2 Live Crew

“The ACLU may not want it advertised, but this record is pornographic; that’s one of the good things about it.” – Robert Christgau BY 1989, Miami rap group The 2 Live Crew’s ultimately double-platinum album As Nasty As They Wanna Be was quickly climbing the hip-hop charts. The lead single, “Me So Horny” was a crossover hit. Their unique blend of Southern rap and “party record” comedy bits had expanded well beyond their core audience of Southern Blacks. The vulgar lyrics and booty-shaking dances had infiltrated the white suburbs. Mothers were appalled to hear their kids’ mouth couplets such as, “You said it yourself, you like it like I do/Put your lips on my dick, and suck my asshole, too.” With pearls thoroughly clutched, those mothers turned to conservative and Christian leaders to s...