After conquering the worlds of comedy, television and movies (well maybe not movies – “Leonard Part 6” anyone?), Dr. William H. Cosby, Jr. has set his sights on hip-hop. Seriously. Not making this up.
The 72-year-old Cosby will release his debut rap album, Bill Cosby Presents the Cosnarati: State of Emergency, digitally on Oct. 20 and physically on Nov. 24.
The 14-track disc was recorded with production assistance from William Patterson, the former music director for “The Cosby Show,” according to the Wall Street Journal.
Before you start throwing daggers, the comedian won’t be pulling a Jay-Z or Eminem. Instead it features emcee work from Jace the Great, Brother Hahz and Super Nova Slam. Cosby is the brains behind each of the album’s socially conscious cuts.
The former Jello Pudding pitchman had this to say about the current state of rap music: “What I like is what you’re not going to do. You’re not going to curse. You’re not going to put women down. You’re not going to put the glory of the gun somewhere. And you’re not going to put a whole lot of violence up front like that’s the thing that will cleanse you and make you feel better.”
Cosby said this about his new album: “Please listen to the words. We worked hard, very hard, to tell you about the state of emergency. Thank you.”
To mark the release of State of Emergency, the comedian will host a virtual town hall from New York City tonight via Ustream called “A Conversation About The Crisis Confronting Our People.” Cosby’s band will also perform tracks from the new album.
You can listen to a stream of State of Emergency here.