Run-DMC continues their press run promoting their 3-part Peacock documentary, Kings From Queens, which debuts today (2/1). In a recent interview with The Huffington Post Run and D discuss gatekeepers in Hip-Hop.

"Hip-Hop doesn’t need gatekeepers," DMC said. "What it needs is everyone who was successful in Hip-Hop, prior to the generations that are still operating in Hip-Hop, to have seats at those tables. We need to be in the boardrooms." DMC made a sports analogy to stress the importance of Hip-Hop's elder statesmen and their place in the industry. 

"It’s like in sports, if I played for your team and retired, you need to hire me to still be included in the team in a different way because I was the one that made the culture of that team what it is at that time. With Hip-Hop, we changed the world; we made history, and we were very positive, but they don’t want to have us have a seat at the table. They are taking Hip-Hop and profiting off of it. 99.9 percent of what you call Hip-Hop isn’t Hip-Hop, but if you leave that to the public, they won’t ask any questions. We don’t need gatekeepers, but they need us in the room so we can tell people when they’re wrong."

"I’m happy with what LL Cool J is doing with his platform, Rock The Bells," Run said. "[They are] making sure people understand that Hip-Hop is actually a genre that can be around forever. He has the old-school rappers intertwined with the new-school rappers, so I believe LL COOL J is doing a great job in keeping Hip-Hop as an authentic genre."

Kings From Queens promises never-before-told stories and archival footage, and examines how the trio formed Run-DMC in the streets of Hollis, Queens, in New York City in the 1980s. Check out the trailer above.