Flavor Flav Says Former Def Jam Boss Lyor Cohen Is ‘Polarizing’ But Has Done ‘Great Things’ (Exclusive)

Flavor Flav is sharing his thoughts about hip hop 50 years after the genre was born.

While making a red carpet appearance for a fundraising event with City of Hope — a cancer treatment hospital — on Wednesday, the rapper spoke with The Messenger about how the art form has transformed since its founding in 1973.

“It means changing of the guards. You know what I’m saying?” the rapper said. “Music was one way when we were making it, you know what I’m saying?”

Flav spoke about adapting to the changes in the industry — but at the end of the day, “it’s still all hip hop,” he said.

“But now generations have come behind us making this music, and it’s changed. So now we just adapting to the change, to the new change, but it’s still all hip hop,” he said.

The “Bring the Noise” rapper, who performed alongside Public Enemy, Ja Rule, Memphis Bleek, Swizz Beatz, T.I. and others at the event — also spoke about the City of Hope event’s honoree, Def Jam Records alum and current head of music at YouTube and Google, Lyor Cohen. According to Flav, although Cohen has been a “polarizing” figure at times, his charitable actions for City of Hope are to be celebrated.

“It’s always important that people connect to good causes. Once, you know, the business got away from that for a while,” Flav said. “Yeah. So, [Lyor], although he’s been a polarizing figure, he’s also been in the middle of a lot of great things as well. So the good things are around; you applaud it. You celebrate that.”

In addition to hip-hop’s 50th birthday, attendees at City of Hope’s Music, Film and Entertainment Industry (MFEI) fundraising event discussed raising money to combat racial inequities in cancer treatment.

Several other big-name attendees, including Ja Rule and Onyx’s Fredro, spoke about Cohen’s impact on the hip-hop industry and his contributions to the charitable cause.

“Leo Cohen is the mastermind behind a lot of records. We have a record called Slam, which is one of the biggest records in hip hop,” Fredro said to The Messenger on the red carpet. “Leo Cohen made us do that record. Like, he knows hip hop, you know what I’m saying? Like, Leo Cohen is the guy. Like, there’s no there’s nobody better than Leo Cohen in hip hop when you really think about it.”

Ja Rule added, “That’s, in a nutshell, that’s Leo Cohen; that’s his values. That’s who he is. You know, ‘Don’t just honor me. Let’s do it in the name of this great charitable cause,” the rapper told The Messenger. “It says a lot about the man he is.”

The City of Hope’s 50th Music, Film and Entertainment Industry group’s “Spirit of Life” Gala raised over $4 million for cancer research and prevention. According to Cohen, the event’s goal was to support cancer treatments for Black and brown people, not to honor him.

“This is not about me. This is about a community that fights like hell during the day,” the former Warner executive told The Messenger. “But when it comes to doing good, they come together and make things happen. And this, to me, is why I love this industry.

“The fact of the matter is that cancer disproportionately kills Black and brown people. And this hospital [City of Hope] is committed to spending money to help educate and teach underserved communities the power of education and early detection just so the balance could come in perspective,” he added. “And so we’re about closing the gap, and we’re working very hard on that. The hospital’s committed. They have a big heart, and I’m thrilled that I could just lend my name so people could rally.”

According to Dr. Joseph Alvarnas, a hematologist-oncologist at City of Hope, events such as Wednesday night’s fundraiser are critical to see significant change in how cancer treatment can proceed.

“The resources provided by an event like this allow for cancer screening; cancer education. It allows us to reach out to patients who otherwise would have no chance to transcend that diagnosis and to enjoy the fact that five and 10 and 20 years from now, they’re alive, contributing to their families and society and really elevating all of us,” Alvarnas said. “So, an event like this touches the lives of people that none of these entertainers or leaders will ever see. But they’re the families and patients that I see every day struggle with the cancer diagnosis and who look for hope. This is where hope comes from.”