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Jason Sudeikis won’t ever be confused with being a world-class rapper but that doesn’t mean he can’t get his bars off when the time calls for the act. At a recent fundraiser event, Jason Sudeikis rapped Chuck D’s verses from a popular Public Enemy track and was joined onstage by Flavor Flav.
As reported by TMZ Hip Hop, Jason Sudeikis hosted the annual THUNDERGONG charity concert event this past weekend and was captured onstage at the Uptown Theater in Kansas City taking to the stage with a band backing him. Sudeikis chose Public Enemy and Anthrax’s version of “Bring The Noise” and capably did well on the rapping portion of the track. Flavor Flav joined the Ted Lasso star onstage in his familiar hype man role, bringing necessary energy to the performance.
THUNDERGONG is the creation of Jason Sudeikis and Billy Brimblecom who founded the star-studded musical event to raise funds for the Steps of Faith organization which assists uninsured or underinsured amputees and provides care and prosthetics for those individuals. At this year’s THUNDERGONG, Ted Lasso actors Brendan Hunt and Cristo Fernández joined the festivities along with actor Will Forte, who performed a duet of Chappell Roan’s “Hot to Go” with musical satirist Weird Al Yankovic.
Check out Jason Sudeikis and Flavor Flav rocking out below.
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Photo: Getty
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Source: Taylor Hill / Getty
Flavor Flav slammed the Daily Mail over their coverage of Public Enemy and Chuck D, calling it “disrespectful.”
On Monday (Sept. 30), the legendary Hip-Hop group Public Enemy announced that they had to cancel their Australian tour dates due to Chuck D needing an eye procedure. “I’m sorry to make you wait a little longer but I need to get this eye surgery done, so I can really rock the house for you and Bring The Noise. Stay tuned for the new dates,” he said in the statement. It would go on to express that “all existing ticketholders will be notified of rescheduled dates once confirmed” and that the “original purchases will be valid for the rescheduled date without the need for exchange.”
The Daily Mail, a British tabloid, reported the news with the headline: “Hip-Hop legends Public Enemy cancel entire Australian tour just days out – after Chuck D and Flavor Flav dropped half their Aussie dates from the line-up.” The headline was accompanied by a side-by-side image of Flavor Flav and Taylor Swift that sat at the top of the article. Flavor Flav wasn’t pleased with the publication’s misleading headline and the image, which was snagged from an embedded video where Flav had attended the superstar singer’s show recently.
“So much disrespect and false news in one headline,,, let me set it straight,” he wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “We have to postpone some shows because my partner @MrChuckD requires immediate eye surgery. We put health above wealth. Why use a picture of Taylor for clickbait,?? PE is in the [Rock & Roll Hall of Fame]. We good.”
Public Enemy had been slated to perform in Australia from Oct. 2 through Oct. 24 for their On The Grid 35th Anniversary Tour, with dates in Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth included. Chuck D addressed the cancellation through another post on X, writing: “Thx yall im. Not sick. Had 2 torn retinas this year and upon repair the right eye needs cataract surgery this month because it accelerated. The eye is 64 years old those that are in tune with their elders are familiar although they don’t rhyme high speed on a stage. Ish shappens.”
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Source: Renee Dominguez / Getty / Chuck D
Hollywood isn’t the only industry worried about the dangers of AI (artificial intelligence). The music industry is also weary of the technology.
Spotted on Deadline, the Artists Rights Alliance penned an open letter that garnered over 200 signatures from big names in the entertainment and music industry, calling on AI companies and digital streaming platforms to pledge “that undermine or replace the human artistry of songwriters and artists or deny us fair compensation for our work.”
The website reports that Billie Eilish, her brother Finneas, Nicki Minaj, the estates of Bob Marley and Frank Sinatra, Smokey Robinson, Katy Perry, R.E.M, Chuck D, Camila Cabello, J Balvin, and more have signed the letter that lives on Medium.
The letter calls on “AI developers, technology companies, platforms, and digital music services to cease using artificial intelligence (AI) to infringe upon and devalue the rights of human artists.”
It also points out that AI can be beneficial by adding, “Make no mistake: we believe that, when used responsibly, AI has enormous potential to advance human creativity and in a manner that enables the development and growth of new and exciting experiences for music fans everywhere.
“Unfortunately, some platforms and developers are employing AI to sabotage creativity and undermine artists, songwriters, musicians and rightsholders.”
The letter adds it wants to “protect against the predatory use of AI to steal professional artists’ voices and likenesses, violate creators’ rights, and destroy the music ecosystem.”
AI was a significant issue in the SAG-AFTRA and Writer’s Guild strikes, which lasted for several months before both entities agreed on major sticking points.
In the music industry, AI is used in production and mastering, while independent artists utilize the tool to help with songwriting.
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Source: press handout / Opposition
Rap legends Chuck D and Daddy-O have united once more with a new project and movement featuring many of the big names in Hip-Hop to address the issues of the community.
Over 30 years since the original “Self Destruction” track was released, a new project helmed by Chuck D of Public Enemy and Daddy-O of Stetsasonic entitled “Stop Self Destruction,” was announced in a press release. The icons and longtime friends were part of the original song released in 1989, which brought together the greatest names in Hip-Hop on the East Coast to decry the rising violence in the Black community.
This time around, both MCs are partnering with the music label Opposition to create the track “Stop Self Destruction,” featuring some of the best artists from around the world. The song will be the spearhead of the initiative to spark meaningful discussions and actions regarding the state of Hip-Hop and the community, which has seen an alarming number of artists lost to violence, substance abuse, suicide and those lost to the penal system.
“Hip Hop has always helped each generation find its voice. Right now, there are more issues to speak about than ever before, but there are also more distractions. It’s our responsibility, as an artist-first label, to ensure that artists who speak about what’s really going on in their communities are getting the proper amount of attention and support. These artists will shape the voice of a generation,” said Opposition’s label head Shane Gil in the press release.
The new movement will also produce more documentaries and videos focusing on these issues and the culture. The collaboration with Opposition, whose mission is to be forward-thinking with respect to its artists, began in 2021 as Chuck D and Daddy-O were featured on a virtual panel discussion with Gil for the South by Southwest Festival that year. Shortly after, top artists from the Bay Area including E-40 and Too Short released a track called “8:46” referencing the length of time that former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on George Floyd’s neck in 2020, leading to his death.
Visit here to find out more about the Stop Self Destruction movement.
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