Would you let me clear my throat?

DJ Kool - Let Me Clear My Throat

OK, the title of this post is a little bit of a stretch to keep with my format of using questions in my post titles. But “Let Me Clear My Throat” was – is still – a popular rap recorded live in 1996 by DJ Kool. I think he was ahead of his time on the social (media) scene. If you listed to the rap, he engages (sometimes upsets a little) his audience, gets them to participate, and they all know what to shout back when he coughs. At the end of the rap, he gives a shout-out to everyone he can – RTs way before Facebook or Twitter.

From the Wayback Machine: A version of this post first appeared in 2008.

In fact, according to Wikipedia:

“It is believed that “Let Me Clear My Throat” holds
the record for most “dedications/shout outs” in a song,
as DJ Kool goes on a marathon of thank yous and
shout outs near the end of the song”

So what’s my point? I think Kool is a pretty good Brandteller, for one. He tells an entertaining story, manages to mention a nursery rhyme (Peter Piper) and children’s song (The Man on the Flying Trapeze), makes the crowd stop and respond throughout, repeats his key phrase, and still remembers to acknowledge everyone. Who wouldn’t want to pay attention to that kind of story? Maybe a little something we can all learn from.

Now, let me clear my throat.

Related articles

• Could your brand pack in an audience?(brandtelling.com)
• Can the power of words alone make a difference in your marketing?(brandtelling.com)
• Do you ever tear the roof off your brand story?(brandtelling.com)

About Arthur Germain

Arthur Germain, Principal & Chief Brandteller of Communication Strategy Group is the curator and main blogger for Brandtelling, a blog about Brand+Storytelling.

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