Flashback: Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five

Posted: November 21, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Flashback, Video | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

Today the Recording Academy announced the 2012  Grammy Hall of Fame inductees. Among the 25 songs, pieces, and speeches being inducted, only one hip-hop track made the cut: “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.

The song was released on Sugar Hill Records in 1982 and has often been listed as one of the greatest hip-hop songs in history.

“The Message” has been sampled by some of everybody from Coolio, Diddy, Snoop Dogg, and Ice Cube to Method Man, Dead Prez, included on Grand Theft Auto: Vice City video game and even sung by penguins on Happy Feet.

Other Hall of Fame inductees include Mahalia Jackson’s “Precious Lord, Take My Hand”; Tina Turner’s “What’s Love Got To Do With It”; and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream Speech.”

Marked by both cultural and historical significance, these works truly have influenced and inspired audiences for generations, and we are thrilled to induct them into our growing catalog of outstanding recordings.

– Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy on how The Academy selects inductees.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five are definitely rooted as part of the hip-hop foundation and “The Message” induction is well-deserved. Check the video for classic record below

Flashback: “Overweight Lovers in the House” – Heavy D

Posted: November 8, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Flashback, Music Video | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

As you’re reading this, thousands of tweets are being sent with R.I.Ps and Wows, one of hip-hop’s heavy hitters, Heavy D, who the rap community just watched him take it back to the days of dancing rappers as he closed out the 2011 BET Hip-Hop Awards, his first  performance in 15 years.

Literally just refreshed my Twitter timeline and wouldn’t have believed it if it wasn’t for the fact that dream hampton tweeted it.

The news comes as a surprise to many, only a few weeks ago, he performed at the Michael Jackson Tribute concert in Wales and even tweeted just yesterday:

According to TMZ, Heavy D was rushed to an L.A. hospital at around noon after being discovered passed out on a walkway. When EMS arrived, Heavy D was conscious and responsive, before being pronounced dead at around 1 p.m.

The cause of death has not been publicly announced, but police have said that there is no evidence of foul play.

Heavy D was 44 years old.

R.I.P to everyone’s favorite overweight lover, Heavy D.

Flashback: Amy Winehouse “Rehab”

Posted: July 23, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Flashback | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

As I type this the news has just been announced my British news channels that 27-year-old Brit-Pop-Rock (my own genre thank you) Amy Winehouse was found dead in her London flat.

No details of her death has been released just yet, but the news comes less than 24 hours after she took the stage with her goddaughter Dionne Broomfield, for a surprise performance at the Roundhouse in London.

I guess this means Whinehouse is now a part of the 27 Club alongside Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain and others.

All I have to say is: Wowza.

Flashback: Liberian Girl

Posted: March 23, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Flashback, Video | Tags: , , , , , | Leave a comment

I was sitting here trying to figure out for the longest what video I would use for this week’s Flashback joint when I started seeing the tweets rolling in about veteran actress Elizabeth Taylor passing away early this morning—she was 79.

In the last few years, Liz Taylor’s health hasn’t been the best and a few weeks ago she was hospitalized with congestive heart failure. According to ABC News’ piece and biographers, it’s been estimated that she has had between 30 to 40 surgeries for various health related problems throughout the years.

It may seem odd to post about her on a hip-hop blog, but her humanitarian efforts are extremely admirable, she played a Black woman really well (Cleopatra for those who didn’t know) and she was down with Michael Jackson.

So down in fact, he dedicated this song, Liberian Girl, to her. Read the rest of this entry »

R.I.P. Nate Dogg

Posted: March 16, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Video | Tags: , , , , , | Leave a comment

Wow.

 

Flashback: “U.N.I.T.Y.” – Queen Latifah

Posted: February 28, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Flashback | Tags: , , | Leave a comment

March 1st officially kicks off Women’s History Month.

In 1995, Queen Latifah won a Grammy for  Best Rap Solo Performance for  “U.N.I.T.Y.,”  the standout single off her 1993 album Black Reign.

Sometimes, you gotta let ’em know you ain’t a b*tch or a h*e.