The Best Thing Jimmy Fallon Has Ever Done, Ever.

With help from Justin Timberlake and The Roots, of course.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a slight cultural appropriation wince, though. Working through it.

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  • bittersweet

    I hear you about the cultural appropriation wince, but at the same time, these are two established super-duper hip hop fans… they have not hesitated to say how much they have been influenced by and are in awe of hip hop music and culture.

    I see it as a tribute.

    • shani-o

      Oh yeah, without a doubt. They’ve both consistently talked about a love of hip hop for the last 10 years or more. The wince was more of a macro-level thing.

      • bittersweet

        Gotcha.
        And thanks for the link. I would have otherwise missed it.

  • Scipio Africanus

    Being as I can’t see the video here at work, I’ll assume that whatever you guys are saying about it is something I’d agree with.

    But as to Jimmy Fallon’s funniness, I’ve *never* gotten his appeal. Like, not at any point ever. All he ever gets out of me is a chuckle, on occasion. (But what do I know, I’m the one black dude this side of East St. Louis who though Bernie Mac – RIP – was super over-rated.)

    • Darth Paul

      I find him seriously unfunny as well. Not grating or anything, just whatever.

      I’ve never “gotten” JT either. I’m just old I guess.

  • Paula

    Common did something like this when I saw him in concert this past spring. I was among college students, so I felt real old when I was the only person within a twenty yard radius of my seat that threw up my hands @ A Tribe Called Quest sample.

  • I get that same wince when anyone not from the inner cities of NYC lay cultural claim to hip hop but that’s def a macro thing. Jimmy on the other hand was born in Brooklyn.

    • young_

      nice!

  • I was impressed with JT’s humpty dance.

  • Paula

    Also, I never realized the MikeD nasal rap was so easily imitated — they both sounded like him so much that I did a double take.

    • Darth Paul

      His (MD’s) lyrics were genius, not his voice. It has that same shrill, nasal Eminem quality that I can’t hang with for long. Thank goddess for MCA.

  • Why do you have to work through it? I don’t get that. I didn’t find this all that interesting other than the whiteness “eating the other” as per usual.

    • April

      Same here. I don’t have a problem with the video; I just thought it was the same tired trope of “ooh, look at the white boys rap!” The grandmother in The Wedding Singer was more impressive performing “Rapper’s Delight.”

  • sewdope

    that was awesome!

  • Grump

    Jimmy Fallon does a better Running Man than Mike Tyson!!!!

  • B-Rob

    It is like the White sorority from U. of Arkansas winning the Sprite step off: if they respect Black culture and can bring it, what the hell else are we supposed to ask for?

  • I effin’ love my generation!

    The irony here is that early hip-hop compositions were created using bits and pieces from a diverse range of musical genres. Many of them with “roots” elsewhere and in one case as far as Japan by way of the 80s band A Taste of Honey. Now that’s dope, man!!!!

    This stuff belongs to us all because it touches us all. Besides, unless you laid down the vocals or produced the tracks how can you CLAIM it?