---

( 4UMF NEWS ) Swagger Wagon All The Way To The Bank: There are awful commercials and then there’s the “Swagger Wagon” commercial for the 2015 Toyota Sienna starring rapper Busta Rhymes. For those of you that are unfamiliar with the commercial, take a moment to check it out. I’ll wait: Okay, now let’s forget for a moment that they’re using the word ‘swagger’ to promote the minivan. ‘Swag’ has come and gone in the urban community and few people still use that word anymore but once it becomes part of the jargon that everyone uses (i.e. soccer moms and corporate working fathers) then it’s safe to say that word has jumped the shark and deserves a proper burial. Let’s also forget that in the commercial the Neubert family and other back up dancers are doing Soulja Boy’s Crank That dance to a trap music beat, a dance that came out seven years ago and left that same summer. Let’s just for a moment focus on Busta Rhymes and his co-signing this lame commercial that essentially pokes fun at the Black community and hip-hop. Bussa Buss has come a long way since he and his Leaders of the New School cohorts were featured on A Tribe Called Quest’s “Scenario.” His career has seen a lot of highs and lows and even though the money he received for doing this awful commercial could be seen as a plus, all money is not good money. I have a problem with outsiders coming in and poking fun of the hip-hop culture, something I have been a part of and hold near and dear to my heart ever since I became entranced listening to Public Enemy and KRS-One and the Boogie Down Production before I was ten years old. It’s one thing to shoot a commercial like this that is not only out of date with their dance steps, hip-hop references and the title but to get a co-sign from a veteran with more than two decades in the game and is well-respected is ridiculous. To add insult to injury, at one point in the video, the father is rapping about pulling up to karate class and everyone turning to check out his ride and says, “Who Dat Dere?” I want to give Busta Rhymes the benefit of the doubt and believe he came on to the set just for his part and didn’t stick around to see how the whole commercial played out because he surely could’ve stepped in and helped the “good folks” over at Toyota out with their old, outdated, lame, corny, almost laughable sorry excuse for a hip-hop music video parody. But he gets no pass because he accepted the check and needs to be held responsible as much as Toyota’s “creative” department. By no means am I the only one offended by this commercial but reactions have filled both sides of the spectrum. Since it debuted on YouTube three days ago, it has racked up over 300,000 views and hundreds of comments ranging from people liking the “Swagger Wagon,” finding it funny and applauding Toyota for including a rap element (albeit severely dated) to others who feel, like me, this is yet another slap in the face of the hip-hop community as a whole. One thing is for sure though: Busta Rhymes went laughing all the way to the bank... Here's the Bussa Buss I know and love:

• Share: