“Lil Wayne Is Probably The Biggest Emo Star I Know” - Pete Wentz

Hip-hop has been an integral part of society at large for the past 50 years. It’s difficult, if not impossible, to imagine a life without the genre. Even if you aren’t a fan yourself (if so…what are you doing here?), its presence is undeniable. Every triumph and controversy has culminated into a cultural phenomenon, bleeding its way into the very fabric of our lives. The line between hip-hop and rock is so blurred that you often cannot tell the difference between the two. There is perhaps no better exemplifier of that fine line between hip-hop and rock music than Fall Out Boy. The expertise of someone immersed in this multi-layered world is critical to keep it afloat— someone needs to continuously tell this story.

Enter Scarlet Estelle Hernandez, a music industry professional and passionate Fall Out Boy enthusiast of more than 18 years. Throughout this time, she adapted to modern media formats, ultimately curating the perfect outlet to put the story on display. Her show, "Sugar We're Going In", is a groundbreaking podcast exploring the captivating history and intersection of Fall Out Boy and Hip Hop. Scarlet promises to engage fans of both Fall Out Boy and hip-hop in her weekly podcast episodes, shedding light on the intriguing connection between these two seemingly distinct worlds.

“From production to topics and even their sense of fashion, Fall Out Boy embodied a part of the culture. They were your favorite rapper’s favorite band; it started with a mutual respect of the genre, its players, and most importantly—its influence on pop culture,” Scarlet says.

You’d be amazed at any given artist’s list of influences. Patrick Stump proudly declaring his Subway sandwich as an homage to Kanye West after losing a Grammy makes perfect sense when you listen to his production work. You can’t get that kind of sound without extensive knowledge of hip-hop. He has, clearly, spent his entire life dedicating his time to understanding every inch of it, celebrating and criticizing it equally so he can create his own body of work in its honor. 

“I often think on Patrick’s work with Gym Class Heroes, Lupe Fiasco, and Robert Glasper. It feels so natural for him and I think he’s one of the best performers to continue challenging genre norms. It’s so critical as an artist to grow, evolve, and listen to art to create more art. His growth-mindedness has made for some of the most undeniably original music out in the past 20 years,” Scarlet adds.

Therefore, when emo elitists and so-called historians write off hip-hop and its presence in our scene, it feels rather shallow. We should also be celebrating both things together because they must coexist if they are to thrive. Fall Out Boy has had such a long and fruitful career by adhering to that sentiment. It’s natural to them, but they really stick to their convictions, never letting outside opinions remove them from that quintessential aspect of their being. Fall Out Boy borrows from several genres outside of hip-hop, notably heavy metal, but even those nods can circle back to their mentors like Jay-Z. 

For example, any Vans Warped Tour pre-2007 looked rather similar. A sweaty sea of clones roamed parking lots fueled by ramen, Monster energy drinks, and a dream. They would pack in general admission standing room as close enough to the stage as humanly possible to watch a set by a guy who looks just like them. Of course, their stories resonated; these fans could have written these lyrics, too. Fall Out Boy’s permanent impact on the scene enabled bands who looked and sounded differently than what we had always seen or heard before to take over these stages, creating beautiful, colorful, and diverse audiences–the way punk rock had always intended. Gabe Saportas and Travie McCoys were always meant to grace these stages, too.

Boldly introducing their innovative, career-altering 2007 album Infinity On High with an introduction by Jay-Z cemented the ideology that hip-hop lives in the same vicinity as other genres, especially emo. Our hostess with the mostest, Scardi B, would argue that perhaps all rappers could also be hailed as emo gods if we really thought long enough about it (and she has). Creating these unnecessary barriers between things as more than sonic identifiers, like genre, prevents people from making real magic.

“Thriller” is the center of the Venn Diagram that the band has created between rock (namely emo) and hip-hop. Jay-Z’s intro is a staple technique in hip-hop, showcasing a love letter to fans and giant F-U to haters all at once, while Joe Trohman rips out a heavy metal guitar riff in Drop D tuning. It’s really mesmerizing stuff, especially if you remember how the world worked back in 2007. It wasn’t great. Fans of hip-hop received similar criticisms as fans of emo; there were just crueler undertones for the hip-hop fans, but both were outcasted, and blamed for a myriad of problems that they didn’t cause.

Having an album like Infinity On High, with an introduction like “Thriller,” allowed a lot of things to happen. It allowed fans of Jay-Z to discover Fall Out Boy, and then subsequently the emo genre as a whole. Conversely, it allowed Fall Out Boy fans to open up to maybe liking hip-hop. These early choices paved the way for more innovation throughout Fall Out Boy’s career. Even as they were saying their alleged goodbyes, Lil Wayne, the biggest emo star Pete Wentz knows, absolutely devoured the bridge in “Tiffany Blews.” Imagine that song without Lil Wayne. You can’t. Yet, they continued to pursue these ambitious collaborations when they made their triumphant return in 2013. The first thing we saw from Fall Out Boy in years was them burning their records with 2Chainz like everyone does when they hang out with their friends, to the tune of a Van Halen sample. As if Patrick Stump doing his best David Lee Roth impression wasn’t wild enough!

Arguably, the second-most groundbreaking, genre-pushing body of work Fall Out Boy has ever made is their 2015 rap remix album Make America Psycho Again. Even fans who didn’t really vibe with the remixes as songs they’d reach for on any given day cannot deny that it’s absolutely insane having Azaelia Banks on a Fall Out Boy song. Though, she did say, “(we love The Academy Is…)”, further proving my point here.

Sugar We’re Going In explores these similarities because it’s fun, but it’s also critical for the preservation of history and culture. Music history classes do this in college classrooms, teaching students that Black people invented rock and roll, but it goes much deeper as niches continue to evolve. Subgenres always have political undertones, and bands like Fall Out Boy will be remembered for centuries (sorry) because they do not shy away from these undeniable truths.

Hopefully, as we do more deep dives, we’ll see fewer people suggest that “The Mighty Fall” and “Dear Future Self” are, mysteriously, the only skips in Fall Out Boy’s discography. Sometimes, it is that deep; ignoring Fall Out Boy’s history with hip-hop ignores entire cultures, leaving skewed undertones. We have no idea who Fall Out Boy will collaborate with next. It could be Ice Spice for all we know. Regardless, we can expect that the unexpected will be thoroughly calculated, mixing a healthy amount of fun and intention for all of us to enjoy. Also, these collaborations leave lots of room for several more seasons of the Sugar We’re Going In podcast.

Follow/listen to ‘Sugar, We’re Going In’ below: