Fun Factory (band)

Fun Factory
Background information
Also known as	The Originalz FF Members of Fun Factory
Origin	Hamburg, Germany
Genres	Eurodance, EDM, Techno, Reggae
Years active	1992–1997, 2009, 2013–present
Associated acts	Fun Affairs, Garcia, New Fun Factory, Buttons
Website	Funfactorymusic.com
Members	Toni Cottura Stephan Browarczyk Balca Tözün Anthony Freeman
Past members	Marie-Anett Mey (1993-1997) Rodney Hardison (1992–1997)

Fun Factory is a German eurodance / hip hop group formed in 1992, originally consisting of founding members Balca Tözün, Rodney Hardison, Toni Cottura and Stephan Browarczyk. They have been nicknamed simply Balja, Rod D., Smooth T. and Steve. The group enjoyed success throughout the 90s.

The group was founded in 1992 along with four founding members Balca Tözün from Turkey, Rodney Hardison from America, Toni Cottura and Stephan Browarczyk from Germany. They released their first singles Fun Factory's Theme and Groove Me in 1992 and 1993. They shot a music video for Groove me. Fun Factory released their debut album Nonstop in 1994. Before their third single release Close To You in the late of 1993, lead singer Balca Tözün had been replaced with Marie-Anett Mey, an entertainer from Paris, France. With the second line-up the band gained massive success, though it has been later revealed, that Tözün kept providing vocals in the background for all their later releases until their disbandment in 1997 with Mey just lip-syncing and performing with the group on stage. Close To You became their first chart success peaking #1 at the Canadian Dance chart. Follow up singles were Take Your Chance and Pain being chart hits as well, peaking #18 and #24 in the German Single Chart respectively.

In 1995, the band released their Singles I Wanna B With U, Celebration and the Manfred Mann cover version retitled and shortened Doh Wah Diddy, all chart hits, peaking #11, #12 and #6 in the German Single Charts. The same Year, Fun Factory released their second Studio Album Fun-Tastic. By this time they began to become more popular throughout Europe and even saw some of their songs to Chart in the United States and Canada. The follow up Single release was Don't Go Away becoming their yet last moderate chart success. Don't Go Away was also the last single to be promoted by the band as a quartet, when Cottura left the band. As a trio, the group released two more further singles, the ballad I Love You and Oh Yeah Yeah (I Like It). The first mentioned had been dedicated to the leaving member Cottura at the end of the music video, while the latter mentioned single didn't even received a music video, due to their sudden disbandment in 1997. That's why for the I Love You single version, the first rap verse by Cottura, has been re-recorded by Browarczyk, which became his first and yet only solo Rap verse in a Fun Factory single. In 1996, Cottura started releasing some solo singles and founded the hip-hop and R&B collective and record label, Booya Family, where he produced tracks for a variety of artists including NANA, Pappa Bear, Ray Horton, Jonestown, A.K. Swift and Alex Prince. He also produced Tracks for the Boy Bands *N Sync and Backstreet Boys. With these Artists Cottura was most of the time featured as a guest artist. Cottura also collaborated with P. Diddy. In 1997, a Fun Factory Greatest Hits album has been released to end up the chapter. In 1997, Cottura has been featured on Daisy Dee's single "Hey you (Open Up Your Mind)". When Hardison left Fun Factory to join Garcia in 1997, with whom he released three singles, the remaining two members Mey and Browarczyk were joined by the new member Ray Horton and planned to continue with a rebranded band name "Fun Affairs", but had no success with it and Fun Factory split up.

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