Dmc - Dmc Gets Political For New Album

Hip-hop star DARRYL 'DMC' McDANIELS has given his new album a political twist - because he feels current affairs are more important than lyrics boasting about his talents.

The rapper decided it was crucial to write music which dealt with more worldly affairs, and hopes the broader themes of CHECKS, THUGS AND ROCK 'N' ROLL will attract a new type of fan.

He tells MTV.com, "As opposed to just doin' a record where I'm talkin' about how good I am and I'm the king of this... I'm just going to talk about what I go through in life, what's happenin' overseas, what's happenin' in the schools.

"I was at a point where I was asking myself, 'How does a b-boy grow up into a b-man?' I can't rhyme about what I did when I was 18.

"It was fun, it was adventurous, it was something new, and I was free to be Darryl as opposed to DMC.

"It's really a universal album.

"I want the 65-year-old - no, older than that - the 67-year-old white guy from the boondocks in Wisconsin that don't give a damn about rap to hear my record and go, 'I'll listen to that.'"