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Baauer, Azealia Banks 'Harlem Shake' Beef: Trap Producer Has Freestyle Removed

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On Valentine's Day, contentious Harlem rapper Azealia Banks once again found herself in the middle of a Twitter battle, this time due to a remix of trap producer Baauer's "Harlem Shake."

Over the last two weeks, Baauer's 2012 single has encouraged office video interpretations at the rate of 4,000 fan uploads a day, racking up well over 44 million total YouTube views, and inspiring Azealia to release a downloadable freestyle over his beat.

The 23-year-old Brooklyn producer was less than enthusiastic about the unsolicited remix, which she posted yesterday, and had the freestyle removed from Azealia's SoundCloud, resulting in a Twitter tirade from the confrontational MC.

"@baauer why you cockblockin tho? Lmaoo," Azealia wrote (and deleted).

"@AZEALIABANKS because it's not your song lol," the producer, who is signed to Diplo's Mad Decent label, tweeted back.

In typical fashion, Azealia responded by revoking Baauer's rap card, writing "you're a pussy. You don't belong in hip hop ... you don't even know what a fucking Harlem Shake even is."

Watch a Collection of the Best "Harlem Shake" Videos

Unfortunately, Azealia, who recently traded jabs with Perez Hilton over her insistent use of the word "faggot," regained Hilton's attention when she began responding to Baauer supporters with the diplomatic instruction that they "drown in faggotry."

We'll spare you the details, but that exchange resulted in Azealia referring to the celebrity blogger as an "evil faggot," and tastefully inquiring "What does my pussy taste like perez?"

Meanwhile, Baauer went back to enjoying his astonishing recent success, selling out shows and watching his single suddenly inspire "Gangnam Style" comparisons, almost a year after its May, 2012 release.

Azealia's various beefs aside, Baauer's removal of her song brings up an interesting question: Given trap music's emergent popularity as a largely instrumental EDM sub-genre with roots in Southern rap, why is "Harlem Shake" off limits to a Harlem MC?

"If you don't want me to rap on ur shit then don't put it out n---- ... For real. Shit ain't safe. I'll piss on ur lawn," Azealia tweeted at Baauer, in response to her freestyle's removal from SoundCloud.

Hip-hop was created by DJs repeating sections of a disco or funk song while an MC rhymed over the beat. However, very few rappers, Ghostface aside, rap over entire tracks. Is that where the distinction lies?

Azealia has built a rep rapping over bass-inspired production by Jacques Greene and Machinedrum, introducing their music to a new audience, while scoring acclaim for her production choices within the electronic music community.

To further complicate matters, Baauer's trap anthem refers to a repeated phrase in the song instructing listeners to do '90's hip-hop dance move "the Harlem Shake," but his version itself contains an (at the time) unlicensed sample of early 2000's rap Philly rap crew Plastic Little's "Miller Time."

Former Plastic Little rapper Jayson Musson called attention to this fact in an instagram post, revealing his exchange with Baauer, who happily admitted that he had "cut up those little vocal bits, just for fun, and used them in a track, having absolutely no idea Harlem Shake would do what it did!"

Essentially, Azealia Banks has been barred from rapping over a song containing an unlicensed sample, "because it's not your song lol."

If rap followed that rationale, some of our favorite mixtape rappers might never have "risen" through the Roc-a-Fella, Dipset or MMG ranks. Is trap really so removed from hip-hop that a buzz-rapper is forbidden from tossing out an unofficial freestyle?

Meanwhile, as we're pondering trap's departure from its hip-hip roots, Baauer just tweeted to announce that "Harlem Shake is #1 on iTunes!!!"

Guess Baauer got the last lol.



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18 Comments

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da clysdale

Is this the new and improved Harlem shake? Im confused. I like Azealia's music and I think she should remix Kat Dahlia's 'Gangsta' http://smarturl.it/gangsta

February 20 2013 at 9:06 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Regulator

That crap on that video is not the harlem shake - those people can't dance. And what in the world is up with playing that latin dumb boring song! Play some soul music and get some real dancers on the tube who can do the harlem shake.

February 18 2013 at 10:38 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Kyrii Johnson

now if ANYONE ELSE was rapping over a song it wouldn't be a problem. the **** was a ******* remix, making Azealia Banks $0.00. Why everyone's deciding to act brand new like no one's ever rapped over a song (A SAMPLED SONG AT THAT) before is beyond me. ***** ass ******.

February 18 2013 at 6:50 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
mellotone57888

THis is ridiculously simple: write your own music, and then do with it what you want.
All this bullshit about taking someone else's creation without permission and then calling it your own--because you've added a rap or some words--got started back when rap started. Most of the posts here are by people from that era, and so they don't seem to understand (or respect) basic copyright law. Here it is: Using someone else's work without permission or compensation is called THEFT.

February 18 2013 at 5:06 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to mellotone57888's comment
vagirlnjbred13

What's ridiculously simple, is your thinking when it comes to copyright law. You are right when you say artist need permission. Which is obviously given often since we listen to so many remakes! As for this situation, there is no permission needed. Just like myself, i'm sure you sing along with a song using it's lyrics and music. Just because you can listen what she did, does not make it a crime. She did not put this music out anywhere to gain any royalties! Maybe if you were from that ERA as you say you would know that. Try again.... This is not a case where permission was need, nor is there any compensation being made here. NO THEFT!! It kills me how people ASSUME to know the LAW. If you want to quote the law, maybe you should ask someone (a lawyer perhaps) who is capable of breaking it down to you. Or you can go to law school as i.......But then, that would mean you wouldn't have time to read such frivilous articles on the internet. OR maybe just brush up on your BCL!!

February 19 2013 at 11:29 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Stampgevaar Digitall

Theres a dubstep "tribute" coming soon. Ive heard it and holy moly...

February 18 2013 at 8:50 AM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
Anntoinette Stacy Nj

The song and antics and costuming are an insult to Harlemites!

February 18 2013 at 8:38 AM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
ooc5477

All this fuss over a dance!!!!!
But I guess it's not just the dance----bottom line, it's the M-O-N-E-Y !!!!

February 18 2013 at 7:53 AM Report abuse -1 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to ooc5477's comment
vagirlnjbred13

There is no one making money that shouldn't be. On the other hand, he is using this song in which the dance is said to be the "harlem shake", which it clearly is not. Just a bunch of fools basically jumping around. So yes, it is about the money for him....M-O-N-E-Y he should be paying for this so-called dance that is SUPPOSE to be the "harlem shake".

February 19 2013 at 11:46 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
ooc5477

W---H---A---T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

February 18 2013 at 7:48 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
summertimefun74

gay ...people are so dumb ...damn

February 17 2013 at 10:34 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Drew

I think the author is dad on here. It's hip-hop music; Azealia is from Harlem and released a freestyle over the track. Baauer is indeed "cockblocking". Don't use hip-hop tactics to achieve success only to cry foul when someone attempts to do the same but off your work. He would have been better off just blaming the 86-ing of the freestyle on his label. He loses some cool points here. Still a catchy ass track.

February 16 2013 at 9:48 PM Report abuse +2 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Drew's comment
vagirlnjbred13

He looses ALL cool points here. "Cockblocking" indeed. LOL Even catchy ass tracks are just that, a catchy ass track. I don't like some music that i hear, but i realize that even the music you don't like ends up being CATCHY if you hear it ALL the time. I've even found/caught myself singing songs that i hate. LOL :)

February 19 2013 at 11:55 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply

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