Remember MC Hammer? He was a pretty big deal in the early nineties, with his infamous parachute pants and hits like ‘U Can’t Touch This’.
But, according to a new documentary, it all went tits up remarkably quickly for the former millionaire rapper.
His riches-to-rags story featured on Channel 5 documentary Bankrupt & Broke: When Celebs Go Bust last night (Friday), showing how the people who definitely could touch him were the debt collectors.
According to the Mirror, the documentary revealed how the now 53-year-old lost his £20 million fortune and racked up £9m in debt, before changing career paths to become a preacher.
Apparently, the former hip hop superstar employed an army of 200 staff in his 90s heyday, and a 40-person strong entourage who accompanied him everywhere, blowing a whopping £4.7m in wages every year.
He also spent further millions on his ridiculous mansion in Fremont, California, which included a recording studio, a garage for his 17 cars, 33-seat theatre, baseball diamond, tennis courts, gold gates bearing his ‘Hammer Time’ catchphrase, and a swimming pool shaped like his trademark puffy trousers.
It’s almost like the money went to his head or something.
After six years, he was forced to sell the mansion for £3m – a fraction of what he originally paid. Following some pricey copyright court cases and numerous failed business ventures, Hammer filed for bankruptcy in 1996.
Then, to seek redemption he turned to God, became a preacher and stressed the ‘MC’ in his name actually stood for ‘Man Of Christ’. As a pastor, he even presided over the wedding of Mötley Crüe singer Vince Neil in 2005, because Hollywood.
More recently, he popped up to perform with Gangnam Style’s Psy – make of that what you will – and tried to set up his own version of Google, for some reason. Because the original just hadn’t been doing the job…
Other celebrities included on Bankrupt & Broke: When Celebs Go Bust included Toni Braxton, Martine McCutcheon, Keith Gillespie and Bez from the Happy Mondays.
Bez keeps bees now, apparently, shaking maracas and making honey. It’s a funny old world…
