Best Hip-Hop Single

The searing wit and incisive insights of spoken-word artist, rapper and cultural activist Rashad tha Poet and the phenomenal production skill of jazz bassist, composer and radio host Greg Bryant combine on a powerful single that does everything a lot of critics wish more commercial hip-hop did: entertain and inspire. The lyrics of “The Ballad of Dick Gregory” are crisp, the musical foundation steadily on point, and it’s clear Rashad absorbed the Gregory formula into his approach. Before he devoted the bulk of his time to the battle for social justice, Gregory was a groundbreaking and massively successful comic who utilized humor as a weapon against racist ignorance and oppression. While hopefully Rashad tha Poet won’t leave the entertainment world anytime soon, he shows with “The Ballad of Dick Gregory” that you don’t have to be on a picket line to wield a mighty voice against injustice. This is both a poignant tribute and a demand that others continue the mission Gregory championed throughout his life. RON WYNN