Grandmaster Flash has released his second YouTube vignette, this time honoring four of Hip Hop's pillars. Released on Monday (February 6), just one day after Flash took the stage at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards alongside several of his fellow Hip Hop legends, the clip finds the pioneering turntablist talking about the contributions of JAY-Z, Drake, Eminem and Russell Simmons.
Speaking on JAY-Z, Flash talked about the Roc-A-Fella founder's journey from Sleeping Bag Records to Def Jam Recordings, where he ultimately became president of the label.
"I'm gonna say this," he says. "There are a lot of talented artists in the culture, but this gentlemen that I'm speaking about right now is probably one of the most smartest, one of the most brilliant as well as talented artists in this culture today."
As for Eminem, Flash marvels at his lyrical ability and calls his delivery "one of the best on the planet." Simmons, similarly, got props for his legendary career.
"I watched this gentlemen distribute records out of the trunk of his car, Later on with his partners Lyor Cohen and Rick Rubin, I watched him take this small label called Def Jam—and this is what was genius about this particular gentlemen—he went to Columbia, which was a huge distributing label and he kinda says, 'I don't want you to handle the day to day business. we just want you to distribute.' With the collaboration of Lyor Cohen, Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons, Def Jam becomes the Godzilla monster label of the culture."
Finally, Flash opened up about Drake's contributions to the culture and praised him for his ability to rap over a variety of beats. Watch the full clip below and stay up-to-date on everything Grandmaster Flash related here.
