Born Marlon Williamson this date in 1962 in NYC, the DJ, producer, and record label owner known as Marley Marl is a trailblazer of Hip Hop’s ever-evolving sound, being one of the first to use sampling as a means to gather elements for a song.
Starting with his days as the DJ for WBLS’ Mr. Magic in the early 80s, Marley used that leverage to break new artists and eventually form his own group known as the legendary Juice Crew. Based in his Queensbridge Housing apartment, “Marley’s House” became an epicenter for many Hip Hop legends in the early stages of their career including Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, MC Shan, Kool G Rap, and the Queensbridge Queen herself, Roxanne Shante. Marley’s production credits go on for eons, however, some of his most memorable work includes Craig G’s The Kingpin, Big Daddy Kane’s Long Live The Kane, Biz Markie’s Goin’ Off, Kool G Rap & DJ Polo’s Road to the Riches, MC Shan’s Down By Law and Born to Be Wild and Roxanne Shante’s only album Bad Sister.
Salute to Marley on his 59th born day and wish him many more to come!
On this day in 1989, Big Daddy Kane released his sophomore album It’s a Big Daddy Thing on the Warner Bros./Cold Chillin label. Along with being a successful follow up to Kane’s classic debut, this album was the first to suggest Big Daddy Kane be Hip Hop’s sex symbol.
With a wider appeal than Long Live the Kane and a new and improved sound coming from an all-star production team (featuring Marley Marl, Prince Paul, Easy Mo Bee, Teddy Riley,
To date, It’s a Big Daddy Thing is Kane’s most successful project with over 500,000 copies in the United States. The album has been regarded by many major publications as a Golden Era classic. Album single “Warm It Up, Kane” even appeared on Playback FM in the 2004 cult classic video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Sean Moltke, aka MC Shan of QB’s Juice Crew, turns 57 today.
The first solo MC with a major release from the “infamous” Queensbridge Projects celebrates his 50th birthday today. MC Shan was at the top of his game during Hip Hop’s “Golden Era,” along with crewmates Roxanne Shante, Craig G, Tragedy, Big Daddy Kane, Kool G Rap, Masta Ace, and of course DJ Marley Marl, who formed The Juice Crew. Shan’s first album, Down By Law, was a hit among Hip Hop aficionados of the 80s, with his epic battle against KRS-1 and Boogie Down Productions was one of the greatest crew beefs in Hip Hop all time. BDP vs. Juice Crew is a prime example of a good, healthy beef that stayed on wax and even managed to morph into a Sprite commercial featuring Shan and Kris.
The Source Magazine sends a supreme born day salute to the God Shandu on his 57yh born day and wishes him many more in the future!
On this day in Hip Hop history, Biz Markie (real name Marcel Theo Hall), one of the most respected and successful artist/DJs in Hip Hop, was born. Born in Harlem, and growing up in Long Island, The Biz has been moving the crowd with his unique style of rhyming since he was 14. From his earliest gig as Roxanne Shante‘s beat boxer to a headliner at Grammy Awards after parties, he’s done it all. Whether it be on screen, on the mic, or on the 1s and 2s, The Biz has remained a consistent brand in entertainment booking, averaging 175 shows a year across the globe.
Over the past four decades, Biz Markie established himself as one of the most prolific rappers/DJs in music. Since his 1988 debut Goin’ Off (which peaked at #90 on the Billboard 200), he has grabbed hold of the hearts and ears of Hip Hop lovers everywhere. His second album, 1989’s The Biz Never Sleeps, contains his timeless hit “Just a Friend,” which has made a permanent impact on pop culture.
During the ’90s, The Biz reached his apex as an icon. His third LP, I Need A Haircut, unintentionally changed the scope of Hip Hop forever. The closing track from the album, “Alone Again,” contains a sample of the song “Alone Again (Naturally)” by Gilbert O’Sullivan, which had not been cleared by Warner Bros. Records. In turn, Warner Bros. sued The Biz for his unlawful use of the sample, causing the courts to rule all samples must be cleared by the owning party before reuse from then on. The lawsuit prompted the title of Markie’s fourth LP All Samples Cleared!.After this incident, sample clearing was one of the main hurdles to jump as a recording artist in this genre.
As the new millennium approached, Markie never saw much of a decline in popularity. In 2002, he made his first major motion picture appearance in Men in Black 2. From then, he continued to make a plethora of television and big screen appearances. From Nick Cannon’s Wild N Out to Grand Theft Auto, The Biz is seen and heard throughout visual media.
During this decade, he also started his endeavors as a child educator through the children’s program Yo Gabba Gabba. Through entertainment, Markie has helped educate young children on music and artistic expression on the Nick Jr. hit show.
On July 16, 2021, Biz Markie passed away reportedly from complications of diabetes. H was 57 years old. No one has had a career in the Hip Hop game quite like “the human orchestra” Biz Markie and his impact on the game will never be forgotten. Especially on his birthday!
On this date in 1989, Corona, Queens rap and street legend Kool G. Rap and DJ Polo released their very first album on the quintessential, yet now-defunct Hip-Hop label Cold Chillin’ Records.
As esteemed members of the world-famous, Queens-based Juice Crew, G. Rap and Polo dropped this project as one of the first full-length albums from the crew, only to succeed Big Daddy Kane’s Long Live The Kane and Biz Markie’s Goin’ Off albums. the Marley Marl-produced album is one of NYC’s crime rhyme holy grails, with tracks like “Road To The Riches” as a theme song for late 80s hustlers, but the majority of the album showcased G. Rap’s uncanny rapping ability. Tracks like “Men At Work”, “Poison” and their premiere track “It’s A Demo” were proof three decades ago that G’s style would be pioneering in the rap game, to say the least.
Salute to G. Rap, Polo, Marley, Fly Ty, and the rest of the Juice Crew and Cold Chillin’ staff for this important piece of Hip Hop history!
