And yet, in 2023, it seems Bronson himself is of the downhearted opinion that he doesn't get enough love. "I don't feel like I'm given the fucking respect that I deserve," he exclaimed in characteristically unfiltered fashion via a media statement announcing the release of his new album, Cocodrillo Turbo, in April.
"Cocodrillo Turbo is Bronson demanding that respect," the statement declares. "He's gotten in the reps, constantly refining his poetic flow and relying on the instincts he's cultivated with over a decade in the game under his belt. Now, sit back and enjoy the show."
Ahead of Action Bronson's live performance at Miami Beach Bandshell on Friday, December 8, New Times rounds up the myriad ways he not only made shit cool again but left an indelible mark on the culture at large.
Rapper Grandiosity
Unapologetic authenticity with a sly tongue in his cheek set Bronson apart from the moment he started spitting bars on tape in 2011. His affable swagger, paired with vivid, kaleidoscopic storytelling and armed with a formidable arsenal of multicultural references, brought a fresh and genuine approach to upend the tired old standards of emcee braggadocio.New York City
Thanks to a rather insufferable, commodified hipster culture emanating from Williamsburg, Brooklyn, in the noughties, some might say that New York City had lost a considerable amount of cool before Bronson landed on the scene. But the Queens native has always faithfully repped his hometown with a refreshingly brutal if loving honesty, exposing its gritty underbelly and shining a light on the salt-of-the-earth folk who dwell there, from lowly bodega clerks and fresh-off-the-boat street vendors to colorful night-shift cabbies and corner-store hustlers with hearts of gold. It's no wonder Bronson would be cast in The Irishman by Martin Scorsese, the OG poet laureate of NYC's mean streets.Gastronomy
Bronson's impact on gastronomy transcends the realm of celebrity chefs and conventional foodie culture as he continues to explore global culinary experiences and diverse flavors on the web show Fuck, That's Delicious. Whether the former chef is rapping about feasting on oysters or demoing humble ethnic recipes he picked up during his world travels, his uncontainable joie de vivre and infectious, unfiltered enthusiasm for eating is a refreshing departure from the pretentiousness of haute cuisine and stale food content.Music Videos
Today's music videos aren't as good as they were in the pre-internet era. Maybe because he's old enough to remember how awesomely cinematic music videos were in the '90s, Bronson has consistently defied the dismal decline of music video quality in our day and age. His exuberant, action-packed short movies are brimming with a bona fide film buff's wealth of cinematic references, from cult classics like Easy Rider and Goodfellas to Guns N' Roses' unforgettable "November Rain" music video.Ancient Aliens (and Television in General)
Traveling the Stars: Action Bronson and Friends Watch Ancient Aliens was nothing short of an avant-garde tour de force in the annals of television history. Only Bronson could have pulled off the genius meta-stoner hilarity of breaking the fourth wall so viewers could marvel at the moronic yet strangely watchable spectacle of him and his bros trying to decipher historical clues about ancient aliens while blitzed out of their skulls. As with every other medium he excels in, it's Bronson's uncompromising authenticity that has seen him transform television through fresh content as varied as off-the-cuff cooking demos on Late Night With Seth Myers to his raw, freeform reinvention of the talk-show format on Viceland's The Untitled Action Bronson Show.
Painting
You need to look no further than the Cocodrillo Turbo album cover to see that Homeboy can paint. He's actually been painting his album covers for years and has recently begun exhibiting his auspicious artwork on gallery walls. While his whimsical and boldly colorful imagery is accessible enough for children's books, his assertive expressionist style evokes the more understated side of Jean-Michel Basquiat's paintings.Wrestling
Don't let his rotund physique and gargantuan appetite fool you. Bronson is an athletic savant, and he always has been. The lifelong wrestling aficionado made history in the summer of 2022 when he wrestled his first professional match at the AEW Grand Slam, teaming up with Hook to defeat Matt Menard and Angelo Parker. Of course, Bronson is also famous for body-slamming fans onstage at his shows and hurling them back into the crowd like rag dolls. But that's when he's not sparring with professional sumo wrestlers in Ryōgoku, Japan.Self-Improvement
Today, Bronson is emerging as an inspirational self-improvement story, if not an unlikely fitness guru in the making. Having lost something like 150 pounds since 2019, he now trains with world-class jiu-jitsu masters and UFC legends while maintaining a balanced, no-bullshit approach to fitness that still allows for ample enjoyment of life's indulgent culinary delights and hedonistic joys.Action Bronson. 8 p.m. Friday, December 8, at Miami Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; miamibeachbandshell.com. Tickets cost $53.56 via dice.fm.
