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The Roots’ Black Thought Raps on the MAD MEN Theme Song

Mad Men‘s Don Draper was hip-hop before hip-hop existed: He flaunted his wealth, was something of a ladies’ man, and was a rebel making his way to the top in a society with which he didn’t always agree. Sadly, rap music was still a few years away by the time Mad Men and Don Draper’s time on TV came to an end, so we never got to see Don forced to work on an ad campaign with The Sugarhill Gang, or get upset with Sally for ditching school to see a Grandmaster Flash show and smoke cigarettes.

Well, Sally would have been an adult by the late ’70s, but that’s neither here nor there. The point is that Mad Men and hip-hop never got the meeting that each deserved…until now.

RJD2, the producer responsible for Mad Men‘s opening music, released a collaborative album with Philadelphia-based rapper STS earlier this year, and now STS appears on a remix of the theme song along with Truck North and, most notably, The Roots’ Tariq Trotter, also known as Black Thought.

The track, called “Mad Men Jam Boys ( MMJB )”, was remixed and produced by The Wurxs, and Black Thought’s gravelly voice sits comfortably on the original string arrangements and the added bass and percussion.

Check out the song above, but be aware of the sometimes NSFW language. This remix is only the latest in rappers co-opting TV theme songs for their tracks: Eminem has sampled Batman, Busta Rhymes has borrowed from Night Rider, and Will Smith reinterpreted Spider-Man. Have you heard any of the many other instances of rappers making television music their own?

HT: Uproxx

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