A Musical Holiday: Christmas Rappin'

Photo by ninahale via Flickr

From the background-friendliness of old standards made barely-audible on aged mall speakers, to the foreground of childhood favorites I've unearthed thanks to iTunes (and can now enjoy while snailing down the 405) -- Christmas music does me right each December. My Christmas faves range from silliness about honking donkeys, to “Merry Christmas” wished in Hawaiian, to John Denver’s sappy/sweet duets with the Muppets.

On top of those gems there’s something still wonderful about certain hip-hop jams born in New York in the 1980s (just like me.) The hip-hop of the era’s sing-song nature felt warm, friendly, and almost conversational. And while a certain braggadocio nature could always be felt in hip-hop, the day was rather innocent -- a three-striped Adidas track suit was considered flashy. The following urban gems not only mesh well with the spirit of the season but sound as good as ever on December 25, 2008.