Freakishly good ballet dancer, Alex Wong, wowed the SYTYCD studio into a wild standing ovation with his insane hip hop number last night. After the cheering ceased, everyone calmed down... well... almost everyone. Adam wasn't exactly subtle with his praise.

Rammellzee, the pioneering hip hop artist and Wild Style star whose ten-minute-plus 1983 record Beat Bop is still fresher than just about anything on the radio, has apparently died.

This is the greatest thing ever. Here's another Rich Juzwiak masterpiece, featuring moments from Diane Horner's Country Hip Hop Dancing, a workout video from HEAVEN. "You can even add your shoulders if you want. That's the fun thing about hip-hop!"

Plans for a National Museum of Hip-Hop have already hit a major snag: the old school founders of the culture want to get paid. Does the world owe anything to the innovators—who were screwed as subculture became pop culture?

After an assignment filming a hip-hop documentary in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, Jeroen Koolhaas and Dre Urhahn (better known as Haas&Hahn) decided to add their own flair to the neighborhood and help the community at the same time.

Magnum condoms, for those of you who don't know (not me), are big condoms that are great for when your penis is extra large. Who better to promote Magnum condoms than rappers, who have extra-large penises, as everyone knows?

Guru, the monotone-voiced MC in the classic hip hop group Gang Starr, died yesterday after an extended battle with cancer. He was 43. He and DJ Premier were one of East Coast hip hop's most consistently respected duos. Highlights below.

In this video, Reggie Watts breaks down typical contemporary hiphop videos into their hilarious component parts. Warning: lots of cursing and lots of hair.

Jay-Z is a pretty good rapper. Jay-Z is not the best rapper ever. Jay-Z is not a role model. Jay-Z is not a hip hop hero. Not even for you, cool kids. Get off Jay-Z's dick.

Still mired in that old "Who's the gay rapper?" argument? Stroll on into the 21st century and meet New Orleans Sissy Bounce, where "The Hot Boys" takes on a more appropriate meaning. Get with it! [Vanity Fair]

Rapper Lil Wayne won't be spending the night at Rikers. A fire at the Manhattan Criminal Court building on Centre Street this morning bought him (another!) temporary reprieve from jail.

Monotone-voiced Hall of Fame rapper Guru of Gang Starr reportedly had a heart attack last weekend, and is in the hospital in a coma. He's scheduled for surgery today. He's 43 years old.

Big news for fans of Kansho Tagai, a.k.a. Mr. Happiness, Japan's most famous 49 year-old rappin' Buddhist monk: He's ready to move into a new medium—"mixing Buddhist chants with tap-dancing." Is the Buddhist hip hop audience ready? [Reuters]

A man was murdered by a rapper—from Sweden! Insert coded racist statement here.

UPDATE: Joe Revitte from Dollar Van Demos sent this note telling his side of the story.

What is happening in the "art world" these days? Well, Wu-Tang's RZA is remixing 'Washington Crossing the Delaware' in typical Wu style (buy now!), in addition to directing his first movie. Biggest art thing since that dead shark! Wu-reminisce, below.

In the early 90s, Kathie Lee's delusions of grandeur led her to film a hip hop Christmas special styled after Pee Wee's playhouse. A clip of Kathie Lee's Rock 'n Tots Cafe: A Christmas Giff after the jump.

Former Jay-Z bodyguard killed by cops. Hip hop still far less dangerous than the NYPD.