MC Hammer: The Rise, Rebrand, and Fall of Hip-Hop’s First Superstar

[@stuntedgrowthmusic]

MC Hammer was hip hop’s first global superstar, that had a hand in taking it to the heights it is now. He’s absolutely a hip hop legend. With that said he could’ve dominated the 90s, but for these reasons that didn’t happen

[@17thN.O]

That's real. I was fortunate enough to be born and old enough to experience and appreciate the era of MC Hammer. He was the rap version of Michael Jackson for a period of time. His videos were premiered and presented as events like MJ when he was at his peak. Much respect to MC Hammer. He had all the endorsements, cartoons, commercials and everything else back in the 80's and early 90's. Hammer's "decline" was a prime example of Black people hatin on other Black people (his peers started it and the masses followed). Salute to the great MC Hammer. I have nothin but respect for the OG.

[@henryvirgil8188]

I'm sorry...Run DMC would like a word.

[@coreyhendricks9490]

Please do Rah Sun

[@donkryders8954]

Curtis blow is the first rap star mc hammer is the first pop rap star !

[@TheEdub1]

@@henryvirgil8188 People just don't know their history and it's sad.

[@DanielJordanOfficial]

Hammer is well respected in the Bay, he has done a lot for the community here.

[@Lust4Latinas]

KZbin @Lust4Latinas

[@ladarionaustin2179]

MC Hammer was a pure Entertainer he was a Underrated Dancer as well

[@Tinyjohnson127]

I asked you almost 2 years ago for this video , you finally got to it

[@TDBS83]

I remember everyone was giving Hammer hell back in the day for being too pop for the black community. At the end of the day, Hammer did his thing for rap music.

[@Lust4Latinas]

KZbin @Lust4Latinas

[@sosakobe1538]

He was just 30 years ahead of his time.

[@Smoke_Hogan]

We loved Hammer when we were kids, my sisters had the doll, the posters, the movie....MC Hammer was the man in the early 90s

[@KrucialKAAAA912]

Facts

[@highlightboy23]

Also one of the most respected because he had ties with gangs despite his flamboyant style.

[@dannydamnmendez]

He was like the Barry White of hip-hop

[@thenewjord50]

Ice T was the only gangsta rapper that defended Hammer in the 90s he stated he don't hate pop rappers but hate gangsta rappers who alienate their fan base to jump the pop crowd

[@emanuelespinoza9325]

The fact that Hammer was respected by the likes of Ice-T, Eazy-E, DJ Quik, and Suge Knight, that really says a lot about him.

[@LEXRAPS]

He was more hood than half of hip-hop back then.

[@jamesgibson3716]

Kinda still is.....

[@KingBrahma-xw6mt]

He still is technically

[@ontourpicslive7404]

It wasn’t about being Hood, it was about making good music and connecting with a black audience

[@LEXRAPS]

@ I’m speaking in terms of people saying he wasn’t from the streets. He was well connected. MC Serch almost got taken out by Hammer and his crew

[@JetBlakNinja]

@LEXRAPS is on point. It's funny that Pac had so much to say when his gangster image was purely fabricated and confusing. His own biological brother said so. Hammer was and still is someone you don't want to mess with. Don't let the parachute pants fool you.

[@kincamell2]

I saw him a few years ago at Jack London Square and I told him thank you for his contribution to the culture.

[@87alock]

That's what's up

[@derekmoore2310]

Pac apologized to Hammer & realized he was wrong for saying that & wrote a song for Hammer before his death & song is powerful 🫡

[@JamesAlford-d3m]

What was the song?

[@derekmoore2310]

@JamesAlford-d3m unconditional love

[@Gridloc-22]

As a black boy growing up in the suburbs and a dancer i rocks with hummer. He was the artist that got me learning to rap because i listened to rock alternative grunge, and some heavy metal ,MC hammer opened me up to c and c music factory, P. M. Dawn, then Krs1, NWA and etc. Etc. I was a naughty by nature fan hard. I salute the dude 🫡

[@keishacallender6337]

I don't care!!! He's a legend, and pumps and the bumps is my shiiit!!!✊✌😜

[@goodvibestv707]

Idc what nobody says, MC Hammer is definitely the Trendsetter of this Hip Hop Music. During his prime in the early 90's, He was Like Drake Before Drake even exist

[@pbodyblaque2532]

U either love him or love to hate him. But Hammer really took Hiphop to a whole new level. The first hiphop artist to have a Diamond 💎 album, “Please Hammer Don’t Hurt’em.” “Too Legit…” the original & remix, are classics!. There will never be another like him!.

[@marslowell3992]

Hammer was the man 😊. Hip-hop doesn't need to be all positive nor negative but what we need to do is to control the images. I remember guys back in the day would talk badly about hammer but they failed to realized that his early image was needed in hip-hop because it wasn't negative.

[@ThaMizphit74]

Hammer rebounded quite well with several investments in Silicon Valley. Of course it's not where he once was, but he's good these days.

[@malenkomack5744]

First hiphop superstar and Im convinced he birthed the Kirk Franklin style gospel rap

[@Aitch-qq6td]

😂Agree. The first time I heard KF on the radio not knowing who he was I was like Hammer got a new song out.

[@TheEdub1]

No he's not!

[@malenkomack5744]

@TheEdub1 he was the first to bring it to the mainstream I'm from nc I never heard that hybrid until hammer did it

[@TheEdub1]

@malenkomack5744 No he wasn't. How was Run Dmc, LL, Beastie's doing stadiums 🏟 but Hammer was first. On top of that when Hammer first dropped he wasn't mainstream. He didn't become mainstream until 1990 on with U Can't Touch This.

[@TheEdub1]

@@malenkomack5744 I wasn't talking about the gospel & rap either. I was talking about mainstream artists before Hammer in general. Maybe u misunderstood what I was saying.

[@brokenpsylens7938]

Hammer gets maximum respect. Respect to the LEGEND.

[@MackTatum]

FINALLY you posted the video that I had been requesting for years!! Thank you!

[@87alock]

8:33. What the hell was 2Pac talking about? He was dancing like a fool at the beginning of his career

[@mohammednasirdauda8998]

Isn't that guy too loud mouthed for what he thinks he represents? He seemed to have a say in anything.

[@gedaman]

I don’t know if you can call anyone who has a diamond selling album stunted growth. He was very successful during a few years and he faded away. Many rappers wish they could attain the level of success that he had.

[@dinkyboss]

Yeah every artist has their peaks and no one is going to be as popular as they were at their peak forever. Stunted growth would imply he never reached the success he clearly did

[@gedaman]

@@dinkyboss MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice had the sharpest declines of any rappers ever. You can’t really call them failures. They had legendary moments and then people’s interests moved on fast. Stunted growth should only be for artists that never had any real success or very limited success such as someone like Lil Zane. That would be a good future video.

[@KingBrahma-xw6mt]

Technically people got mad cause he was himself he didn’t have prove he was from Oakland in his music

[@georgethimakis4710]

Ppl sleeping on Da Funky Headhunter is a good album

[@anthonylove9443]

That's crazy cuz PAC became one of hammers best friends when they both joined deathrow

[@jeanemlicar]

Can we get a Kid N Play,MC Lyte,Queen Latifah and a MC Shan video 🙏

[@TreFKennedy]

Much respect to Hammer

[@spiritualginga2064]

He was once a pastor too

[@MLee0584]

Legitimately one of my favorites

[@kincamell2]

Peace to Oaktown 357

[@TopPickReviews]

Cool video you made some good points a about hammer's decline I have a video suggestion can you make a video on Kool Moe Dee he was big in the 80s but just dropped off I would love to see a video on him !!

[@123theprodigy5]

Man, he was able to do what Vanilla Ice got clowned for doing, making hip-hop more commercial.

[@QueenImagoDei]

No. Vanilla Ice was not trying to help the culture. He was one of the original Culture Vultures.

[@123theprodigy5]

That makes sense, also he got sued by queen and David Bowie for sampling under pressure

[@mxhughes]

Hammer waa heavily criticized for being commercial,if anything hip hop of the last 25 years should thank him for opening the doors to branding and othe alternatives that helped rappers make money off their name n fame

[@123theprodigy5]

Yep, this is why academics said old rappers are dusty, even though the wording was wrong, I get what he meant.

[@purrfitazitgetz3365]

Vanilla ice was a gimmicky culture vulture and dats why he didn’t last 🤦🏾‍♂️ dats whad most people don’t realize is dats why most artist who 1 hit wonders later flop cause Dey biting sounds, cultures, and trends for a money grab and it dries up quick

[@charismatic9904]

One song of his had been on every playlist of mine. From tapes to cd to mp3, well u get the point. That song is pumps and a bump.

[@batriciaparker]

Great video! 🔥🔥🔥

[@andresciahooten9598]

MC Hammer was flashy before Puffy was 😂😂😂

[@therealmarlonbellamy]

MC Hammer was that dude. Here’s a fun fact: I share the same birthday as him. You should do the following artists next: DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince Kid N Play Kwame

[@iconoclasttheunholy4540]

It's Hammer Time !!! I love this channel but my request for Jus Allah from.Jedi Mind Tricks and part 2 breakdown as to why the first line up of Army Of The Pharoahs (JMT Supergroup) that had Bahamadia also failed

[@ricardored207]

He was TRULY the ONLY RAPPER that rivaled the KING OF POP and did his numbers in popularity as well‼️… His only downfall was keeping it “REAL” and keeping all of those people employed that eventually turned their backs on him‼️

[@queenj.shanaye4211]

GREAT VIDEO KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!!

[@BaronSemediLive]

💡CORRECTION : LL Cool J, is Hip-Hop's FIRST superstar. It's been L's success that rapper's have been chasing for years INCLUDING Hammer. Remember it was Hammer that called-out LL' trying go gain popularity.

[@shaunie1011]

When Hammer was a superstar, LL was not a superstar. Very popular but not superstar. Circa 1988-1991. Compare those years.

[@blacklionSM]

@@shaunie1011 Ummmmm LL was a superstar even back in 86 what are you talking about?!

[@shaunie1011]

@blacklionSM define superstar though. Like I'm talking about reach. In 1986, LL was big but mainly in our community. Hammer was cartoons, dolls, headlining his own tour, and going Diamond. Not diminishing anything about LL. If I'm comparing first to do this or that... I'd think of Hammer as far as impact. Not talking about longevity, skill, or anything like that.

[@blacklionSM]

@shaunie1011 Sooooo Impact. LL was going platinum back in 85. Those album sales weren't just from "our community". LL was one of the rappers to perform on "American Bandstand". The first rapper to perform on "Saturday Day Live". You can't get more mainstream than that. World Tours all before the age of 20. Just sayin I'd be a fool to say Hammer didn't have global success BUT LL was the raps first superstar.

[@ontourpicslive7404]

@@shaunie1011define Superstar?

[@malcolmcox18]

Definition of damned if you do and damned if you don't.

[@blakebrown84]

MC Hammer is a pure entertainment and a very good dancer. He was respected by the Bay Area community because he looked out for a lot of people. He became good friends with Coach Prime, so I think they’re still friends. He wasn’t the most lyrical rapper either, so he was on every worst rappers list. I remember when he was sued by Rick James for sampling his song without permission.

[@KrucialKAAAA912]

Well at least the album went gold 🪙

[@littlep1255]

Please Hammer Don't hurt'em

[@kaynetinnermon7638]

I don't think hammer could have done anything different to stay relevant. I think he was a rapper who was great for the time he came out. Rapper dancer artist like hammer or kid n play didn't fit in with the street rap that was coming in. I think he maxed his potential, he was the biggest rapper in the game at a time, Not many can say that. Also when he came back out with the funky head hunter album. People got caught up on the look but if you listen to the music, it was nothing gangsta about it. The song was literally called pumps & the bumps. No gang reference or gun reference in the song, he talking about dancing the whole song

[@xalleem8117]

Would love to see(but probably won't ever) DuckDown records...Black Moon Sean Price Helta Skelta Smiff and Wesson etc...✌🏾

[@AaronLesterMedia]

Stunted Growth? How you become one of the world's biggest stars and people say you're growth was stunted? Hammer accomplished everything he set out to accomplish. That's not a Stunted Growth bro.

[@andresciahooten9598]

Can you please do a video on Jennifer Lopez! It’s way overdue

[@purrfitazitgetz3365]

Hammer got heat for being too “ commercial “ in era hip hop wasn’t commercial like it is today and also artist didn’t dance so he caught heat from all directions and why he doesn’t get his true followers

[@isaiahwinbrone]

He is a devout christian

[@LaCheleWallace]

You know, they treated MC Hammer so wrong. When he came up, he made sure to take care of everybody around him. He was an extremely generous individual. Soon as he started to fall off, folks disappeared faster than Casper and couldn't nobody be bothered. Anyhow, this just goes to show that nobody stays in that balls to the walls, mainstream limelight forever. Nah, I am not the biggest fan, however, I definitely know the hits. My favorite ended up being 1994's _Pumps and a Bump._ I used to drive my dad to drank w/ that record. Looking back, it's interesting that folks gave MC Hammer a hard time for being too commercial and pop, but Kid 'n Play was commercial and pop as well. I wonder if there was some regional bias going on. The one from the West Coast got clowned. The ones from the East Coast were making positive music.

[@chi_deraa]

Can you do a video on Jennifer Lopez?

[@smiffenwesson2281]

With out all the charges, this was the first diddy. Diddy is just the east coast version. Flashy suits.pop raps. Dancers.etc….

[@UrbanNinja123]

Stop dont do that.

[@ILL7Ven]

Hammer was the archetype for commercialism til this day in Hip Hop. Jay Z and Diddy actually borrowed from his imagery. Aquiring that amount of wealth was a new idea in that time

[@donguapisimo4222]

“Too ahead of his time” AND a “relic of a previous era”? I was outside in the bay in those days and it was definitely the latter. I was watching that episode of, I believe it was a special edition of Home Turf with Dominique DiPrima as host, and Tupac’s comment was on point as far as how the streets were feeling. Not that it was the correct take but the perception of the fans is their reality.

[@Marvilloso]

Well he did do a vanilla ice stuntedgrowth, you might as well do one on mc hammer, I'm just saying 😂

[@radiomusic933]

I was waiting to hear Tupac’s answer

[@anthonyclark9441]

The thing that I always thought was ironic and messed up about Hammer and how he was treated by the other Rappers, is that they all wound up doing exactly what he did. They all wound up doing more "Mainstream" Music. They all wound up doing the outside endeavors, such as Endorsement Deals and appearances in Film and Television. He did nothing but what he was supposed to do. He used the Industry to make Money, and at least Hammer tried to uplift his people, by giving anyone who wanted to work a job to do. The other Rappers got the people to turn against him, slowing his earning potential, and that was never going to be good for a guy who had over 100 people working for him. His generosity and people making bad investments with his Money did him in. And the so called Hip Hop "Community" ran his name through the mud. A lot of the Rappers I grew up on wound up being massive hypocrites for that, and I bet none of them apologized to Hammer, or even gave him his flowers for being the one to lay the path.

[@ontourpicslive7404]

I think you’re forgetting one major thing though, and that’s the music. MC Hammer was making generic watered down hip hop.

[@anthonyclark9441]

​@@ontourpicslive7404I haven't forgotten anything, because that's a bunch of bullshit. Because he wasn't trying to sell us the same violence and nonsense that other Rappers from out West were, his Music was "generic and watered down"? Hell no, and I'll never accept that crap. Oh, and what does that have to do with every other Rappers Hypocrisy? Oh, because their Music wasn't "generic and watered down" that excuses their bullshit. Just proves what I always say. People will accept any and all manner of bullshit, just as long as they like the person it's coming from. I don't know you, but I'll assume you're smarter than THAT.

[@sefusolace410]

👉🏾Wrong, wrong, wrong! Kurtis Blow was the first Hip Hop star! In 1979, Kurtis was the first Rap artist to be signed to a major record label, Mercury Records, with the single, “The Breaks!” Kurtis was the first Rap artist to release a full album of raps, courtesy of, Mercury Records! As a Rap artist, Kurtis was also Hip Hops first Millionaire! I Know all this because I was around; and I’m not the only person that knows this. I didn’t need to Google this information. It’s people like myself that need to keep the truth alive! Any time we see or hear false narratives about Hip Hop, we need to address it! The FBA’s created the roots of 99.9% of American music! But, they won’t tell you that, unless you are and American music advocate, or a great listener of Black American music, and Black American culture. 👉🏾STOP ALLOWING THEM TO TELL LIES ABOUT OUR MUSIC! They are claiming our culture, they’ve been doing this for centuries people! ✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾 PS: No disrespect to MC Hammer, He was our first Hip Hop POP Star. (Nothings wrong about that) He did help revolutionize HIP HOP, because he’s one of us! We just keep creating Sh*t! 😂 😂 😂

[@QueenImagoDei]

The interesting thing about Hammer is he really came from the hood and gave back to it, but was considered inauthentic because he chose not to glorify that life and instead promoted positivity. Our values are really f@cked up.😔

[@YnobeG]

Hammer was 10x more Gangsta than all the so-called gangsta rappers who dissed him. Ice Cube and LL calling him a sellout is comical 😅

[@Kellnino]

He should have ignored those questioning his street cred and just went the Flo-Rida route. Might have lasted a lil longer

[@Roccofan]

Money is authentic as F. Get some.

[@TheCheckInReport]

Idk about hip hop’s first superstar maybe mainstream wise you can have a argument but you had Kurtis Blow and LL was way before him

[@shaunie1011]

They did, not not like Hammer. Commercial, yes but not world-wide like Hammer.

[@blacklionSM]

@@shaunie1011LL was headlining World Tours before he was 19..what are you talking about?!

[@shaunie1011]

@blacklionSM Come on... Impact. We're talking impact during their musical peaks.

[@TheCheckInReport]

@@shaunie1011 Hammer has no impact their is no one in hip hop currently emulating what Hammer did in his hey day plp are still copying LL to this day

[@shaunie1011]

@TheCheckInReport we are talking superstar sir and all of the things that Hammer was scoffed at, the rap artists are doing today. This isn't an argument about who's the better rapper. Impact is endorsements, dolls, headlining worldwide tours, cartoons. That is what I'm referring to. No arguments here. I was alive during this time and recall LLs impact including when most folks were introduced to him via Krush Groove. I think ima bow out because it's pointless.

[@JamesSmith-ov5um]

Hammer was not the first Hip Hop Superstar, LL was and arguably Kurtis Blow

[@wolfthermitus246]

It's funny seeing clips of Tupac dissing him for being popular and not gangsta, when he was more gangsta than Pac

[@TheEdub1]

Hammer was not hip hop's first superstar. Stop making vids if u don't know what you're talking about man. Hip hop's first solo superstar was Kurtis Blow or LL Cool J. And as a group it was probably Run Dmc.

[@2327-Ohh]

FF 2024 who's the real sellout?, shout out to driving around LA with T Carlson

[@briant.3001]

The Funky Head Hunter went platinum, not gold, put some respect on his name... gnaw, but for real, the certification was in 94. I'm not sure where you got your information from.

[@purrfitazitgetz3365]

Dese new age rap fans are weirdos dat want dese artist to crash out @ 100 mph and if dem fans den i wouldn’t want em

[@kkarter6506]

2pac was ok some hating shit 😂

[@justineebourgeois3420]

MC Hammer > Overrated Kendrick Lamar 🤷🏻‍♀️