Was Muhammad Ali the First Rapper?

“I outwit them, then outhit them” - Did Ali invent rap?

Renowned ad designer, George Lois, has come out with a book that delves into the images and words of boxer, Muhammad Ali, to ask the question: Did Ali spawn the rap language?

The book’s called Ali Rap: Muhammad Ali, the First Heavyweight Champion of Rap, and features classic rhymes like:

You think I was shocked when Nixon resigned?
Wait till I whup George Foreman’s behind.
I done something new for this fight,
I done tassled with an alligator!
That’s right.
I have tassled with an alligator!
I done tussled with a whale!
I done handcuffed lightning, throwed thunder in jail!
Only last week I murderer as rock, injured a stone.
Hospitalized a brick.
I’m so mean I make medicine sick.
“In my book, I say, ‘Before there was rap, there was Ali rap,’ says Lois. “It was the essence of what he was about that created rap. I never said he rapped, but he did, if you look at him on film. He rapped!”

Apparently Ali invented rap when he was 13 with this line: “This guy is done. I’ll stop him in one.”

It’s a fun idea, Ali inventing rap; but I don’t think he was the first black man to rhyme words. Could Ali really kick a beat?