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Pop Rock Nation

Tag: Run-DMC

  • Honors Weekend: The R&R Hall of Fame & The ACM Awards

    carrieEver tried to talk about an award show when you didn’t actually see it? Pretty difficult. eh? Well, I’m not even gonna try, instead leaving most of the discussion about this week’s ceremonies to people who either watched on TV or were actually there.

    The Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony was this past Saturday night, and among the highlights were a moving speech by Eminem as he inducted Run-DMC, and a blistering performance by honorees Metallica, who were joined by former bassist Jason Newsted for the first time in almost a decade. You can read more about the Hall of Fame ceremony here.

    Last night was the Academy of Country Music awards ceremony, and Carrie Underwood officially cemented her status as the most successful American Idol ever by winning the Entertainer of the Year award, making her only the seventh female artist to win the award since 1970 (damn!). Other big winners included Taylor Swift (for best album), Brad Paisley (for best male artist) and Rascal Flatts (for best group). Word among the blogosphere is that the ceremony was quite entertaining and arguably better than this year’s Grammys.

    The ACM awards should have a pretty big influence on the next two weeks of charts, so we’ll see how Underwood and Swift, who have already sold millions of copies of their latest efforts, fare. With that, we can officially close the book on award show season, at least until the BET Awards pop up this summer.

    You can read more about the ACM Awards here.

  • Infatueighties #49: Rock Box

    rockbox

    If any one song summarizes why Run-DMC will be taking their rightful place as inductees in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, “Rock Box” is it. Even if you take away Eddie Martinez’s squealing guitar histrionics, “Rock Box” just oozes rock & roll attitude-moreso than any other hip-hop record that had been made up to that point, and more than many records that have been made since!!

    In today’s super-consumerist musical world, where everyone and their momma has a clothing line or an endorsement deal, it’s refreshing to hear “Calvin Klein’s no friend of mine/Don’t want nobody’s name on my behind”-yet another example of how much hip-hop has changed over the years.

    Also worthy of props? “Rock Box” was the first hip-hop video ever played on MTV, one of many firsts Run, D and Jay racked up during that period in the Eighties when they were pretty much the face of hip-hop to most of America. The song itself still kicks ass HARD. Take a listen and judge for yourself.

  • Enter Sandman: Right Next to My Adidas

    metallica2To no one’s surprise, Metallica and Run-DMC will be inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame in their induction ceremony next month. Their inclusions are, of course, deserved. Metallica is unquestionably the hardest metal band to sustain a multi-platinum career for two decades plus, and although Run-DMC’s reign at the top was brief, they kicked down just about every possible door a rap artist could kick down on the road to success.

    The other inductees are Jeff Beck, Bobby Womack and Little Anthony & the Imperials. Some folks will question those decisions, some people will scoff, some people will wonder what it will take to get The Stooges (and to a lesser extent, Chic) into the Hall of Fame. Any way you look at it, the jam that typically occurs at the end of the induction ceremony should be interesting!