Flavor Flav Reflects On Hip-Hop’s Evolution: 'Let’s Come Up With Solutions'

Flavor Flav is taking a break from the chicken fingers and clocks to drop some real talk about hip-hop, activism, and the legacy he helped build.

Born William Jonathan Drayton Jr., the "Flavor of Love" icon's story goes way deeper than wild catchphrases and meme-worthy moments.

While promoting his new partnership with Raising Cane’s, Flavor Flav got candid at a press event about the evolution of hip-hop and why the genre needs to find its way back to its roots.

“The state of hip hop right now, today, it is what it is,” Flav said during the event, which The Blast was in attendance for. “It's a lot different than when we, when us, Public Enemy first started coming out and making records."

He added, "And you know, all of our records had a message to it… We would write about problems that was going on in the neighborhood, but in the same record, we try to come up with a solution.”

The Long Island native was playing piano by age five, and would later master multiple instruments before briefly attending culinary school. But everything changed when he met Carlton Ridenhour, better known as Chuck D, at Adelphi University.

The duo started on college radio and ended up founding one of the most powerful rap groups in history: Public Enemy.

Their politically charged lyrics, paired with The Bomb Squad’s aggressive production and Flav’s untamed hype, reshaped what rap music could be.

Public Enemy’s debut album "Yo! Bum Rush the Show" put them on the map, but it was "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back" that made them legends.

“The one thing that I can commend my partner, Chuck D, for is that nobody was able to prove him wrong out of any of the records that we wrote,” Flav said. “Because he knows his stuff, he does the research and he reads it up and looks.”

Public Enemy wasn’t just about music. They were a movement.

At a time when rap was evolving from party anthems to political powerhouses, they became the megaphone for the voiceless. While Chuck D brought the facts, Flav brought the fire. But how does he feel about the genre now?

“I feel like the state of hip hop right now needs more records with the messages, instead of just glorifying the drugs and the women and the jewelry and all of that,” he continued. “I mean, all of it exists. But not to glorify that. Let's glorify a lot of the problems that are going on within the world. And let's try to come up with solutions to these problems.”

While Flav’s jump into reality TV in the 2000s with "The Surreal Life" and "Flavor of Love" took his fame to a whole new (and wild) level, it never erased the groundwork he laid in hip-hop. If anything, it made him one of the few stars to transcend multiple generations and entertainment genres.

From the socially charged streets of Fight the Power to the chaotic mansions of VH1 dating shows, Flavor Flav has done it all, and still finds time to reflect on the bigger picture.

On Wednesday, April 23, Flav launched his new campaign in collaboration with Raising Cane's to raise money for the Women’s Sports Foundation.

“I’m a people person. People made me what I am today, and they put me in this position to rock with that, and I’ll never change. I love my people just like I love my Cane’s, and I’m grateful for this opportunity,” Flavor Flav said of his new campaign. “Cane’s is full of flavor. They’ve got a unique taste and when you bite into the Chicken Fingers, your taste buds explode.”

“Giving back is always important. I get a lot of love, but that’s because I gave love first,” Flavor added.

At the end of the day, when Flavor Flav walks into the room, you know what time it is, and he’s still using every second to make a difference.