Bullsh@t.
Pigmeat Markham rapped at Chess Records a decade earlier and appeared as a celebrity on Laugh In.
The Judge
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRS62nccwmw
And Pigmeat didn’t invent rap.
Neither did Johnny Otis (who was a mover at the beginning of rock and roll, “discovering” Etta James, Big Mama Thornton, and Little Richard). here’s Johnny rapping in the 60
(NSFW)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNDwvncWRyQ
and Art Carney didn’t invent rap either but here he is in the 1950s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hz1EIpfvLY
Some have also noted that Muhammad Ali was sort of profo rap.
As with any cultural phenomenon origins are complex ....
I’ve seen a movie from the mid 30’s where white boys in NYC were break dancing and spinning on their backs. Nothing is new.
Of course Bob Dylan has his rap too...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGxjIBEZvx0
Art Carney rap sounds just like Fresh Prince theme.
Don’t forget Last Poets.