Face it, Cornell. We lack street credibility.
Harvard had Method Man and Redman in How High. Columbia is right next door to Harlem World. Even Penn is in West Philadelphia, where Will Smith was born and raised.
There’s nothing thug about our school at all. Look around the campus store. No baggy pants. No do-rags. No basketball jerseys.
Go upstairs and look at the Cornell music selection. Chimesmasters. Pep Band. Glee Club. About 50 a cappella groups. No hip-hop.
At Cornell, we think the Neptunes are a subject for space sciences or a classics course. We think Roc-A-Fella is that big building across the street from Goldwin Smith.
And that is why, Cornell, we need somebody to record a Cornell rap CD. And that somebody is the athletes.
Athletes and rap mix. (Okay, not always well, but they do mix). Think Allen Iverson. Think Roy Jones Jr. Think Shaq. Think the ’85 Chicago Bears, if you want to count the Super Bowl Shuffle as hip-hop.
Conversely, rappers constantly reference the sports world. Take Fabolous, who “hit a chick once and she running back like Fred Taylor,” or Eminem, who’s “cursin’ at your players worse than Marty Schottenheimer.” Or just watch some rap videos and see how many teams’ logos make an appearance.
I’d say it’s about time to get the Cornell athletic community involved. I’ll even help with some lyrics. Hell, I’ll chip in for studio time.
So here are a few ideas. I figure men’s hockey is a prime candidate for a track on this hip-hop CD. Rappers are always talking about how they’re all iced out and nobody on this campus is more iced out than the hockey team. I’m thinking we could give senior co-captain Stephen B