He was on Neil de Grasse Tyson’s Star Talk podcast on 7-21-13 and 7-28-13.
(Great podcast, great shows, sho nuff)
Stepping into MC Hawking’s turf? That takes nerve. Dude’s a stone-cold killer and master of drive-by shooting.
Gift Of Gab does Chemistry
FANTASTIC! Thanks for sharing. What MC’s will pick up biology, engineering, and social science?
well, there are many short references to all those things by many rappers, but it’s hard for me to think of many rap songs adhering to any one theme of any kind. usually rhymes are more mercurial, owing mostly to the entertainment value of variety and making out-of-left-field observations. I’d say it has the potential of any other entertainment medium to be “deep” in about the same frequency, but–like tv and movies–jokes, sex, violence, and gossip rule the day (but that’s OK, though)
content-wise, I notice depth in terms of language arts, riddles, and wordplay over STEM stuff more often; but broadly, the idea of science as universal truth and its precision is valued and name checked, and mathematics is reflected in the changing meters and syncopation of the lyrics themselves. Completing a particular thought within the confines of either 4, 8 or 16 bars seems akin to balancing or solving an equation, to my mind. so the structure can (should!) be science and math even if the subject is vulgarity or whatever.
see this thing called rhymin’
no different from coal minin’
we both on assignment
to unearth a diamond
–Mos Def Travelin’ Man
so, there’s poetry, boasting, and earth sciences in there. but then it’s on to the next topic, the overall theme of that song being the sorrow of leaving one’s lover for having to go on tour to make money.
Maybe it’s cheating to include a “nerd” rapper, but I do recall a raunchy Paul Barman song about biochemistry
but again, though he’s known as a smart rapper, Barman is far better known for riddles and language–he wrote a whole verse that was one big palindrome, an incredible feat. But Barman is, shall we say, not very representative of rap as a whole.
noahdjango, that Gift of Gab piece makes me gasp for air.
Incredibly cool track. Thanks.
“this video is private” 
found one video still up: http://www.disclose.tv/action/viewvideo/157878/GZA_of_WuTang_Clan_explains_the_origin_of_the_Universe/
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