Kurtis Blow became the first rapper to sign a record deal in 1979 when he inked the dotted line with Mercury Records for the single "Christmas Rappin'." The track sold over 400,000 copies, making it the most commercially successful Hip Hop single at the time. Now, the Harlem Hip Hop legend has returned with an updated version of the song with the help of DJ Hurricane.
Shortly before Christmas, the former Beastie Boys DJ uploaded a clip of the song to his Instagram account, which features Blow rapping in front of Hurricane as he tears up the turntables. An army of Hurricane's peers flooded the comments with approval.
Big Daddy Kane wrote, "KURT!!! All the best to you and the fam Cane," De La Soul's Plug One left a series of crown emojis and Masta Ace simply said, "I love it!!!" Al B. Sure!, who's recovering from a recent liver transplant, even chimed in alongside Rahiem, Dee Barnes, DJ Cool V and Diamond D.
Kurtis Blow will help ring in the 50th celebration of Hip Hop in 2023. As one of the Universal Hip Hop Museum's co-founders and Founder/Co-Director of the Hip Hop Alliance, his dedication to the culture remains unwavering. Find more information on the Hip Hop Alliance here, check out the video clip here and revisit the original "Christmas Rappin'" below.
