Motoric Hip Hop

If you define hip culture through each of its main tenants than rapping, breaking and writing graffiti are all equally important. And if that’s how you look at the game, then Rammellzee is one of the most important figures in New York City’s long and storied rap history.

Spawned from the diverse culture and club scene of the ‘70s, Rammellzee was and remains as interesting a figure as Afrika Bambatta. Both enjoy costumes that are basically visual spectacles. And while Afrika Bambatta copped a Sun Ra attitude and looked like he got off the same ship as George Clinton, Rammellzee prefers costumes more akin to that of the Japanese film Tetsuo. Of course, that film came out a good decade after Rammellzee showed up on the scene. But looking like a robot, in this case at least has created a mythical back story for this performer.

And I say performer, but perhaps visual artist is more applicable considering even his musical career is predicated on his appearance. But Rammellzee also happens to be an accomplished artist. His works incorporate gritty urban shapes and forms, while maintaining the ebb and flow of the loosest of graffiti writers. His works are colorful and while not necessarily as complex as his costumes, they still manage to evoke an ethereal vibe that doesn’t necessarily seem rooted in terrestrial stuffs.

Part of the lore that has risen around this figure is because of his rather withdrawn presence from public light. Even in his interviews, which aren’t all too frequent, Ramellzee makes mention of his preference for a solitary life. But that seems like a bizarre contrast. Why would one become a performer, wear garish costumes, release music and shun attention.

It seems as if today, a great deal of musicians create work simply to appease a mass audience, make a few dollars and absorb as much fan adulation as possible. Ramellzee seems to simply make music and art that he knows he, himself would appreciate, release some work and vanish back into the world that he inhabits. It’s possible that this is just the mode that he needs to work in, in order to be comfortable. And maybe one day in the future, he won’t feel the need to be withdrawn. But considering that the formula seems to be working pretty well, there shouldn’t be any complaints.