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Das Racist: Joke Rap Gets Serious
As part of the celebration for Shelter's birthday, Brooklyn-based rap group, Das Racist were in Shanghai to deliver a special performance. Composed of Himanshu Suri, Victor Vazquez and hype man Ashok Kondabolu, Das Racist rose to Internet stardom in 2008 with the song 'Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell'.
Since then, the trio has moved away from their early label of "joke rap" with the release of two critically acclaimed mix tapes. Their lyrics straddle the line between witty social commentary and mindless dribble. Das Racist's skilled, nonchalant approach towards rapping makes them a breath of fresh air in a hip-hop scene dominated by egos, but their aloof style is also what detracts the most from their performance.
Despite their shockingly glowing reviews from notable media sources, such as Spin Magazine and Pitchfork, Shelter was less crowded for Das Racist than it is for the average local DJ show. The small yet tightly packed crowd, coupled with Shelter's absence of a stage, felt more reminiscent of a basement punk show and less like a slick gig. And this impression was only reinforced by the petulance that ensued.
Das Racist kicked off their set by yelling numerous times at the crowd to go home in a rather misplaced attempt to show how much above the scene they are. When the beats finally started spinning, Himanshu and Victor stopped scolding the crowd and began spitting their unusual brand of rap. For the first half, at least, the energy was high, with Victor rapping from on top of the PA and Himanshu snaking his way through the sweaty crowd with a twenty-foot mic in tow. Of the two, Victor was infinitely more impressive, showing off his skills behind the drum pad as the DJ for the opening act and releasing his automatic, rhythmical flow from his perch above. Himanshu scuttled about for the duration searching for members of the audience to sing along - to little success.
Everything came to a premature climax halfway through the night with the performance of 'You Oughta Know', a song sampled from Billy Joel's 'Movin' Out'. From then on, the buzz plummeted. It was clear to see that Himanshu had lost interest in the show. He stopped strutting about and took up residence next to Victor atop the PA. While Victor continued to rap with a certain hipster swagger, Himanshu placed his head in his hand and unenthusiastically finished out the rest of the songs. Himanshu perked up to say to the crowd "Everyone who thinks we are drunk and horrible at what we do scream!" A sizable chunk of the audience yelled back, sparking the artist the respond - as his most energetic act of the night - by once again telling them to leave, though not in quite such polite words. Ending on this whimper, the Das Racist boys exited the room.
Judging by the obnoxious performance, it would seem as if these once unaffected NYC boys have let the critical acclaim play tricks with their heads. They've already lost sight of the privilege it is to travel across the globe playing their own music, music that, once upon a time, was fun.