“Drink Champion” is back! Kicking off the new 2024 season on a high note, NORE and DJ EFN were joined by hip-hop pioneer Grandmaster Flash for a candid conversation about his role in getting the genre off the ground.
A self-proclaimed musical scientist and mathematician, he fell in love with music the first time he heard the sound of a needle dropping onto a vinyl record. Utilizing his cultivated dexterity skills, Grandmaster Flash began producing in his teens and became the official DJ and beat maker of Grandmaster Flash and his Furious Five in the 70s. . After introducing rap to the world with records like “The Message,” the group continued to make history as the first people to push hip-hop out of the Bronx and into the mainstream.
The Grandmaster Flash continued to be innovative in the years that followed. His first accomplishments included creating samples, discovering how to mix tracks in real time without the use of technology, becoming the first DJ to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the first to win a Grammy Award. Including making history as a DJ. . In addition to his historic string of accomplishments, he also achieved success in movies and television shows.
The trailblazer details his journey and contributions during the nearly four-hour Season 8 premiere. I’m in class.check it out here.
1. About the invention of sampling
Using already released songs in new productions has always been an important part of hip-hop. Grandmaster Flash, who calls himself the “first human sampler,” is very grateful for that. With breakdancing in mind during the genre’s early days, he said on the show, “How can you take these 10 seconds from pop, rock, jazz, blues, funk, disco, R&B, alternative, Caribbean, Latin?” “Can I do it?” he admitted asking himself. , make this particular section long enough for the breakers to dance to a steady beat? He further added, “Then it became a music bed for rappers to speak on,” which proves how the invention evolved.
2. About records that capture the essence of hip-hop
Bajan DJs were asked what they would play if aliens came to Earth and wanted to hear what defines hip-hop. “There are two records that I think are the absolute top. If you say, ‘These records helped me start exercising,’ [it] right [DJ] Kool Herc discovered “Apache” (by the Incredible Bongo Band) and I discovered Bob James’ “Take Me to the Mardi Gras.” 1A, 1B,” he said. Both aforementioned tracks were used by the legendary producer to create the iconic breaks that brought hip-hop to life in the 70s and his 80s.
3. About the evolution of beatboxing
When most people hear the word “beatbox,” they think it refers to someone making sounds with their mouth. But according to Grandmaster Flash, beatboxing actually refers to a drum machine. After being introduced to the device through a drummer with The Jackson Project in the Bronx, the hip-hop pioneer began using the tool in his productions, as heard on “Flash to the Beat.” “This became our secret weapon and gained us even more fans,” he explained. “Years later, there were some super people, Biz Markie, rest in peace. [and] “Dougie Fresh decided to recreate the sound of drums with his mouth and made a huge record out of it,” he added, later calling his original beatbox “hip-hop’s first drum machine.” .
4. About the origins of his quick mix theory
When he was 15 or 16 years old, Grandmaster Flash developed something called Quick Mix Theory for looping and blending music in real time. why? He says, “The way DJs play music the right way was taxing on the tonearm. But to connect to a short runway, we needed a faster way.” So he officially I came up with this. Going forward 4 bars counterclockwise corresponds to 6 repetitions and corresponds to a complete loop extraction. He concluded by expressing the long-term influence of his mathematics: “This system hasn’t changed in his 50 years. I said on the internet years ago, ‘I’ll give $100,000 to anyone who can do this without my mechanic.’ It’s not a machine or a computer. I’m talking about people like you and me…I’m still waiting. ”
5. About involvement in “The Get Down”
Grandmaster Flash is a Netflix originalget down” by show creator Baz Luhrmann. Luhrmann consulted with the DJ to ensure the birth of hip-hop in the Bronx was accurate before ultimately hiring him as a producer. “The intention was to take an element and embellish it with a story,” Grandmaster Flash said. “It wasn’t real, but it definitely put the Bronx on the map. And I’m grateful to him for that.” The 67-year-old musician wondered if Atty was his estranged son, as he bore a strong resemblance to Grandmaster Flash.
6. About the battle for stage name
The hip-hop innovator signed with Sugar Hill Records, but the label continued to use his name and likeness even after the deal ended. In fact, Grandmaster Flash’s name is etched on many records he wasn’t actually involved with, such as Mel’s “Beat Street”. When asked about it all, he began: “Grandmaster Flash became popular from the streets and records made popular by his label. And there was a time when he had to go to court and fight for his name because things were getting a little out of hand. ” he recalled of the day he won the rights to his nickname. “I ran out of the courtroom, fell to my knees, thanked God, and cried like a baby, because all I wanted was my name.”
7. About new era performance standards
Grandmaster Flash had a few things to say about keeping the bar high during the show. “If you know your craft, I think it’s very important to know your craft without a net. I mean, you shouldn’t rhyme in the vocal version,” he said. “Even if you make mistakes, that’s what makes a performance great.” I think it’s unfair to the people who have been paying. It’s not fair.”
8. About DJ Kool Herc’s back-to-school jam
DJ Kool Herc’s sister’s back-to-school party on August 11, 1973 is credited with being the event that birthed hip-hop. When asked by NORE about the validity of that statement, Grandmaster Flash clarified: And I’m not saying it didn’t exist. When DJ EFN brought up the fact that Crazy Legs and DMC also questioned the existence and details of the event, Grandmaster Flash continued: I haven’t heard it yet, but I’d like to know who was at that first party. If it happened in a center, what happened in that center? What was happening? What was happening? we need to know that. ” And he suggested that the genre’s founders should sit down and clear history with each other.
9. About the Hip Hop 50 celebration
The genre’s founder wasn’t a big fan of the way hip-hop’s 50th anniversary was promoted last year. He primarily criticized the age of those who spoke about his time in the spotlight and the influence of rap, as well as not recognizing all four of his elements of the genre. Grandmaster Flash noted how positive the press moment was for the style, saying, “The details of where it came from and what it took to get here are properly detailed. It’s not expressed,” he said. “This is what I tell publicists and members of the press: If you want to know how it started, started, started, just ask someone who’s 60 years old,” he declared. “You can’t ask a 30-year-old or a 25-year-old. That’s impossible. That’s why I think it’s so important to talk.”