Chris Rock & Questlove Break Down The Roots v. Biggie Beef + Debate Classic Albums On Juan Epstein
Chris Rock and our very own Questlove appeared yesterday on Pete Rosenberg and Cipha Sounds' eternally irreverent Juan Epstein podcast to clear the air on Biggie's alleged beef with The Roots and get into some heated debates over the classic status of some their favorite records. The conversation began with a personal account of where everyone in the room was when they heard The Notorious B.I.G. had tragically passed, which naturally gave way to Questo explaining how and why the unanimous top-fiver caught feelings after seeing the video for The Illa Fifth's "What They Do." Unbeknownst to the group, the video turned out to be a lighthearted poke at the lavishness of the lives depicted in Big and Puffy's videos, which the Bed Stuy bomber did not take all that well. Unfortunately, they never reconciled, as Quest submitted his magnum opus on how the clip had represented the have and have-not configuration of the hip-hop world to The Source on the very day of the living legend's passing.
Things did eventually take a lighter turn, however, delving into which albums had the staying power and timelessness of classic records, which led to Rock going back on his claim of Purple Rain being the best album ever and championing Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy as numero uno. Really Chris? No one's going to debate that Nicki Minaj's verse on "Monster" validates her entire existence, but to take MBDTF as the single greatest accomplishment in recording history seems to be stretching it just a bit. But hell, to each his own, right? You can watch Questlove and Chris Rock nerd-out on Juan Epstein with Pete Rosenberg and Cipha Sounds below. Be sure to catch your boy when he hits the big screen in his directorial debut Top Five (which happens to be scored by the chief) on December 12th.
