Nelson George:
"The Arsenio Hall Show was crucial for hip-hop and urban culture. He was a place where black artists got a chance to sit on the couch and talk for a while, where you could do a song for an audience that understood what you were trying to do. The host knew the slang, and his enthusiasm was infectious. The week before Hammer came on the show, Arsenio was hyping Hammer. If you were hip to what's going on in black music, you knew that Hammer had this great show. Even before "U Can't Touch This," people used to watch his videos for the dancing. "Turn This Mutha Out" was an incredible video."
Grandmaster Flash:
"Hammer had a concept. He wasn't just gonna make record, he was gonna cause a phenomenon. His movement, the way he performs, the way he rhymed, and what he talked about, the tracks that he used, he took all that in consideration and made the whole world stand up and take serious notice of an MC. He was doing things that you would see like Michael Jackson do. He was the first to make it serious business. Sometimes I'll see the MTV shows where they'll show artist coming out of Lear Jets and they're doing everything in a big way. All that is a Hammer concept for me. He did it first."
Ed Lover:
"The real choreography and the dancing and the stage presence, the excitement and giving people their money's worth at a hip-hop concert had gotten lost. Everybody thought that walking back and forth across a stage and being the toughest guy on the microphone was what people was paying $35-40 a seat for. Hammer said, 'If you're gonna pay that money to see me, I'm gonna give ya a show.'"
Ludacris:
"I can't even talk about anything else but them damn pants. Those were the shoplifting pants of those years, you know what I mean? Everybody was thinking you could fit televisions and refrigerators in those pants. There was a lot of room in them. I can't figure out where he got the idea to make some big ass pants from, but he did it man. When you saw those big ass pants you thought of Hammer. Big ass pants! It was crazy man. Fill 'em up with helium, ain't no telling what was gonna go down."
Everlast:
"The last night Arsenio was on the air was a big moment for hip-hop. Almost every MC that was around came out and performed on his show that night. Arsenio on his own was big for hip-hop. He booked everybody. I did Arsenio. What's up Arsenio? Bring it back man, c'mon!"
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