grandmaster flash - hip hop pioneer - dj

first dj to make the turntables a musical instrument

beginnings

during hip-hop's nearly 30-year history, few names have become as well known to music

lovers across the globe as that of grandmaster flash. not only is he responsible for

inventing the musical genre called hip hop but his pioneering use of the turntables make him

the first dj to play the turntables as a musical instrument thus helping to elevate the

status of the dj to a masterful, artistic position. he is universally recognized as a visionary

artist. he is also responsible for assembling one of the earliest and greatest rap groups of

all time – the furious five – these are some of the hallmarks of a career which has

extended from the bronx in the early 1970s to all corners of the globe into the 21 st century.

of bajan decent joseph saddler, professionally known as “flash” was born and raised in

the boogie down bronx, and it was the area's streets and nightlife that provided his

inspirations. he developed his first crush on vinyl when he was just a boy playing with his

fathers records. by the time he was a teenager, studying electronics and engineering in

school by day, he was already spinning records at block parties and in public parks.

studying one particular dj, known as kool herc, one of his greatest influences apart from

his very own father, and monitoring the crowd's responses, led him to create and elevate

this turntable art form as he developed such innovative turntable techniques as rearranging

the arrangement of recorded songs and by extending the break in those recorded songs. he

did this by using duplicate copies of a vinyl record and by manipulating his wrist and elbow

moving it back and forth.. as early as 1971 he was scientifically inventing and demonstrating

such methods and concepts he collectively called "the quick mix theory " which

encompassed the innovative technique of "cutting" which laid the foundations for what

became known as "scratching" ( along with its many off shoots; "crab scratching";

"transforming"; and "flaring" ) as well as the "doubleback/back door"; "phasing"; and

"backspinning". then came the "clock theory" which allowed flash to find the break of a

recorded song quickly by eye, by marking the vinyl with tape or a crayon. .. this manual

display of taking a song apart and rearranging its structure live on stage contributed to the

early development and rise of the dj as a remixer, artist, and producer.

these innovations quickly became recognized worldwide, and put both flash and the bronx

on the worldwide musical map. bill gates, founder and chairman of microsoft corporation,

recently honored flash with the dj vanguard award for being the first to utilize the

turntables as a musical instrument.

hip-hop culture was created in 1971 by three djs , flash being one of them, and then,

contrary to popular belief, came the graffitti writers and the breakdancers, and the mcs

followed much later. flash recorded the unique sounds he created, and in 1977 began

experimenting and collaborating with local mc's and put together his own group who

became known as grandmaster flash and the furious five. their reputation grew around

flash's unrivaled dj skills and the group's blending and trading of lyrics. flash also gained

notice for the visually dynamic and acrobatic way he could spin and scratch records using his

feet, toes and elbows.

1981's “the adventures of grandmaster flash on the wheels of steel” was the first record to

feature complex cuts and scratches, and introduced the name grandmaster flash as their

originator. following the group's demise, flash continued to make his mark by releasing

solo albums, and was immortalized in blondie's hit song of 1980, “rapture”: “flash is fast,

flash is cool!”

recent activities & accomplishments

grandmaster flash has remained one of the world's most-respected musical innovators by

never stopping his touring and performing for appreciative crowds around the world. he

played the 1998 super bowl, and was invited by comedian chris rock to be the musical

director for rock's groundbreaking hbo-tv series, where flash could be seen onscreen

spinning during the show's four-year run. he performed for the closing of the

commonwealth games in manchester , england in 2002 for more than 40,000 in attendance,

which included prime minister tony blair and queen elizabeth, and billions of television

viewers around the world.

in 2002, flash designed and launched and created the grandmaster flash signature

empath mixer for rane corporation, adding to previous endorsements by louis vuitton and

helmut lang (for a signature-logo record carrying case), sprite, tommy hilfiger, gemini

sound and kangol caps.

in recognition of his role in music history, flash has been invited to contribute artifacts to the

rock & roll hall of fame and museum in cleveland , ohio and the experience music project

in seattle, wa. among his many awards are the pioneer award from source magazine, the

new music seminar hall of fame award, the dmc hall of fame award and b.e.t.'s

diamond award. in june 2004, he was inducted into the bronx walk of fame with a plaque

dedicated at 161 st st. and the grand concourse, and a street named after him in new york

city!.

flash's trailblazing sounds were recognized with the 2002 strut records release of the

official adventures of grandmaster flash , a critically acclaimed collection of tracks which

hark back to the block party tapes and sounds he created early in his career. also during

2002, the label ffrr released essential mix: classic edition.

since 2001, grandmaster flash has been a national radio dj for sirius satellite radio's beat

box channel 61 where he hosts "flash mash" and blends pop, rock, jazz, blues, funk, hip

hop, r'n'b and various genres of music into one continuous mix. prior to this flash was on

wbls and hot 97 radio. he has recently announced the formation of his new record label,

adrenaline city entertainment. as a keynote speaker at the international midem 2004

music conference in france , flash outlined his plans for the label, which includes

discovering, recording and releasing music by groundbreaking new talent.

during the summer of 2004, flash was featured on the cover and in an interview in the new

high-end, hardcover cultural magazine swindle, whose motto is “timeless content"

flash produced the first hip-hop track in the 5.1 audio format for microsoft, launched in fall

2004 on www.msn.com .

in september 2004, flash was honored at the 7 th anniversary of the mix show power

summit in puerto rico with the mix power summit salute in recognition of his significant

contribution to hip-hop culture, and his dedication to mixshow radio and the art of the dj.

on october 1, 2004 flash was presented with a key to the city of cincinnati , oh, by city

official "councilman smitherman" and honored on october 2 nd , 2004 with “tha blast

community award” for his pioneering contribution to urban arts and culture. the award was

presented to flash by musician and local hero bootsy collins, who received the award in

2003.

on may 9 th 2005 converse debuted its brand new television commercial during the nba

playoffs featuring grandmaster flash and miami heat basketball player dwayne wade.

music for the spot was created and produced by flash.

on june 9 th 2005 the rock n roll hall of fame hosted flash at the museum in cleveland

where he was presented with an honorary gold record and life time acheivement award in

recognition of his contributions to music courtesy of the riaa.

on august 28 th , 2005 flash was requested by p diddy to be the dj for the mtv video music

awards in miami . the event was broadcasted live worldwide.

on september 22, 2005 vh1 honored grandmaster flash and the furious five for their

contributions of adding social consciousness to hip hop and flash was also honored for his

contribution to dj culture in hip hop at their annual hip hop honors awards show which

was televised live around the world.

in 2006 flash will release his much anticipated memoirs in a book - penned by famed

author david ritz who wrote marvin gayes and ray charles' autobiography and titled

"the message: the grandmaster flash story".

in 2006 flash will launch his very own signature clothing line - called "g.phyre" in

association with parent company five pointz. the line will consist of button ups, t shirts,

jeans and accessories.

in the fall 2006 flash will come together with ortofon - the makers of dj turntable needles

to create a series of needles signatured by grandmaster flash

and to top it all joseph saddler - dj grandmaster flash has been nominated for induction

into the rock & roll hall of fame making him the first dj and hip hop artist to ever be

nominated along with the furious five.

with 24 awards under his belt, honoring flash for being the first dj to make the turntables

a musical instrument its easy to see why this man is such an icon and great inspiration to

many around the globe.

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