Melle Mel
| Melle Mel | |
|---|---|
Mel in 2010
|
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Melvin Glover |
| Also known as | Grandmaster Melle Mel |
| Born | May 15, 1961 |
| Origin | The Bronx, New York City, New York, US |
| Genres | East Coast hip hop, hardcore hip hop, old-school hip hop, funk rap, electro hop |
| Years active | 1978–present |
| Labels | Enjoy Records Sugar Hill Records, |
| Associated acts |
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five The Sugarhill Gang |
| Notable instruments | |
| Vocals | |
Melvin Glover (born May 15, 1961), better known as Melle Mel /ˈmɛli ˈmɛl/ and Grandmaster Melle Mel, is an American hip-hop musician – one of the pioneers of rap as lead rapper and main songwriter for Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
Melvin Glover was born The Bronx, New York City, New York. He has stated his mother is Cherokee.
Glover began performing in the late 1970s. He may be the first rapper to call himself MC (master of ceremonies). Other Furious Five members included his brother Kid Creole (Nathaniel Glover), Scorpio (Eddie Morris), Rahiem (Guy Todd Williams) and Cowboy (Keith Wiggins). While a member of the group, Cowboy created the term hip-hop while teasing a friend who had just joined the US Army, by scat singing the words "hip/hop/hip/hop" in a way that mimicked the rhythmic cadence of marching soldiers.
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five began recording for Enjoy Records and released "Superrappin'" in 1979. They later moved on to Sugar Hill Records and were popular on the R&B charts with party songs like "Freedom" and "The Birthday Party". They released numerous singles, gaining a gold disc for "Freedom," and touring. In 1982 Melle Mel began to turn to more socially-aware subject matter, in particular the Reagan administration's economic (Reaganomics) and drug policies, and their effect on the black community. A song "The Message" became an instant classic and one of the first glimmers of conscious hip-hop. Mel recorded a rap over session musician Duke Bootee's instrumental track "The Jungle". Some of Mel's lyrics on "The Message" were taken directly from "Superrappin'". Other than Melle Mel, no members of Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five actually appear on the record. Bootee also contributed vocals (Rahiem was to later lip sync Bootee's parts in the music video). "The Message" went platinum in less than a month and was the first hip-hop record ever to be added to the United States National Archive of Historic Recordings and the first Hip Hop record inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Mel would also go on to write songs about struggling life in New York City ("New York, New York"), and making it through life in general ("Survival (The Message 2)"). Grandmaster Flash split from the group after contract disputes between Melle Mel and their promoter Sylvia Robinson in regard to royalties for "The Message". When Flash filed a lawsuit against Sugar Hill Records, the factions of The Furious Five parted.
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