For four decades Keenan, Damon, Kim, Marlon, Shawn, Damon Jr. Damien, Chaunté, Keenen Jr. and Craig have been nothing short of an institution in American comedy. This year at the 56th NAACP Image Awards, the Wayans family is being inducted into the Hall Of Fame, an unquestionably well deserved honor. 

The rise of the Wayans family in the era of Robert Townsend’s masterpiece ‘Hollywood Shuffle’ and the timeless his ‘I’m Gonna Git You Sucka’ in 1987 and 1988 respectively, paralleled a period in Hip-Hop that saw the genre on a rapid ascent.

From that moment on, the Wayans have always reflected what was happening in the culture, whether they were creating a platform for MCs to showcase their skills like In Living Color, acting alongside iconic spitters like in Above The Rim, or facilitating an all-time great soundtrack like that of ‘Don’t Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood, the family has always been on the beat. Even as you read this, Marlon is slow roasting Soulja Boy on social Media. 

As they say, “We’re not gonna hold you.” Here are ten awesomely Hip-Hop moments from the Wayans family in no particular order. Let us know yours! 

1. The ‘In Living Color’ Theme Song By Heavy D 

Not only did this song just pop up in your head as you read this, but it will live there on a loop for at least an hour and will you be mad about it of course not. Heavy D was an icon and nothing made more sense than to have him knock out these opening credits with a banger that would live on in excellence.

2. ‘The Wayans Bros.’ Rap Cameos

The Wayans Bros. list of cameos was a who’s who of 90s film and television stars, but as far as Hip-Hop themost notable ones were Missy Elliott and Busta Rhymes who both played themselves. We have to give an honorable mention to Roy Jones Jr. who almost came to blows with Shawn for questioning the champ’s rhyme skills.

3. ‘The Wayans Bros.’ Spitting Their Own Rhymes

In addition to the cameos, everything about the show was inexorably tied to the culture. From the style to the music in the show. Fun fact: Not only was Q-Tip responsible for one theme song (“Electric Relaxation,”) which ran in seasons one and two, but the other theme song that was used on the series’ final three seasons was actually created by Marlon, who was taught how to make beats by none other than The Abstract himself.

In the show itself, not only did Shawn and Marlon spit rhymes (not always well), but Pops even got down and had one of the show’s most famous lines “see if we can get DMX on one of my songs.” Perhaps the most famous Hip-Hop related scenes was when Marlon had a violinist “play ‘Bow Down’ by the Westside Connection!” 

4. Damon’s 2 Live Crew Dance Scene In ‘Major Payne’ 

Editorial note: “’Major Payne’ is one of the funniest movies ever made” is a hill I have been willing to die on for over a quarter century. The number of scenes in that movie that inspire stomach pain-inducing laughter  is too many to count, but for sure, one of them is when Benson (Damon Wayans) and Emily (Karyn Parsons) are on a date and the characteristically stiff Major surprises her by showing off his dance skills to none other than 2 Live Crew’s raunchy hit “Pop That Coochie.” 

5. The ‘Don’t Be A Menace’ Soundtrack

In his interview on “Club Shay Shay,” Marlon spoke on the discipline instilled in him and Shawn by their older brother Keenan Ivory Wayans, and more specifically noted that they had to write 26 drafts of the classic parody before the version we all saw came to fruition. The movie itself was infused with Hip-Hop throughout, especially since it was a spoof on every hood movie of that era. 

The soundtrack was a well orchestrated, versatile classic, which featured a unique mixture of styles and sounds including the famous title track “Winter Warz” which featured Ghostface, Raekwon, U-God, Masta Killa and Cappadonna. The original motion picture soundtrack also featured Lil’ Kim, Erick Sermon, Lost Boyz, The Luniz and many more.

6. ‘The Keenan Ivory Wayans Show’

In it’s short-lived existence (August of 1997 until March of 1998) The Keenen Ivory Wayans brought humor and Hip-Hop together. Like the Wayans family always did, Keenen was happy to provide a platform for notable MCs like Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes and many others to showcase their talent to the world. It’s still a shame that show didn’t get off the ground.

7. ‘My Wife and Kids’ Dance battle w/ Katt Williams 

There was no shortage of funny story lines in the Damon Wayans and Tisha Campbell led sitcom, but perhaps the best was when Michael (Damon Wayans) high school nemesis Bobby Shaw (Katt Williams) came back to settle a score on the floor. Both men are stuck in the 80s to a comic degree and the ensuing battle is one of the funniest scenes to ever bless a television screen.

8. ‘White Chicks’ Dance Battle 

“I know you hookers don’t think this is over with.” 

If that line is not immediately familiar, please stop what you’re doing and go watch ‘White Chicks’ right now. In a movie full of laughs, this scene (and a moment that involved Terry Crews and glow sticks) stole the show. Marcus and Kevin (Shawn and Marlon) found themselves undercover, avenging their new friends in a dance battle to one of the ultimate dance battle songs, Run-DMC’s “It’s Tricky.” Takeaway: Don’t challenge any Wayans Brothers to a dance battle. 

(starting at 1:40)

9. Heavy D, Flavor Flav, 2Pac and Puffy On Stage At The Same Time

As we take this list full circle, it’s worth noting that ‘In Living Color’ as a whole just hits a little bit harder thanks to the late great overweight lover,, Heavy D’s contributions. The aforementioned opening credits along with his multiple appearances spawned legendary moments that will live on in Hip-Hop lore. 

Perhaps none more memorable than that time Heavy D & The Boyz, Flavor Flav, 2Pac and Puffy were all on stage at the same time during a performance of “You Can’t See What I Can See.” The significance of this video has myriad levels of context as we would see dynamics change over the years for each of these men but despite everything that has happened since, this video marks a time when there was a level of peace and unity within Hip-Hop that, if only temporary, was an incredible time to be alive. 

10. Damon and Damon Jr. Dancing To ‘Squabble Up’

In one of life’s great bonuses, Damon Wayans gets to work with his son, Damon Wayans Jr. on the new CBS show “Poppa’s House.” The two’s onscreen chemistry is unsurprisingly great, but in a TikTok post by @aniya_wayans2 that went viral around the time Kendrick Lamar’s infectious single “Squabble Up” was first released, the father/son comedic duo showed off their respective moves and the pure, unmitigated joy was nothing short of #parentinggoals