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DK Rap

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"DK Rap"
Screenshot of Donkey Kong 64's intro, where the song plays. Pictured from left to right: Tiny Kong, Lanky Kong, Donkey Kong, Chunky Kong, and Diddy Kong.
Song by George Andreas, Grant Kirkhope, and Chris Sutherland
Released24 November 1999
Recorded1999
Genre
SongwriterGrant Kirkhope
LyricistGeorge Andreas
Audio sample
A little bit of the song

The "DK Rap", also known as "Da Banana Bunch", is a song by the British game developers George Andreas, Grant Kirkhope, and Chris Sutherland. It plays during the opening of Rare and Nintendo's Donkey Kong 64, a 1999 platform game for the Nintendo 64. A comedy hip-hop track, the "DK Rap" describes the characteristics and abilities of Donkey Kong 64's playable characters: Donkey Kong, Tiny Kong, Lanky Kong, Chunky Kong, and Diddy Kong.

Andreas, inspired by Run-DMC, conceived and wrote the "DK Rap", and performed it with Sutherland. Kirkhope composed the melody; he sought to use the "DK Rap" to distinguish Donkey Kong 64's iteration of Donkey Kong from his earlier appearance in Donkey Kong Country (1994). Other Rare staffers contributed background vocals. The "DK Rap" appeared in subsequent Nintendo games, including Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001), Donkey Konga (2003), and Donkey Kong Bananza (2025), as well as in The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023).

While Andreas, Kirkhope, and Sutherland intended the "DK Rap" as a joke, critics and audiences interpreted it as a serious songwriting attempt. It received negative reviews, with criticism for its lyrics; it has been referred to as one of the worst songs in a video game. In the 2010s, it experienced a resurgence in popularity as an internet meme. Kirkhope wrote a spiritual successor, the "Yooka-Laylee Rap", for Yooka-Laylee (2017), and collaborated with the American rapper Substantial to record a new version for Donkey Kong 64's 25th anniversary in 2024.

Concept and history

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The lyrics to the "DK Rap" describe the five playable characters in Donkey Kong 64, one per verse: Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Tiny Kong, Lanky Kong, and Chunky Kong. The rap was conceived by Donkey Kong 64 designer George Andreas and composed by Grant Kirkhope.[2] Andreas took inspiration from the band Run-DMC.[3] Kirkhope's goal was to juxtapose Donkey Kong as seen in Donkey Kong Country versus his newest appearance. Andreas wrote and performed the lyrics (alongside Donkey Kong 64 lead programmer Chris Sutherland) while Kirkhope wrote the tune. The chorus includes Rare staffers such as Gregg Mayles, Steve Mayles, Ed Bryan, and Chris Peil. Each character's verse features instrumentals reflecting the instruments the characters possess.[3]

Kirkhope said that the DK Rap was not supposed to be a "serious rap" but rather a joke.[1][2] Consumer and critical reaction was generally negative, having interpreted the song as being serious.[3] Kirkhope felt surprised that Nintendo objected to the use of the word "hell" and attributed it to the Bible Belt in the United States.[3] The "DK Rap" was not localized for the Japanese release of Donkey Kong 64, nor was it subtitled.[4] Video game designer Shigesato Itoi provided a Japanese translation of the "DK Rap" on his personal website.[4]

Super Smash Bros. remix

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The "DK Rap" was remixed in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Composer Hirokazu Ando was to be in charge of composition, but due to technical issues, director Masahiro Sakurai and composer Shogo Sakai had to assist. To overcome these issues, they played the background audio and recorded the rap over it. Because the remixed rap is faster, it was not possible for them to record it live. Some characters in the theme have higher tempos than others. While the DJ (James W. Norwood Jr.) practiced, they recorded him, using what good came out of it and mixing it together. The rap took two days to record.[5]

Legacy

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The "DK Rap" is the first song in the 1999 Donkey Kong 64 Original Soundtrack, where it was named "Da Banana Bunch".[6] Around the release of Donkey Kong 64, Nintendo of America hosted a promotion called the "DK Rap Attack Contest" where people could submit a recording of themselves singing their own version of the "DK Rap". The winner would receive a Donkey Kong 64/Nintendo 64 console bundle, a trip to Nintendo of America's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, and their video would be hosted on the official Donkey Kong 64 website. The song was made available for download on Nintendo's website for use with this promotion.[7]

A new version of the "DK Rap" was featured in the 2001 GameCube Nintendo crossover fighting game Super Smash Bros. Melee, performed by James W. Norwood Jr. who provided different voices for every verse. The original theme features the word "hell", which was changed to "heck" for the Melee release.[3] This version was later reused in subsequent Super Smash Bros. games, and was featured as a song in the 2003 GameCube music game Donkey Konga.[8] It was also released on the album Donkey Konga: The Hottest Hits.[9] In English-language versions of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Donkey Kong's crowd cheer is a variant of the "DK Rap". As part of a Kickstarter stretch goal, Grant Kirkhope wrote a spiritual successor to the "DK Rap", titled the "Yooka-Laylee Rap", for Yooka-Laylee.[10]

In the second chapter of Deltarune, a role-playing video game by Toby Fox, the outro lyrics of the "DK Rap" are referenced when inspecting a basket of fruit in a convenience store owned by Sans.[citation needed]

The "DK Rap" is featured as Donkey Kong's entrance theme in the 2023 film The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Seth Rogen, who voices Donkey Kong in the film, noted the song's reputation as "one of the worst rap songs of all time" but also stated that he was amused by it upon listening to it in full for the first time, giving it a "10 out of 10 bananas" rating.[11] Grant Kirkhope criticized the film for not crediting him;[12] he was later told that Nintendo's policy was not to credit composers on music sourced from games that the company owned.[13]

For the 25th anniversary of the "DK Rap" release, Grant Kirkhope and Substantial included a re-imagined a new version on the Materia Collective album Rare Treats: Donkey Kong 64 Revisited.[14]

The "DK Rap" is featured in the 2025 Nintendo Switch 2 game Donkey Kong Bananza.[15]

Reception

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Grant Kirkhope, the game's composer, expressed joy that more people consider the song funny.[3]

Since its appearance in Donkey Kong 64, the "DK Rap" has received generally negative reception. It was awarded "dubious awards" for its quality. It also received criticism for its use of the word "hell" despite its ESRB rating.[16] 1Up.com's Scott Sharkey included it in his list of the "top 5 cringe-inducing videogame raps" and claimed that it was a "100% reliable method of emptying the place" in which he took his cigarette breaks.[17] He also called it one of the worst video game themes and called it "so-bad-it's-good" due to its "fundamental cluelessness". He stated, "Really, when I think of the improvisational musical art of the inner city underclasses the first thing that comes to mind is a tie-wearing Japanese gorilla. Yeah."[18] Destructoid's Dale North included it in his list of the most obnoxious video game songs and joked that he imagined the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air character Carlton Banks dancing to it.[19] The song was performed on a pop show in Japan by a high-profile Japanese rapper.[3] Composer Grant Kirkhope compared the theme's recent resurgence to popularity, including as an Internet meme, to the band ABBA and expressed joy that more people consider the song funny.[3] Video Game Music Online criticized the Donkey Konga album remix due to its new vocalist and attempt to introduce authentic rap elements.[9]

NGamer UK included it in their article about the "evil side of kiddy gaming" and called it "so-bad-it'll-make-your-ears-bleed rotten".[20] The "DK Rap" was included in IGN's list of the worst in-game quotes at number eight. The staff claimed that the song "comes to mind" when they think of video game's "all-time terrible moments". They stated that it was the "only song in history that sounds like vomit".[21] Game Informer's O'Dell Harmon included it at #2 in his list of the "freshest rap songs in video games".[22] GamesRadar's Bob Mackey claimed that the "DK Rap" was the biggest addition to the Donkey Kong character in Donkey Kong 64.[23] Composer Grant Kirkhope stated that staff of Big Huge Games (the company at which he was employed at the time) made fun of him for the song and added that his tombstone will read, "here lies the body of Grant Kirkhope, he wrote the DK Rap, may God have mercy on his soul".[2] The lyric "His coconut gun can fire in spurts. If he shoots ya, it's gonna hurt!" was named the fourth worst game line ever in the January 2002 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly.[24] OC Weekly's Peter Mai included the song in his list of the "Top 5 Cheesiest (Yet Somehow Awesome) Video Game Songs". He stated, "[it is] probably the worst rap song ever written, but you know you still love it."[25]

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 Weiss, Josh (22 November 2019). "'Donkey Kong 64' Composer Grant Kirkhope Looks Back on 20 Years of the 'DK Rap'". Forbes. Archived from the original on 27 November 2019. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 Greening, Chris (May 2010). "Interview with Grant Kirkhope (May 2010)". Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 22 April 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 B, James (14 September 2012). "A Rare Breed Part 2 – Nintendo Nation Talks to Grant Kirkhope". Nintendo-Nation.net. Archived from the original on 26 October 2012. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  4. 1 2 Mandelin, Clyde (1 July 2013). "Q&A: What's the Donkey Kong 64 Rap Like in Japanese?". Legends of Localization. Archived from the original on 23 May 2014. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  5. ↑ Brando (29 May 2016). "Melee Music Developer Roundtable: Monkey Rap". Source Gaming. Archived from the original on 7 June 2019. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  6. ↑ Greening, Chris (August 2012). "Donkey Kong 64 Soundtrack -Da Banana Bunch-". Video Game Music Online. Archived from the original on 7 June 2019. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  7. ↑ "Chatter Like a Monkey and Win". IGN. 8 December 1999. Archived from the original on 21 December 2016. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  8. ↑ Castro, Juan (23 September 2004). "Donkey Konga". IGN. Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  9. 1 2 "Donkey Konga -The Hottest Hits-". Video Game Music Online. August 2012. Archived from the original on 7 June 2019. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  10. ↑ Vazquez, Suriel (1 April 2017). "Yooka-Laylee Developer Thanks Fans with Homage to DK Rap". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 2 April 2017. Retrieved 15 July 2024.
  11. ↑ Bankhurst, Adam (31 March 2023). "The Super Mario Bros. Movie Will Feature the DK Rap, Which Seth Rogen Calls 'One of the Worst Rap Songs'". IGN. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  12. ↑ Ngan, Liv (5 April 2023). "Donkey Kong Rap Composer Criticises Mario Movie for Not Crediting Him". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 7 April 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  13. ↑ Nightingale, Ed (29 April 2025). "DK Rap Composer Explains Why Nintendo Didn't Credit Him in the Super Mario Bros. Movie". Eurogamer. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  14. ↑ Myers, Maddy (15 November 2024). "'DK Rap' Composer Grant Kirkhope Partnered with Substantial to Make a Weirdly Good Version of the Song". Polygon. Archived from the original on 22 November 2024. Retrieved 30 November 2024.
  15. ↑ Nightingale, Ed (18 June 2025). "Donkey Kong Bananza's Musical Twist Revealed, Plus DK Rap Is Included". Eurogamer. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  16. ↑ Scullion, Chris (26 October 2013). "Retro Vault: Mario Sunshine, Aladdin, Majora's Mask". CVG Online. Archived from the original on 7 December 2014. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  17. ↑ Sharkey, Scott. "Top 5 Cringe Inducing Videogame Raps". 1Up.com. Retrieved 5 June 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  18. ↑ Sharkey, Scott (24 October 2011). "The Nine Worst Video Game Themes". 1Up.com. Retrieved 5 June 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  19. ↑ North, Dale (12 September 2008). "The Sound Card 005: The Top Ten Most Obnoxious Game Songs". Destructoid. Archived from the original on 6 June 2014. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  20. ↑ "Sintendo: The Evil Side of Kiddy Gaming". GamesRadar. 13 June 2008. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  21. ↑ "Top 10 Tuesday: Worst In-Game Quotes". IGN. 18 April 2006. Archived from the original on 18 December 2016. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  22. ↑ Harmon, O'Dell (18 December 2012). "The Freshest Rap Songs in Video Games". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 31 December 2012. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  23. ↑ Mackey, Bob (27 February 2014). "It's On Like... Him: How Donkey Kong's Design Has Evolved over Three Decades". GamesRadar. Archived from the original on 18 December 2016. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  24. ↑ Seanbaby (January 2002). "The 5 Worst Game Lines Ever" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 150. p. 162. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 April 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2024 – via RetroCDN.net.
  25. ↑ Mai, Peter (10 August 2011). "Top 5 Cheesiest (Yet Somehow Awesome) Video Game Songs". OC Weekly. Archived from the original on 8 December 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
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