Admin Hero1 Posted July 16, 2005 Admin Report Share Posted July 16, 2005 Hip-hop preacher aims for `rap Cosby' Veteran of Run-DMC plans to put family in spotlight of new MTV reality series By R.D. Heldenfels BEVERLY HILLS, CALIF. - God or Satan. Cos or Ozzy. These are the choices facing Reverend Run. The former Joseph Simmons, best known as one-third of rap group Run-DMC, has already made the first choice. An ordained minister associated with the Zoe Ministries in New York City, he says, ``I love God. I preach sermons.'' He doesn't allow cursing in his home. On his Web site, www.reverendrun.com, he offers inspirational messages. He has other gigs -- as a rapper and as part of his brother Russell's business empire -- but adds that ``I still have an obligation, I believe, to serve the world.'' We have yet to see how things will go on the other issue. That involves Run's House, a reality series following Reverend Run, his wife and five children, ages 8 to 21. It's set to air on MTV in October. Run, who lives in Saddle River, N.J., thinks the show could be ``a rap Bill Cosby,'' picking up where The Cosby Show left off. Run has serious money. But he also considers himself a loving, hands-on father, and thinks that he can show another side of rappers much the way Cosby showed a different part ofAfrican-American life. ``Hopefully, you'll like it and be inspired that rappers don't only, you know, drink and bust caps and run amok,'' he said at a news conference for Run's House. ``They become productive people in society, and they change their life, and they put down drugs, and they stop chasing ho's.... I've cleaned up my life a lot. I didn't do that much bad, but I'm excited to share my transformation.'' ``This is really a great family for us to highlight,'' added Sean ``P. Diddy'' Combs, an executive producer of the series. ``I think there are so many misconceptions about hip-hop that a lot of times people don't understand that we grow up, too. But we're still from hip-hop.'' Run's brother Russell, also an executive producer of the show, said this series could be inspiring. ``His kids are all overachievers,'' Russell said. ``They're not rich, spoiled kids. They're kids who are going to contribute a lot to the world.'' Still, the archetype of reality-family series is The Osbournes. To be sure, Ozzy and Sharon appeared to be loving parents, and Run admired them for that. But children Jack and Kelly have had well-publicized personal problems, and it's reasonable to wonder whether the fame from TV contributed to those problems. ``The difference is, with me and the Osbournes, that we go to church all the time,'' Run said after the news conference. ``You know how Will Smith and Jada kind of disappear after they do what they do?... They get out and do all these positive things. ``My kids, for some reason, they gravitate toward church. One is a deacon. We're really into church. And we kind of enjoy each other.... I'm lucky that they're not out there, looking for nothing. My (oldest) daughter's here with me now, my whole family's with me. We vacation together. She's 21, yet she still wants to be with me.'' Although they live luxuriously, Run said he reminds his children that ``fun can't last all day. You won't know the difference between good and bad if you chase cheeseburgers all day. It won't taste good.'' So would he pull the cameras if he felt his children were being exploited? ``The producers... bought the Reverend Run,'' he said. ``They can't find the cancerous thing and make a show out of it. Their only job is to know that one Disney movie beats a hundred Godfathers, so we're hoping Run can bring us a quote-unquote Disney/ABC Family vibe to MTV.... He's still Run, but it'll be more functional.'' If MTV had wanted dysfunctional, Run said, ``they might as well have... got Being Bobby Brown.'' Instead, they got something Run likened to 7th Heaven, Home Improvement, Father Knows Best or, yes, The Cosby Show. ``The thing that touched me about the Cosbys was... the regular family vibe, but for African-Americans. You might have shown it on Father Knows Best, but when Bill Cosby came, it was good for us as African-Americans,'' he said ``They had a functional home.'' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted July 16, 2005 Report Share Posted July 16, 2005 This sounds really good...and really refreshing. Hip-Hop/Rap gets NO positive shine these days...other than Da' Prince. Along with Black Eyed Peas, LL Cool J, + Nick Cannon. This show definitly looks like it'll be entertaining AND a breath of FRESH air 4 Hip-Hop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WesSyde Posted July 16, 2005 Report Share Posted July 16, 2005 hey this looks good. hopefully things will turn out good and Run's fam won't get exploited. i also like the reference 2 Will and Jada in there. i have a question tho - is it gonna be a reality show like it says, or a tv series? cuz he kept comparing it to other TV series when it's a reality show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevTastic Posted July 16, 2005 Report Share Posted July 16, 2005 This looks promising. I can't wait for his new album. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.