CES 2019: Run-DMC gives their perspective on the current tech landscape

[MUSIC] CES 2019. We're here with the legendary Run-DNC where they're about to rock the stage at CNET's annual party. I'm a new resident to New York. I currently live in Queens, and I know that's a That's the home of Run DMC. Can you explain kinda like, I know it's a different place now. Can you explain the climate of what, [UNKNOWN] Queens was like when Run DMC was first being formed? Lower, middle class suburban area. But street lined neighborhoods. So we had to walk to the avenue. To be 42nd Street, 125th Street, but you had a hard working parents, tight community, everybody's mother knew everybody's son and it was kind of like suburbia meets the ghetto. So now I don't know if you heard but, Amazon announced that they're opening their second headquarters right there in Queens, right in Long Island city. What are you guy's thoughts on that, do you think it's gonna change the climate at all in Queens? What are feeling of Well Queens changed anyway. I mean in Brooklyn changed, Queens changed, it's definitely not like it used to be Even New York City, and New York City was New York City. They took away all, they took away CBGBs, they took away all the live music venues. By them coming there, what's gonna happen is they're gonna start pushing a lot of people that live in Queens out. Because now my house, for instance, it was a one-family house Now there's people living on every floor, yeah, yeah. They sell out the basement, they sell out the attic. Yes, crazy, yes. So as being a tech company, I wanted to ask about the origins of hip hop, and you guys really innovated and created kind of like The sound of what hip hop is today with the MC stepping in the forefront and the rawness of the beats with just the drum machines. Can you kinda give some examples of how hip hop utilized the tech that they had access to and kind of used it in a way to make it their own? [INAUDIBLE] machine, the rolling drum machine I mean, for me, listening to the Cold Crush Brothers it was authentic. And then when Larry Smith came along he took it wand was reinterpreting what was going on. And it changed a little bit when Jay started producing, he started sampling again, so it was back to what the Cold Crush was actually doing [UNKNOWN] with that. Cuz he went from the DMX To beats to the rhyme and beats to the rhyme was just a Bob James sample. It definitely changed from the drum beats to using samples and utilizing machines. Yeah. And now you fast forward to today and you got... Crazy access to everything, you can make a beat on your cellphone, right now. How do you feel the current state of music, and how people can make it now, has changed? Is it good for the landscape, or is it kinda polluting it? Well, technology has made everything easier Like with DJ's, they don't have to carry around crates of records. So, it's made it easy. But now also you got people that could just go buy a setup and get the jobs that the real DJ's are supposed to have. Now, not knocking anybody's hustle, [MUSIC] But anytime they do an event or something like that, you should always have an authentic DJ there so the people that love tech can see wow, they took something that was alive [CROSSTALK] Yeah, yeah. Or even in physical and put it in there. [MUSIC] And is there a piece of tech that you guys have that you just can't stand or just can't figure out, like a new wave of technology that you Just don't mess with? So my brother, or Ruckus was just in Bali. Right. It's a different time of day, they're calling me and I'm looking at their face. To me, that's through George Jetson stuff. Like what do you mean I can call home and see my wife in bed right now on a telephone? Everybody acts like that's nothing. To me, I can't believe I can call Africa right now and talk to somebody, it's a lot to be able to call and see somebody's face. You have an iPhone now, you have an iPhone 8 or 6, 7, 5 [UNKNOWN] Yeah, me too, some stuff with the [UNKNOWN]. But I don't change them every time and stuff like that, you know what I'm saying? But my son, this new generation, they gotta have it. You wrong if you got a 7 and don't have a 10. Speaking of kids, I'm a new dad myself and I'm trying to navigate through this This new climate where they can't sit still unless they have the iPhone in front of them. That thing has got little kids, you got little kids like 2 years old pointing and you can give it to them and they know how to scroll, but I mean it's a good thing but it just so crazy that. Crazy can find his own things. Can't even talk Yeah, but [CROSSTALK]. Still in [UNKNOWN] give me the phone and knows how to, it's crazy. Now I think the bad thing is we making these kids at three and four years old have heart attacks and tempers if they don't get their iPads and stuff like that. [MUSIC] Russia has a robot that's like a terminator. [LAUGHTER] The only thing is that wires are still connected. You know that have a robot with guns. That walks. What does he do? Like does pushups. And what does it do? Shoot and kill us. So, one thing that technology people need to know And they should add this courses. I know what you're doing at C|net, people need to get involved in survival skill because when it hits the [UNKNOWN], you're gonna have to learn how to live in a forest. [LAUGH] For C|net, yeah, yeah. Thanks a lot.