The New York Times heart Gym Class

I was kind of put off by the link that lead me to this article (“Emo Hip Hop“) but it’s not dissing Gym Class Heroes by any means.

It talks about how “Cupid’s Chokehold” hit no. 7 on Billboard’s “Hot 100” chart last week, and secured the no. 8 spot this week: By that measure, it remains America’s second-favorite rap track, behind the latest from Ludacris. Hip-hop radio stations won’t go near it, but no matter: Gym Class Heroes are suddenly huge.

And shows some Travie-love: Mr. McCoy has shrewdly identified something that mainstream emo has in common with alternative hip-hop: wordy, self-conscious lyrics.

As a rapper, and as a bandleader, Mr. McCoy’s greatest asset is his decency. Instead of trying to prove that he’s tough enough to hang with rappers, he’s happy to play the role of the nice boy, not least because he knows so many of his fans are girls. His idea of a lewd question is, “How many of you guys like to make out?” And at one point, he apologized to female fans for his obsession with relationships gone bad. “I’ve written my share of broken-hearted songs,” he said, “but you guys are kinda cool.”

Read the rest of their NYtimes profile here.