Blackalicious: Chemical Calisthenics

This is my entry for Kevin’s No Theme Thursday.

Hip hop now rules the world of popular music, with Kendrick Lamar reigning as the new king. Over the last 25 years, hip hop has moved further and further away from the old school sound of Run DMC and Grandmaster Flash and new school sound of Boogie Down Productions and A Tribe Called Quest, but there has always been a space, no matter how small, for modern artists to work in those old formats. One of my favorites was Blackalicious. Emcee Gift of Gab died four years ago, but during his 20-year career he strove to push the artistry of rap elocution to its limits. DJ Chief Xcel stood right beside him, dropping old school samples as well as any of this century’s more famous turntablists. All of their releases are soulful masterclasses in hip hop, but they are most famous for the final track on their 1999 debut EP A2G. “Alphabet Aerobics” provides a now legendary rap by Gift of Gab that showcased his vocal mastery. Those in the know caught on immediately, but it would be 15 years before the song become a viral sensation when Daniel Radcliffe (aka Harry Potter) dropped his own version of the rap on The Tonight Show in 2014. 10 years later and more people have heard the song performed by Radcliffe (121M views on YouTube) than by the original artist (2M views on YouTube). Oh well, such is the power of fame and promotion. I like Radcliffe, but I’ll take the Gift of Gab version every time.

My selection for this edition of No Theme Thursday is inspired by Kevin’s image of an old dude working in a chemistry lab. Some songs came immediately to mind, such as Thomas Dolby’s “She Blinded Me With Science” and Oingo Boingo’s “Weird Science,” but I quickly moved away from such obvious choices and remembered a deep cut from Blackalicious’ second album Blazing Arrow. “Chemical Calisthenics” draws heavily upon the blueprint of “Alphabet Aerobics” but it is more interesting musically while still delivering some tongue-twisting lyrics. This is old school hip hop at its best.

Until the day I don’t breathe, I will create music. – Gift of Gab

To listen to more songs of the day, check out the Radio Faux Show Song of the Day playlist.

• Song of the Day (2025)