After being turned down for entry into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005 and 2006, hip hop innovators Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five have been named among the five acts to be inducted this year in New York City.
The first rap act to hold court in the prestigious Hall, the group joins fellow inductees R.E.M., Van Halen, Patti Smith and the Ronettes. The ceremony will be held March 12 at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
Flash, who just turned 49 on New Year’s Day, began DJing at house parties in his native Bronx, NY. Learning from early hip hop pioneers Kool Herc and Pete Jones, Flash – born Joseph Saddler – soon began using a mixer to extend breaks within the songs. Calling it the "Quick Mix Theory," the process of blending one music break with another by using two of the same records and a mixer caught on and became a fundamental practice in hip hop.
After various incarnations, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five as we know it today formed in the late 70s with Cowboy (Keith Wiggins), Melle Mel (Melvin Glover), Kid Creole (Nathaniel Glover), Rahiem (Guy Todd Williams) and Scorpio.
Their hits included the classic platinum-selling "The Message" and "White Lines (Don't Do it)."
The first rap act to hold court in the prestigious Hall, the group joins fellow inductees R.E.M., Van Halen, Patti Smith and the Ronettes. The ceremony will be held March 12 at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
Flash, who just turned 49 on New Year’s Day, began DJing at house parties in his native Bronx, NY. Learning from early hip hop pioneers Kool Herc and Pete Jones, Flash – born Joseph Saddler – soon began using a mixer to extend breaks within the songs. Calling it the "Quick Mix Theory," the process of blending one music break with another by using two of the same records and a mixer caught on and became a fundamental practice in hip hop.
After various incarnations, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five as we know it today formed in the late 70s with Cowboy (Keith Wiggins), Melle Mel (Melvin Glover), Kid Creole (Nathaniel Glover), Rahiem (Guy Todd Williams) and Scorpio.
Their hits included the classic platinum-selling "The Message" and "White Lines (Don't Do it)."
