| Yo! MTV Raps | |
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| Also known as | Yo! |
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| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 1,838 |
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| Cinematography | Jeff Muhlstock |
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| Running time | 60 minutes (including commercials) |
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| Original release | |
| Network | MTV Europe |
| Release | October 1987 (1987-10) – December 1990 (1990-12) |
| Network | MTV |
| Release | August 6, 1988 (1988-08-06) – August 17, 1995 (1995-08-17) |
| Network | Paramount+ |
| Release | May 24 (2022-05-24) – July 12, 2022 (2022-07-12) |
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Yo! MTV Raps is ahip-hopmusic video program, which first aired onMTV Europe from October 1987 to December 1990 and onMTV US from August 1988 to August 1995. The US version of the program (created byTed Demme and Peter Dougherty) was the first hip hop music show on the network, and was based on the original Europe show.Yo! MTV Raps produced a mix of rap videos, interviews with rap stars, live in-studio performances (on Fridays), and comedy.
The Europe version was hosted by its original creatorSophie Bramly. The US version was originally hosted byFab 5 Freddy. Later, the show's main host wasDoctor Dré and Demme's high school friend,Ed Lover who both hosted together on weekdays. Soon they were joined by Doctor Dre'sOriginal Concept group member T Money, whilst Fab Five Freddy proceeded to host on weekends.
On the weekday version dubbed,Yo! MTV Raps Today (which debuted on March 13, 1989), Ed Lover created his own dance called theEd Lover Dance (which was typically featured on Wednesdays) that became somewhat popular in the 1990s. The Ed Lover Dance was performed to the track "The 900 Number" byThe 45 King.
In October 1987, French journalist and producerSophie Bramly developed and hosted the programYo! for the then-nascent MTV Europe, withAfrika Bambaataa as the first guest. LaterN.W.A,Public Enemy,LL Cool J,Ice-T,De La Soul,Eric B. & Rakim,EPMD orUltramagnetic MCs were invited.[1] On 6 August 1988, the USpilot episode was shown, hosted by Run DMC, withDJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince as the program's first guests andEric B. & Rakim's video for the title track of the albumFollow the Leader as the first video shown on the program.[2] The pilot was one of the highestrated programs to ever air on MTV at that point, with only theVideo Music Awards andLive Aid receiving greater ratings.
Shinehead's "Chain Gang" was the first video to be shown during a regular-season episode. Meanwhile,Ice-T's "High Rollers" was the first video to be played during the weekday show. The classicYo! MTV Raps logo was created by early graffiti writer, Dr. Revolt. The animated show open was produced by Nigel Cox-Hagen and animated by Beau Tardy.
The advent ofYo! MTV Raps in the late 1980s was crucial to spreading hip-hop around the world.[3] ThroughMTV Europe,MTV Asia, and MTV Latino, African-American and Latino style and sound became instantly available to millions of people across the globe, helping to create a worldwide appreciation and interest in the hip-hop scene, which is something that was celebrated on theYo! MTV Raps 20th anniversary.[4]
AlthoughVideo Music Box is often considered the first contender, in 1989, former rivalBET created competition by premieringRap City. The show was the longest-running hip-hop program because of its 19-year run (ending in 2009). WhileYo! MTV Raps', which is now discontinued, generally focused on the rap scene from the East Coast and largely popular West Coast artists,Rap City also included videos from up-and-coming underground rappers from different regions of the US.
One of the most popular artists to be featured onYo! MTV Raps wasNaughty by Nature. When MTV started itsDown With MTV advertising campaign in 1992, Naughty by Nature's smash hit "O.P.P." was used as the basis.
The ratings fell after pullingPublic Enemy's video "By the Time I Get to Arizona" in 1991, claiming it was too violent. Also,Yo! MTV Raps almost declined to air the video forCypress Hill's "How I Could Just Kill a Man." Only after Sheri Howell, Vice President of Music and Artist Development at MTV, intervened that MTV changed their minds.
By around 1992–93, MTV airedYo! MTV Raps only once a week, for two hours, on Fridays after midnight.
Yo! MTV Raps had its series finale on August 17, 1995. Numerous high-profile names in the world of hip-hop closed the show out with afreestyle rap session, includingRakim,KRS-One,Redman,Method Man,Special Ed,Erick Sermon,Chubb Rock,Craig Mack,MC Serch of3rd Bass, andLarge Professor.Salt-N-Pepa holds the distinction of appearing on the first (technically, the first episode to feature Fab 5 Freddy) and last episodes ofYo! MTV Raps.
From 1996 to 1999, MTV repackaged it as simplyYo!, which was far more stripped-down and had a weekly slate of special guest hosts. For instance,Angie Martinez andFatman Scoop served as its hosts. By 1998,Yo! had no guest hosts and became a one-hour program airing late Friday nights at 1 a.m. or 1:30 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time).
In 2000, MTV's outlet for hip-hop videos becameDirect Effect, known since 2006 asSucker Free. It aired three times a week at around 7:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time). It is one of the few music video outlets for MTV besides its late-night/early-morning music video rotation hours, as MTV continues to focus on non-music video programming, especiallyreality television shows.
Yo! MTV Raps made a comeback of sorts, after an eight-year hiatus during theJackassworld.com: 24 Hour Takeover in February 2008. It hadSteve-O (alongsideSam Maccarone) promoting his new rap album, doing freestyles, and showing his new music video. The old set was carefully recreated, withJohnny Knoxville joking thatMike Judge created a brand newBeavis and Butt-Head episode with them critiquing Steve-O's rap video.
In April 2008,Yo! MTV Raps celebrated its 20th anniversary[5] by making a comeback on MTV. MTV's showSucker Free transformed intoYo! MTV Raps and featured classic hip-hop music videos as well as current hip-hop videos. Fab 5 Freddy,Doctor Dré and Ed Lover contributed to the tribute of the show. At the end of April 2008, MTV airedYo! countdown shows and featured the top moments from the show during its airing on MTV.
Yo! MTV Raps was revived for a new generation in 2018, celebrating the 30th anniversary at Brooklyn's Barclays Center on June 1, 2018.[6]
The live show featured Big Daddy Kane and the Juice Crew, Eric B & Rakim, Doug E. Fresh, KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions, EPMD, Flavor Flav, and many more. It also featured past hosts and DJs who helped shepherd the series, like Fab 5 Freddy, Ed Lover, Doctor Dré, T Money, Skribble, Red Alert, and Chuck Chillout. Tribute videos from artists like Eminem, Method Man, and Redman also commemorated the occasion.
In Spring 2019, Viacom International Media Networks relaunched the series with local versions in the UK, Germany, South-East Asia, and pan-African versions on MTV Base and MTV Africa. The Format and editorial of the series were headed by British TV producer Darcy Thomas. This also followed with a bi-weekly spin-off showYo! MTV Rates hosted by Snoochie Shy and Poet, which aired in the UK and was also produced by Darcy Thomas[7] for two seasons (16 episodes).
Following the launch ofMTV Classic on August 1, 2016,music video blocks have consistently aired on the network under the nameYo! Hip Hop Mix. When broadcast, however, this is merely an automated playlist of rap/hip-hop videos from the 1980s to the early 2000s.
AYo! MTV Raps channel was added toPluto TV following Viacom's purchase of the service.[8]
On February 24, 2021, it was announced thatYo! MTV Raps would be revived onViacomCBS' streaming platformParamount+, formerly CBS All Access.[9] On February 17, 2022, it was announced thatConceited and DJ Diamond Kuts would host the revival.[10] On May 2, 2022, it was announced that the revival would premiere on May 24, 2022.[11]
