Where it All Began

“It’s like a jungle sometimes. It makes me wonder how I keep from going under.”- Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five in “The Message.”

Ever wondered what today’s hip hop would sound like if it was good? While today’s Soundcloud garbage mumble rappers may be dominating the charts, there ain’t nothing like the originals.

Back in ’82, something magnificent was cooking in the Bronx. DJ Grandmaster Flash and a group of emcees were recording tracks under the Sugarhill Label which would revolutionize music forever. Later known as Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, they would pioneer the world of hip hop and pave the way for the golden age of rap in the 90’s.

Arguably one of their best hits ever, “The Message,” debuted in 1982 and painted a vivid picture of the hardships that came with living in the ghetto.

Song Link

Featuring the vocals of Grandmaster Melle Mel and Duke Bootee, the song incorporates a smooth bass line and uses sound effects to emphasize the violence of the inner city. Melle Mel’s and Duke Bootee’s alternating voice pitches do a great deal in showing their respective frustrations with the ghetto.

Mel’s lyrics about drug use are especially heart wrenching as it shows how a person can squander all of their possessions to get high. Told in the second person, Mel tells the story of a young person who chose to take the easy way out and drop out of high school to sell crack; the end result being an early death in a cell.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five laid out the groundwork for the future of hip hop. They inspired numerous rap groups such as the infamous N.W.A. to voice their opinions on society in the form of hip hop music. The bassline in “The Message” was even sampled by Ice Cube in his remixed version of “Check Yo Self.”

“I keep my hand on my gun cuz they got me on the run.”- Spice 1 and Tupac in “Jealous Got Me Strapped,” a line borrowed from “The Message”

Although mostly forgotten today, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five will forever be remembered by old school hip hop fans as the og’s who started it all.