Before Your Favorite Rappers Were Famous: Laugh Now, Cry Later

At some point in life we’ve all been willing participants in a home video that showcases our talents (or lack thereof). It might have been the one of you spittin’ “Rapper’s Delight” at Thanksgiving dinner, or you and your cousin creating a dance routine to Kwame’s “The Rhythm” and showing it off at the family gathering. (We killed that routine.)

Now you can look back and laugh at those times. For rappers those moments exist too and sometimes they become laughable moments to add to their lore. Other times they can be telling moments in an artist’s life before fame. I was reminded of this while watching a clip of a young Big Sean giving a group of pre-teens a musical lesson on safe sex and drugs. I know I’m not the only one that thought it was weird that he was performing that type of material to a bunch of 12 year olds. I guess the kids are growing up faster these days.

#KanyeShrug

That said, the clip got me to surfing the Net for classic clips of our favorite rappers performing for the camera before they were famous. —Rondell Conway

2Pac & Jada Pinkett Smith

The two Baltimore School of Arts classmates did their best Fresh Prince and DJ Jazzy Jeff impersonations back in 1986. Yes, the crazy irony is Jada would actually go on to marry the Fresh Prince a decade later and spawn some crazy talented offspring.

Notorious B.I.G

One of the more classic clips in hip-hop history finds a young B.I.G ripping an opponent to shreds.

Eminem

What’s a little competition among friends? Now you see where much of the inspiration for Em’s 8 Mile flick came from.

Cam’ron & Ma$e

Is that you, Betha? Hoop dreams came before rap fame for Cam and Ma$e. Obviously Ma$e didn’t take kindly to losing.

The Game

SMH. I’m sure the big homie can look back on this one and laugh. The moral of the story is do your best to get rid of all evidence of something like this ever happening before your worst enemy finds out.

Any other classic clips you guys want to add to the list.