COLUMBIA, S.C. — Rapper Killer Mike has been on the campaign trail acting as a surrogate for Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt., in South Carolina.

In a longer interview, Yahoo News asked Killer Mike who he sees as the “rap game Bernie Sanders.” Within hip-hop, rappers are sometimes referred to as the “rap game” version of something else. For example, Killer Mike and his Run the Jewels collaborator, El-P, were once dubbed the “rap game Williams sisters.”

“Who’s the rap game Bernie Sanders?” Killer Mike asked with a laugh.

After thinking about it for a moment, he came up with an answer: Wu-Tang Clan rapper Ol’ Dirty Bastard, aka ODB, who passed away in late 2004.

“Well, I would have said ODB, but he’s gone,” Killer Mike said, adding, “Because he was wild, but his style was righteous. His hair was wild, but his style was righteous.”



Sanders has taken on the political establishment with his self-described “democratic socialist” message and criticisms of the “rigged” system of campaign contributions. ODB was also unconventional in his world. Fellow Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man once said that his name came from the fact there was “no father to his style.” Throughout his career, ODB was known for wild lyrics and flow as well as equally wild offstage antics, including famously interrupting the 1998 Grammys.

Next, Yahoo News asked Killer Mike who he sees as the “rap game Hillary Clinton. He did not hesitate before answering with the name of an oft-derided white rapper.

“Vanilla Ice,” Killer Mike said.



Vanilla Ice had his heyday in the early 1990s and has been accused of ripping off other artists.