Denmark Vessey holds the unique honor of being the last MC to perform at the final Yule Prog.
For the uninitiated, Yule Prog was an annual hip-hop show started by Uncommon Nasa, co-hosted by he and billy woods, and held one night in NYC for each of the last 10 Decembers. My first was the fourth, at which, in my opinion, one of the most memorable performances of the evening was given by rapper HiCoup and producer Willie Green, who provided live accompaniment on the drum machine. They were supposed to put an album out together, I believe. It never happened, but the songs they debuted that night still make me wonder “what if” over six years later.
I made it a point to attend Yule Prog every year thereafter, whether I could get a friend to come along or not. Such was the magic of the occasion. YP10 fell on one of those deadly cold nights in the beginning of this past December. I got super drunk at the show, fell asleep on the train ride home, and ended up at the Long Beach LIRR stop (not mine), huddled in a phone booth for warmth while waiting for my girlfriend to come get me. “Your princess in shining armor,” she just told me.
Willie Green and Denmark Vessey’s “The Majii,” for me at least, really captures the fun, excitement and just-right feeling of the aforementioned shows. It appeared on Green’s Doc Savage LP, the instrumental version of which was just released. I for one really hope these two end up doing an album together.
More about: Denmark Vessey, Willie Green
