Eryk Moore

Lil Yachty recently called The Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight” “weak as hell.” And while everyone is entitled to an opinion, the real question isn’t whether he likes the song , it’s whether he would even have a voice without it. Rapper’s Delight wasn’t about lyrical acrobatics or modern production value. It was proof of concept. It was one of the first rap records to break into mainstream radio and prove that hip-hop could sell, travel, and live beyond the block. My message is clear,...

So hear me out!!!!! Because this one requires some depth.         The division we see within our culture today does not exist in a vacuum. It stems from generational trauma, cycles formed during slavery that were never fully dismantled, only repackaged. In the antebellum South, the divide between house slaves and field slaves was strategic. Differences in labor, proximity to the enslaver, and living conditions were not accidental. They were engineered. The result was resentment, suspicion,...

Every few years, someone attempts to redraw the borders of culture as if they were there at its creation. ’ dismissive comments about Black artists in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame aren’t just opinions about genre, they reflect a narrow understanding of history. Rock & roll did not emerge from thin air. It was born from the blues, from gospel, from rhythm and blues, forms created and shaped by Black artists long before arenas, merchandising, and corporate branding entered the picture. Hip-Hop...