Soul singer, underground film maverick and toilet-mouthed preacher Rudy Ray Moore, the best-known purveyor of the oft-sampled Dolemite routine, celebrates his 80th birthday in Kenosha this weekend.

This genius basically created the hip hop mindset and aesthetic. Well, he nicked it from “the beer joint and liquor store wise men,” but the initiative was his. If you don’t think that’s a big deal, I respectfully disagree with you. Next time you rewrite the American vernacular, let me know.

Happy birthday, Rudy Ray Moore. May the merch sales be brisk, and the Chronic royalties flow ever onward.
Rudy Ray Moore – “Shine and the Great Titanic”