“Yo Jay (wicky-wicky-rrruurrh)” Farewell

Jam Master Jay is buried:

Jam Master Jay’s family and friends wore black hats, leather jackets and unlaced Adidas shoes in his honor yesterday at a Queens funeral that included plenty of praise, too many tears and one pumped-up cheer for Run-DMC’s slain DJ.

The 37-year-old rap pioneer – whose real name was Jason Mizell – was shot to death in his Jamaica, Queens, studio on Oct. 30.

No suspects have been arrested, but he may have been shot in an ongoing argument about a set of rap lyrics, police sources told The Post yesterday.

Inside the Greater Allen AME Cathedral of New York in Jamaica, his close-knit family, friends and thousands of fans celebrated his life and achievements.

“Jam Master Jay was not a thug,” said his partner in rap, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels. “Jam Master Jay was not a gangster. He was a unique individual.

“He was the personification and embodiment of hip-hop.”

McDaniels talked of Mizell’s love for playing video games – sometimes up to 22 hours in a single day – and his dedication to being stylish at all times.

“Jam Master Jay dressed so well that the fellas hated to go shopping with him,” he said as the audience laughed. But mostly, McDaniels told the congregation of Mizell’s love for the music and his positive outlook on life.

He ended his brief talk, with rap mate Rev. Joseph “Run” Simmons by his side, and recited the lyrics to “Jam Master Jay.”

He asked the audience to join in at the appropriate time and at the closing everyone yelled out the DJ’s name in triumph.

Simmons gave a comforting prayer.

“What is there to be comforting for?” he asked. “Jam Master Jay helped build hip-hop – and his job is finished.

“This is Jay’s biggest hit,” Simmons said. “This is the most press he’s ever gotten. This is his last DJ gig today.”

Mizell’s family sat in the front row, just steps from the casket where the father of three laid. His wife, Terri, cradled sons Terry, 11, and Jesse, 6, in her arms as the songs brought tears to everyone’s eyes.

Mizell’s oldest child, Jason, 15, broke away from his own mother to hug his brothers as the musicians played and everyone around them sang in celebration of Jam Master Jay’s life and legacy.

The church was jammed with celebrity faces – their eyes drawn to the cherry wood casket that stood before the alter. In the fourth row sat Simmons’ brother, Russell Simmons.

LL Cool J was there, as was a flower arrangement in which he called himself a student of Jay.

Lyor Cohen, the president of Island/Def Jam records was also present, along with such rap celebrities as Jermaine Dupri, of So-So Def Music, Chuck D, of Public Enemy, and Queen Latifah.

Outside the church, the family climbed into white, stretch limos, and the fans crowded around looking for familiar faces.

Rapper Foxy Brown passed by, waving at her fans and even taking pictures with some.

She said she could not miss this final goodbye to Mizell.

She had to pay her respect for another lost soul in a generation that’s already hit hard by the deaths of Tupac Shakur, Christopher “Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, Aaliyah and now Jam Master Jay.

Pepa, of the rap duo Salt n’ Pepa, said she and the other members of her group always idolized Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay. She said they created their own, girl version of the pioneers.

Erick Sermon, of EPMD, said his group’s first gig was with the Run-DMC crew.

His partner back in the day, Parish Smith, said that first time out on tour, they didn’t even have money for their own bus.

“Jam Master Jay and Run-DMC said, ‘No problem.’ They let us ride on their tour bus. They helped us work on our show and they basically took us under their wings.

As the rap world turned out in full force at the funeral, special police units videotaped the event in a search for leads on the spinner’s slayer.

Cops are investigating a report that the Run-DMC spinner had sold a piece of music, which included a new rap he had written, to one artist when he had already promised it to someone else.

Yeah, that would justify murder. How twisted, insular, and just plain sick does someone have to be for this to make sense? My biggest problem with the rap culture is that an awful lot of the people involved have no sense of the larger culture and think their little world has any meaning beyond entertainment. Here’s a clue: no one really gives a shit, get over yourselves, graduate from the ghetto – don’t drag it with you. I don’t think Jay had this problem.

On a lighter note, here are my ten favorite Run-DMC songs:

10 “King of Rock”
9 “You Talk Too Much”
8 “Hard Times”
7 “Mary, Mary”
6 “Down With the King”
5 “Can You Rock It Like This”
4 “My Adidas”
3 “Walk This Way”
2 “You Be Illin'”
1 “It’s Tricky”

UPDATE
Run-DMC to retire:

The two surviving members have announced that Run-D.M.C. has officially retired. The news came during a press conference to raise financial support for the family of slain Run-D.M.C. member Jam Master Jay (Jason Mizell) in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday (November 6).
Groupmember Reverend Run told the crowd, “We were just on tour with Aerosmith and Kid Rock, and we can’t perform anymore. Nobody wants to see Run and D.M.C. without Jay. Jay was definitely one-third of the group, and a lot of people I was seeing on television was wondering, ‘Is Jay…was he a significant third of the group?’ He was. We split this money three ways and we’re not able to go back out in December with Kid Rock and Aerosmith now.”

Run continued, “Run-D.M.C. is officially retired. I can’t get out in front of my fans with a new DJ. Some rock bands can replace the drummer. People say that to me: ‘Are you the original three members?’ I say, ‘I don’t know any other way but to be the three original members,’ and that’s all I can say–is that we’re retired. Does anybody have a job out there?”