Let’s talk about Das Racist: Hip-Hop’s Hilarious Hiccup

Written By Kyle Wheelock

Kool A.D. (left) and Heems (right)

Kool A.D. (left) and Heems (right)

Let me start with: there’s a lot to unpack here. Das Racist was a rap duo in the early consisting of members Victor Vazquez (Kool A.D.) and Himanshu Suri (Hima a.k.a. Heems). The two are New York city natives, with Kool A.D. haling from Brooklyn, and Heems coming out of Queens before relocating to Brooklyn. If none of this sounds familiar to you, I don’t blame you. As a fan of the duo, I mean this in THE most respectful way: Das Racist was really a blip in rap music in the grand scheme of things that NO ONE ever talks about, a hiccup. They rose to prominence with the release of their viral hit, “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell,” in 2008, released two mixtapes, Shut Up, Dude and Sit Down, Man in 2010, dropped their debut (and only) studio album Relax in 2011, before disbanding in 2012. A quick, four-year ride that no one either knows about or remembers.

The topic of discussion around Das Racist was (and I guess, would continue to be), “are these guys serious?” And, to be quite honest with you, before I started researching for this post, I wouldn’t have been able to give you a concrete answer. The group has a few interviews floating around on the internet and if you didn’t know any better, you’d be confused as to what you were reading/watching. It doesn’t come through as clearly in their text interviews, but Das Racist had this relaxed, comedic stoner aesthetic that’s almost satirical. Or, you could interpret it that way if you wanted to. If you’re like me and your introduction was, “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell,” you could quickly write them off as stoners who made garbage music, and I’d understand.

But, as I said before, there’s a lot to unpack here. Kool A.D. and Heems met at Wesleyan College while staying at a dorm for students of color. While it may not sound important at first, this bit of information really says a lot about the duo: Kool A.D. is of Cuban-Italian descent (and, per HIS words has, “what’s known as, ‘that good hair.’”) and Heems is of Indian heritage. Being children of minorities that grew up/went to school in areas where they stuck out made them aware of racism early on, something that is a huge part of them as people. The name, “Das Racist,” itself is what the pair, “would yell at the television when something racially insensitive would pop up in an ad or on a TV show,” so…yeah, that’s what we’re dealing with here.

Ok great, but what does this have to do with their music? Well, a lot. Like I said, while it may not come through clearly in print interviews, watch any video and it becomes clear that the duo are playing characters: in an over/under with Pitchfork, they take shots at the cast of Glee that you can’t help but feel is a joke, at least on some level. There’s also a Nardwuar interview with the duo (and their hype man/childhood friend Ashok Kondabolu a.k.a. Dapwell a.k.a. Dap) where you can’t tell if they’re having fun running with a bit, or if they just genuinely wish Nardwuar would get the hell away from them.

Das Racist and Dap @ Governors Ball Music Festival 2011

Das Racist and Dap @ Governors Ball Music Festival 2011

Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure that Vazquez and Heems DO enjoy getting high while also having issues with what they refer to as, “white demonry,” but it definitely is presented in a comedic way. So much so, that again, I can’t tell you for sure if they were joking or not. Outside of, “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell,” Das Racist’s three projects are equal parts bars and jokes (see: “Shorty Said,” off of Shut up, Dude). These guys grew up fans of rap, and it shows in their craft; they’re genuinely good rappers. They’re witty, their chemistry is amazing as evident in their back and forths, and the way they work in niche hip-hop references are so subtle that picking them all out is a borderline homework assignment.

“Shorty said the ninja that she with ain't this

And shorty said I act like a gay David Banner on acid

Shorty said I look like I work in a garage

Shorty said I'm Turtle from Entourage”

- Heems (“Shorty Said”)

Throughout all the interviews I could scour, they are pretty open about how they use rap to joke about race and their perception. In an interview with The Village Voice, Heems says very plainly, ”All I wanted to do was make some jokes—mostly about race, though not necessarily consciously—over dance music that would serve to undermine it so Talib Kweli fans wouldn’t like it.” I really resonate with the idea of being able to say something funny but still meaning it sincerely, and I think anyone who knows me will attest to that much. If Das Racist came up more often in my daily life, the song I would point people to first is track eleven from Sit Down, Man, “Rapping 2 U.” Kool and Heems say a lot over the course of two quick, dense verses that are laid over a Nujabes sample. I could spend the rest of this blog picking out lines from just this one song and explaining why they work but, it’s worth listening to and experiencing for yourself, rather than me preaching it to you.

Artist: Das Racist x Lakutis Album: Sit Down, Man

Yes they’re saying funny and outlandish things that also may or may not be true depending on who you ask, but in terms of technical rapping ability, they’re in that same, “alternative hip-hip,” grouping that includes The Cool Kids, Run the Jewels, early mixtape-era Logic, or even Lupe Fiasco (note: not saying Das Racist are as good at rapping as Lupe is, but more in terms of their content and personalities. Let’s not start that flame war). They were different than the rising trend of trap music visually, lyrically, and sonically, something I also appreciated, before I was even aware of the layers of satire that really made Das Racist the group they were.

Das Racist were (well, are. Everyone is still alive and well, they just aren’t a group anymore) a group of very well-educated men of color who grew up in America’s melting pot. They were very knowledgeable of not only hip-hop culture, but their roles in it as well, and used their niche to talk about real issues. Yes, they’re knuckledheads, and if you pull up a video on them there’s a REALLY good chance they’re high as all hell, but they’re also incredibly smart jokesters who are quick to identify and critique more subtle forms of racism (the kind you’d experience at a private liberal arts university in Connecticut), all while paying homage to hip-hop classic after hip-hop classic. The thing is, they address these topics so casually that, for the better part of ten years, people weren’t entirely sure if they were joking or not. Like I said, a lot to unpack.

Proof:

Kyle Wheelock
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