Industry stakeholders are discussing Erick Sermon’s commendation of Clipse for rekindling the dialogue about age and artistry in Hip-Hop. Sermon attributes the return of the Virginia duo to a cultural shift that questions the genre’s entrenched ageism.
“Y’all have to thank the Clipse,” Sermon announced in a recent video. “The Clipse came at the right time for Raekwon to come, for Ghostface to come we needed the Clipse to do what they did at 52 and 48 years old it doesn’t matter the age if you make great material…”
Erick Sermon expresses his admiration for Clipse and asserts that their explosive new album, Let God Sort Em Out, has revitalized Hip Hop since its release. He emphatically states that ageism in Hip Hop needs to end.
“Yall have to thank the Clipse, the Clipse came at the right time for Raekwon to come, for Ghostface to come we… pic.twitter.com/4ypF3Pyg99
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The Clipse’s reunion album, Let God Sort Em Out, released in July, represents their first full-length project in 16 years. The album, produced entirely by Pharrell Williams, debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and topped the Independent Albums chart. Critics acclaimed the duo—Pusha T and Malice—for their “lyrical versatility” and “inspired” production, observing how they merged their characteristic grit with a more mature perspective. Fans speculate that Sermon’s revelation indicates their comeback has paved the way for other veteran MCs like Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, and Nas, all of whom have released recent albums through Mass Appeal.
Sermon critiqued the genre’s propensity to tag older artists as “old school,” a term infrequently used in other music genres. “We’re the only genre to talk about age, they don’t say old school Madonna, old school Paul McCartney, old school Barbra Streisand or old school Cher,” he disclosed.
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Public Enemy also tackled ageism on their latest project, Black Sky Over the Projects: Apartment 2025, released earlier this year. Chuck and Flavor Flav used the album to contest the idea that Hip-Hop has an expiration date, asserting that experience should be celebrated, not dismissed.
Sermon also announced that his upcoming album, Dynamic Duos, will be released in September.
