The success of ‘Some Kind of Sorry’, the new single from Grandmaster’s Furious Five ft Mele Mel and Scorpio is definitely something to celebrate. The band embark on a UK tour with Sugarhill Gang at the end of this month, before returning to the US to tour with Public Enemy, Ice-T, Naughty by Nature and many others on 2016’s Art of Rap tour.
However, DJ Grandmaster Flash (Joseph Saddler), perhaps feeling that there’s only room for one Grandmaster in Hip Hop, has embarked on a mission to try and stop Grandmaster Mele Mel (Melvin Glover) performing under the name he’s been known by for over three decades. It’s unclear as to whether Flash will also be targeting the likes of Grandmaster Caz and Grandmaster Dee of Whodini.
The ‘Grandmaster vs Grandmaster’ fight looks set to be played out in court, and whilst Grandmaster Mele Mel and Scorpio say they “respect Flash as a pioneer of progressive DJ techniques” they’re baffled as to why their former bandmate would embark on such a seemingly nonsensical legal challenge.
The group’s use of turntablism, break-beat deejaying, choreographed stage routines and lyricism was a significant force in the early development of Hip Hop music.
Whilst rapping a scat routine at a party for a friend who had just joined the US Army, Cowboy began scat singing the words “hip/hop/hip/hop” in a way that mimicked the rhythmic cadence of the marching drill. He then worked the “hip hop” cadence into part of his performance. This evolved into the term ‘Hip Hop’, which was later adopted by the industry.
Melvin ‘Mele Mel’ Glover, the first person to call himself MC, was born in The Bronx in New York City. A former Break Dancer aka B-Boy, he was responsible for writing the first Hip Hop style rhyme. He is known as an exceptional lyricist, song writer and hip hop pioneer.
Eddie ‘Mr. Ness/Scorpio’ Morris was born in The Bronx in New York City and was also a Break Dancer before picking up the microphone. Scorpio was instrumental in the group’s uniform style through the 1980’s when they wore leather. Scorpio is known for his dextrous rhymes and flamboyant poses on stage, in photos and videos.
The Furious Five have influenced many musical acts such as The Cold Crush Brothers, Run-D.M.C., Whodini, Public Enemy, Boogie Down Productions, KRS-One, EPMD, Stetsasonic, Doug E. Fresh, Salt-n-Pepa, Ultramagnetic MC’s, DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, Eminem, Pharoahe Monch, Busta Rhymes, DJ Quik, Beastie Boys, Hieroglyphics, Too Short, Wu-tang Clan, Digital Underground, Tupac Shakur, NWA, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Ludacris, Heavy D, and The Roots, among many others. Ice Cube recorded a song titled ‘Check Yo Self’ with Das EFX, the remix of which sampled the music of ‘The Message’.
On March 12th 2007 Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were inducted into prestigious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with R.E.M., The Ronettes, Patti Smith and Van Halen.
Facebook: https://goo.gl/wsZLPu
Videos:
Grandmaster’s Furious Five ft Mele Mel & Scorpio – ‘The Message’ https://vimeo.com/126080485
Live Dates:
27th May – Netherlands