
on

MTV.com MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

Jump The Shark - "Yo! MTV Raps"
*
VH1 Goes Inside "Yo! MTV Raps"

Hip-Hop's Greatest TV Moments - Yo! MTV Raps
*
Yo! MTV Raps England Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yo! Mtv Raps 1988 American television series debuts 1995 American television series endings 1980s American music television series 1990s American music television series 2022 American television series debuts 2020s American music television series American television series revived after cancellation MTV original programming MTV weekday shows Hip hop television Paramount+ original programming