Blondie, Malcolm McLaren and the Clash were among those flocking to the clubs, and the man they all wanted to meet was the one deified by Debbie Harry on Blondie’s 1981 hit ‘Rapture’: ‘Flash is fast, Flash is cool’.īetween Robinson’s divide-and-rule diplomacy and the strong subject matter, Flash had a bad feeling about this song. ‘Rapper’s Delight’ by the Sugarhill Gang raised hip-hop’s game forever when it came out in 1979, selling eight million copies. Even as some observers dubbed it a dancefloor fad, it became a magnet for downtown hipsters who had never set foot in the Bronx. A decade later it spawned Sugar Hill Records, based in Englewood, New Jersey. In the 1960s she founded with her husband Joe a studio and label called All Platinum. She was a music industry veteran who had scored her first hit in 1957 as half of R&B duo Mickey and Sylvia. Sylvia Robinson thought differently. That was her gift. They didn’t need to hear it pumping from the radio. Who wanted to hear about broken glass and roaches on a Saturday night? If they wanted reality, they could look out the window. With the exception of Melle Mel, the Furious Five couldn’t stand it they thought it was a crazy idea. The highfalutin Paris Review even printed the lyrics, an honour it had not afforded, say, Kurtis Blow’s ‘Christmas Rappin’’.īut almost nobody saw it coming, not even the group whose name was printed at the centre of the record. This offspring of the Bronx slums wasn’t just the most exciting party music in the world it finally had something to say. It was the record that critics, especially white ones, had been waiting for, placing hip-hop in the socially conscious bloodline of Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield and Gil Scott-Heron. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 “I Have A Dream” speech, Cole Porter’s “Anything Goes,” the Rolling Stones’ album Exile On Main St and recordings by Mahalia Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, Bill Cosby, Leroy Carr and Gene Autrey were also inducted.With hindsight, ‘The Message’ was inevitable. In addition to Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five’s “The Message,” a number of other historical American recordings were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame as well.ĭr. Upon its release, the group consisted of Grandmaster Melle Mel, Scorpio, Kid Creole, Cowboy, Rahiem and Grandmaster Flash. The Message was also the title of Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five’s debut release for Sugarhill Records. Marked by both cultural and historical significance, these works truly have influenced and inspired audiences for generations, and we are thrilled to induct them into our growing catalog of outstanding recordings.” “We are especially honored to welcome this year’s selection of some of the most influential recordings of the last century. “The Recording Academy is dedicated to celebrating a wide variety of great music and sound through the decades,” said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy. “The Message” is one of 25 records selected by the Recording Academy’s strict governing body, which reviewed each record for its cultural impact and historical significance.Īdditionally, to even be considered, the record in question must be at least 25 years old. (AllHipHop News) Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five’s classic single “The Message” will be the first Hip-Hop recording to be inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.