Opinion - White Rap

Hattie Collins discovers blue-eyed boys behind the new beats…

“Hey Em, you know you my favourite white boy, right?” coos 50 Cent on the intro to his Eminem-produced album track Patiently Waiting.

Seems Fiddy’s not the only fan of the sonics and similes of Slim Shady. In a new survey, a panel of industry ‘experts’ (and Bobby Gillespie) were asked to compile a list of the music industry’s most powerful people. Nestled at No 1, ahead of Outkast and Oasis, lies the multi-monikered Marshall Mathers – world-renowned rapper, writer, producer, entrepreneur and actor. Not only able to sell out stadiums at the drop of a rap, last May Mathers swayed some 75,000 people to register to vote after putting in an appearance at Detroit’s Hip Hop Summit. In the words of that other Caucasian invasion, Vanilla Ice, ‘Go white boy, go white boy, go!’ The Beastie’s may have fought for our right to party, but Eminem rocking the vote? Now there’s poetry in motion.

It’s not only the US offering prose from those of a paler-pallor. We may have yet to achieve the multi-million selling sales of Shady, but Birmingham’s boss-eyed Mike Skinner has been plastered on the pages of hip hop bible XXL, while doing-exactly-what-it-says-on-the-tin, John The White Rapper, has just signed to major label Sony. This is no recent phenomena either – Mark B may have only made TOTP in 2000 but he’s been making a name for himself since the late ‘80s.

Slowly, it seems, thanks to well-constructed wordplay and properly produced beats, white hip hop is escaping the wigga-ish whiff of Vanilla Ice. At racially-mixed grime raves, emcee Scratchy from Roll Deep Crew, is as adored by the crowd as fellow member Wiley. Similarly, the 4’11 Lady Sovereign holds her own in the ‘hood.

The reason, possibly, that these light-skinned lyricists are receiving respect, is the self-realisation that they must bin all talk of bling in favour of ‘keeping it real.’ Whether from the slums of the South Bronx or an estate in East London, since Melle Mel mused of ‘people pissing on the stairs’ hip hop has been the domain of the downtrodden. Indeed, the only ‘ice’ Eminem rhymes about is the sort that kept him cold in the trailer-park. To that end, HMP frequenter Skinnyman’s forthcoming album, titled Council Estate Of Mind, muses brilliantly about ‘bare dramas’ and ‘being aggie’ – whatever that may mean. Straight outta Sarf London meanwhile, gay duo Fierce Girl cite Kat Slater as inspiration and rap about being on the dole. “We’re scum and proud of it,’ they boast.

What the infiltration of white artists will mean for the future of hip hop remains to be seen. Throughout history white blokes from the Bee Gees to Benny Goodman have made off with black music, a fact Eminem acknowledges on Without Me. “I am the worst thing since Elvis Presley/ to do black music so selfishly/ and use it to get myself wealthy,” he points out. Whether rap will indeed go the way of rock and roll remains to be seen. But as long as those involved don’t attempt to dilute or reduce to novelty such a vital and important music, then surely everyone, whether acknowledged by Bobby G or not, will be a winner.

Skinnyman's Council Estate Of Mind is out now

A version of this article appeared int he Guardian Guide