Grandmaster Melle Mel is the first rapper to ever call himself an "MC" & Hip-Hop music’s first rap superstar. He is the voice of Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, the group that invented the term "Hip-Hop" (thank you Keith Cowboy). They are the first & only Hip-Hop group ever to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. As lead rapper & lyricist for the group, Melle Mel is singled out by music
historians as the man most responsible for changing the focus in Hip-Hop music from a DJ’s dominated art form to one dominated by the MC’s. It has remained that way ever since. In a recent BBC poll of his peers, Melle Mel was named "G.O.A.T. - Greatest Rapper Of All-Time"!!!
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five began recording for Enjoy Records and released "Supperrappin’" in 1979. They later moved on to Sugarhill Records and were popular on the R&B charts hits such as "Freedom", "Birthday Party" & "It’s Nasty". In 1982, Melle Mel began to turn to more socially aware subject matter. He co-wrote & recorded "The Message" with Sugarhill Records session musician Duke Bootee. The song became an instant classic. It was one of the first glimmers of conscientious Hip-Hop and arguably, the most important record in Hip-Hop history. Mel would also go on to write songs about struggling life in New York City such as "New York, New York" and "Survival (The Message 2)".
In 1983, Grandmaster Flash split and the group continued on as Grandmaster Melle Mel & The Furious Five. They had further hits with "White Lines (Don’t Do It)", "Step Off" & "Pump Me Up". In 1984, he wrote "Beat Street Breakdown" for the film Beat Street & performed the song in the movie. That year he also had a monster hit performing the rap on Chaka Khan’s "I Feel For You". The record broke new ground by mixing Rap & R&B and Melle Mel won the first of his three Grammy Awards for it.
In 1985 Grandmaster Melle Mel & The Furious Five contributed the song "Vice" to the Miami Vice soundtrack. The 80’s also saw Mel perform with The King Dream Chorus and Holiday Crew on "King Holiday" aimed at having Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s birthday declared a national holiday and with Artists Against Apartheid on the anti-aphartide song "Sun City" aimed at discouraging other artists from perfoming in South Africa until that goverment ended its policy of apartide. He won a regional Emmy Award for his anti-drug commercial with producer Van Silk. Mel ended the decade by winning two more Grammy awards for his work on Quincy Jones "Back On The Block" album and "Q - The Autobiography Of Quincy Jones".
Melle Mel is credited with bringing Hip-Hop from a Bronx based fad, to an international phenomenon. To his credit, his fame was based on the worldwide circulation of underground tapes and vinyl records before the age of MTV, the Internet or mp3’s. To this day, Melle Mel is a highly sought after artist for guest appearances and shows both domestically and abroad. Over the course of his career, Mel has worked closely with other music luminaries such as U2, Duran Duran, Tupac Shakur, Funkadelic, The Last Poets and many others. His records have been covered by platinum selling artists such as Puff Daddy & Ma$e, Ice Cube and The Dogg Pound.
The ability to appeal to all musical genres while maintaining his credibility is the key to what makes this Hip-Hop legend relevant within the ever-changing music industry. On November 14, 2006, Grandmaster Mele Mel (as he is now known) released the children’s book "The Portal In The Park", which comes with a bonus CD of his rapped narration. Also in 2006, Mele Mel attended professional wrestling school and in a 2007 interview with allhiphop.com stated that "I’m going to try to take some of John Cena’s money and get with WWE and do my thing". Mel released his first ever solo album, "MUSCLES" on February 6, 2007. The album produced largely by Black Solaris Entertainment & released on Mel’s own Big Gunz record label, features Ice Cube and Joey Mekkah (formerly Romeo JD of the Boogie Boys). The first single and music video is "M3 - The New Message".
Through all of Mele Mel’s success and longevity, he has maintained his humility and kept his roots with his fans and the essence of hip-hop. On March 12th, 2007, The Furious Five (joined by DJ Grandmaster Flash) became the first and only rap ever to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
For press enquiries and interview requests, please contact:
H.Rockk Nelson (Big Gunz Entertainment.
Office: 347-535-0768
Mobile: 347-628-7952
Fax: 866-268-2707
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Mickey Bentson (PayUp Management)
Office: 718-864-2933
Mobile: 757-438-7614
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[email protected]
New CD "Muscles" IN STORES NOW!!! World-Wide!!!
Available for download on I-Tunes, Napster & other download services right NOW!!!
"M3 - The New Message"
WWE Remarks (At 2007 R&R Hall of Fame)
GF&TF5 2007 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction
GF&TF5 2007 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Performance
GF&TF5 2007 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Rehearsal
