Rappin’ Duke - Shawn Brown . The Rappin’ Duke (1984)

“Rappin’ Duke“ is a 1984 hip-hop novelty song by Shawn Brown performing as The Rappin’ Duke. The concept of the song is that actor John Wayne (. “The Duke“) is performing the rap (Wayne had died in 1979). “Rappin’ Duke“’s lyrics parody the hip-hop ’bragging’ style popular at the time, wherein the rapper boasts of his/her seniority and superior rhymes and flow in their performance: “So ya think you’re bad with your rap? / Well I’ll tell ya, pilgrim, I started the crap. / When you were in diapers and wetting the sheets, / I was at the Ponderosa, rappin’ to the beat.“ The lyrics also reference “The Beverly Hillbillies“ TV theme song, “The Ballad Of Jed Clampett“, with the words, “... Santa Barbara, that is / Swimmin pools, and movie stars“, while also alluding to Ronald Reagan’s presidency (The acting careers of Wayne and Reagan overlapped for many years). The song’s constant refrain is &quo