As a seasoned comedian, Marlon Wayans is an expert at finding humor in some of life’s most sorrowful times, but an exception to his skill set is making light of hip hop feuds.
“All this beefing and all this nonsense, yo, it could escalate,” said the “Marlon” star as he wrapped up a recent interview for “Sway’s Universe,” where he was promoting his new comedy special “Good Grief.” “We too old to be that dumb, and then, kids, stop with this stupidity. Life is so precious. I’m so grateful to be able to be 51, right. To be able to have lived a long life, my parents would have wanted that,” he added. The actor mourned the passing of his father, Howell Wayans, in April. His mother, Elvira, passed in 2020.
Scrutiny of lyrics highlighting violence within the hip hop community has long been the topic of debate, with some arguing for the right to share their experiences and others fighting against what they believe to be further perpetuation of cyclical violence.
“I just think about all that nonsense, and it’s like, let’s kill that noise. They need to bring positivity back to hip hop. I miss that old school,” Marlon continued before rapping “Self-Destruction,” a 1989 song by the Stop the Violence Movement. The anti-violence campaign was spearheaded by KRS-One who enlisted Daddy-O, Public Enemy, Doug E. Fresh, Heavy D, Just-Ice, MC Lyte and Kool Moe Dee for the track.
In May, Rolling Stone revealed that KRS-One and other rap legends such as Kurtis Blow, Kurupt and Kid Capri are hopeful of reviving the movement in conjunction with the Hip Hop Alliance. “We have participants from the East Coast, West Coast, South, Midwest — all over the country — even some from overseas,” Special Ed told the publication. “They see the need and see what’s happening to us as a culture. It seems as if it’s being magnified by most of the hip hop community, so we have to address this.”
Finalized details of the forthcoming project, whose message will be used to promote unity, positivity and peace, have not been publicized yet.