Melle Mel

Melle Mel

Melvin Glover (born May 15, 1961 in The Bronx, New York), also known by his stage name Grandmaster Mele Mel, and formerly Grandmaster Melle Mel, is an American hip-hop musician ­­— one of the pioneers of old school hip hop as lead rapper & main songwriter for Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five.

Biography

Melvin Glover was the first rapper ever to call himself "MC". Other Furious Five members included his brother Kid Creole (Nathaniel Glover), Scorpio (Eddie Morris), Rahiem (Guy Todd Williams) & 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 "Supperrappin'" in 1979. They later moved on to Sugarhill Records and were popular on the R&B charts with party songs and the like. They released numerous singles, gaining a gold disc for "Freedom," and also toured. In 1982 Melle Mel began to turn to more socially aware subject matter, in particular the Reagan administrations economic (Reaganomics) and drug policies, and their effect on the black community. A song entitled "The Message" became an instant classic and one of the first glimmers of conscientious 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 "Supperrappin'", a song he had recorded three years earlier. Other than Melle Mel, no members of the Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five actually appear on the record. Bootee also contributed vocals (Rahiem was to later lyp-sync Bootee's parts in the music video). "The Message" went platinum in less than a month and went on to become, arguably the greatest record in Hip-Hop history. It was the first Hip-Hop record ever to be added to the United States National Archive of Historic Recordings. 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 Mele Mel and their promoter Sylvia Robinson in regard to royalties for "The Message". When Flash filed a lawsuit against Sugar Hill Records, their label, the factions of The Furious Five parted.

Mel became known as "Grandmaster Melle Mel" and the leader of the Furious Five. The group went on to produce the anti-drug song "White Lines (Don't Don't Do It)" (the unofficial music video was directed by then unknown film student Spike Lee & starred an unknown Laurence Fishburne). The record was falsely credited to Grandmaster + Melle Mel by Sugarhill Records in order to fool the public into thinking Grandmaster Flash had participated on the record. Mel then gained higher success appearing in the movie Beat Street, with a powerful song based on the movie's title. He became the first rap artist ever to win a Grammy award for "Record of the Year" after performing a memorable rap on Chaka Khan's smash hit song "I Feel for You" which introduced hip-hop to the mainstream R&B audience. Grandmaster Melle Mel & The Furious Five had further hits with "Step Off", "Pump Me Up", "King of the Streets", "Jesse", and "Vice", the latter being released on the soundtrack to the TV show Miami Vice. "Jesse" was a highly politicial song which urged people to vote for then presidential candidate Jesse Jackson.

In 1988, after an almost 4 year layoff, Mel and Flash reunited and released the album "On The Strength", but with up and coming new school artists such as Eric B. & Rakim, DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Public Enemy, Boogie Down Productions, and Big Daddy Kane dominating the hip-hop market, the album failed miserably. Mel performed with The King Dream Chorus and Holiday Crew on "King Holiday" aimed at having Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.]'s birthday declared a national holiday. Mel also performed with Artists United Against Apartheid on the anti-aphartheid song Sun City aimed at discouraging other artists from performing in South Africa until that government ended its policy of apartheid. Mel ended the decade by winning two more Grammy awards for his work on Quincy Jones "Back On The Block" & "Q - The Autobiography of Quincy Jones" albums.

In 1996, he contributed vocals to the U.S. edition of Cher's hit "One By One". Their version is only available on the maxi CD format.

In 1997, Melle Mel signed to Straight Game Records and released Right Now. This album featured Scorpio from the Furious Five, Rondo and the legendary Grandmaster Flash. The album barely sold at all in the USA and the UK even though it marked the return of one of hip hop's greatest. This album took more of a harder rap style to show the world that Mele Mel could stay with the times.

In 2001, he released the song "On Lock" with Rondo on the soundtrack of the movie Blazin under the name Die Hard. Die Hard released an album of the same name in 2002 on 7PRecords.

On November 14, 2006, Mel released a children's book "The Portal In The Park", which comes with a bonus CD of his rapped narration. Also in 2006, Melle Mel attended professional wrestling school and in 2007, stated in an interview with allhiphop.com that "I'm going to try to take some of John Cena's money and get with WWE and do my thing". Mel changed his name to "Mele Mel" & released his first ever solo album, Muscles on January 30, 2007. The first single and music video is "M3 - The New Message".

On March 12, 2007, The Furious Five (joined by DJ Grandmaster Flash) became the first and only rap group ever inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Discography

Solo

• Muscles (2007)

With Scorpio

• Right Now (1997)

With Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five

• The Message (1982)
• On the Strength (1988)

With the Furious Five

• Work Party (1984)
• Stepping Off (1985)
• Piano (1989)

External links

http://www.britishhiphop.co.uk/features/interviews/grandmaster_melle_mel.html

• Official site of Melle Mel (sometimes spelled Mele Mel)
• Interview with Mele Mel at allhiphop.com
• Hip-hop’s first superstar shows off his muscles
• Video which highlights the Mele Mel & M. Casey "Portal In The Park" book release party
• Interview with Mele Mel @ Format Mag
• Radio interview with Mele Mel on NPR's 'Fresh Air' with Terry Gross (streaming Audio, recorded 1992)