(By A.D. Carson, assistant professor of hip-hop) Not long after the July 20, 1969, moon landing, Gil Scott-Heron – a poet hailed as the “Godfather of Rap” – released a scathingly critical song called “Whitey on the Moon.” While others lauded the lunar landing as a “giant leap for mankind,” Scott-Heron lamented the moon trip in his lyrical litany. He felt the trip consumed resources that could have been better put to use helping people confront the everyday costs of living on Earth.