Hype man
A hype man, in hip hop music and rapping, is a backup rapper and/or singer who supports the primary rappers with exclamations and interjections and who attempts to increase the audience's excitement with call-and-response chants. The hype man’s interjections are also planned to give the MC an opportunity to breathe, and give the illusion of an unbroken flow. Music writer Mickey Hess expands the term as follows: "a hype man is a figure who plays a central but supporting role within a group, making his own interventions, generally aimed at hyping up the crowd  while also drawing attention to the words of the MC". Discussing the role of the hype man in the book "How to Rap", Royce da 5'9" describes how a hype man can contribute to a live performance: "a lot of my verses [can] be so constant with the flow [that] I'd need somebody to help me." Lateef the Truthspeaker has stated, "You're gonna have to have somebody say something somewhere to give you a breath... usually it's just a matter of getting somebody to hit some line or some word in a line—that's all  you really need." Origins. Early hip hop hype men included Cowboy and Creole of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Kool Moe Dee calls Creole “the original hype man”. A well-known example was Public Enemy's hype man Flavor Flav, who established many of the conventions of the craft, such as an outlandish style (for example, by wearing large clocks around his neck) and a vocal style that contrasted dramatically with that of the MC (his rasping high voice was a counterpoint to Chuck D's booming baritone). Jay-Z began his career as a hype man for Jaz -O and was later the hype man for Big Daddy Kane. Examples. Examples of hype men include Freaky Tah of the Lost Boyz, Memphis Bleek for Jay-Z, and Proof and Mr. Porter of D12 for Eminem. "Icons of Hip Hop" also notes that some producers, such as Diddy, Lil Jon, Swizz Beatz, and Jermaine Dupri, "have transitioned from a hype man role to become rappers and stars in their own right". Occasionally pop or rock groups include a member up front alongside the lead singer who may perform backup vocals or percussion but largely functions to excite the audience  through dancing and/or stage patter. Examples include Bob Nastanovich for Pavement, Bez of The Happy Mondays and Guy Picciotto in Fugazi's earliest incarnation.