Fab Five Freddy
Encyclopedia
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
artist. He was active in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in the 1970s and early 1980s, and later hosted the first hip-hop music video show on TV, "Yo! MTV Raps
Yo! MTV Raps
Yo! MTV Raps was a two-hour American television music video program, which ran from August 1988 to August 1995 through its original Yo! MTV Raps name and later by Yo! . The program was the first hip hop music show on the network, based on the original MTV Europe show, aired one year earlier. The U.S...
".
Art/ Hip-Hop
As a young teenager in the 1970s Fab 5 Freddy was a member of the Brooklyn based graffiti group "The Fabulous 5." He got his name for consistent graffiti "bombing" of the number 5 train on the IRT. Outside of the Fabulous 5 group, in 1980, he painted a subway train with cartoon style depictions of giant Campbell's Soup cans, after Andy WarholAndy Warhol
Andrew Warhola , known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art...
. In the late 1970s and early 1980s he was an unofficial bridge between the uptown graffiti and early rap
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
scene and the downtown art and punk music scenes. “I was bringing the whole music, hip-hop, art, break dancing and urban cultural thing to the downtown table” he said. At the end of 1980, Glenn O'Brien
Glenn O'Brien
Glenn O'Brien is primarily a writer, largely on the subjects of art, music and fashion. He's featured as "The Style Guy" at GQ magazine, and has published a book with that title....
cast Freddy, along with fellow Lower East Side
Lower East Side
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
graffiti writer Lee Quinones
Lee Quinones
George Lee Quiñones is an American artist and actor. He is one of the several artists rising from the New York City Subway graffiti movement....
, in the film New York Beat (later released as Downtown 81
Downtown 81
Downtown 81 is a film that was shot in 1980-1981.This film, directed by Edo Bertoglio, written and produced by Glenn O'Brien with post-production in 1999-2000 by Maripol, is a rare real-life snapshot of ultra-hip subculture of post-punk era Manhattan...
). That film showcased artist Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat was an American artist. His career in art began as a graffiti artist in New York City in the late 1970s, and in the 1980s produced Neo-expressionist painting.-Early life:...
in his Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan is the southernmost part of the island of Manhattan, the main island and center of business and government of the City of New York...
environment and the culture that surrounded it. Shortly after, Freddy began production along with filmmaker Charlie Ahearn
Charlie Ahearn (director)
Charlie Ahearn was born in 1951 in Binghamton, New York, and is a film director and creative cultural artist currently living in New York City. Although predominantly involved in film and video production, he is also known for his work as an author, freelance writer, and radio host...
on his film Wild Style
Wild Style
Wild Style is a 1983 hip hop film produced by Charlie Ahearn. Released theatrically in 1983 by First Run Features and later re-released for home video by Rhino Home Video, it is regarded as the first hip hop motion picture...
(1982), which showcased artist Lee Quinones
Lee Quinones
George Lee Quiñones is an American artist and actor. He is one of the several artists rising from the New York City Subway graffiti movement....
in the Uptown, Manhattan environment of the Bronx
The Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
and the music that surrounded it. In April 1981, Freddy helped curate (with Futura 2000
Futura 2000
Futura 2000 is a graffiti artist. He started to paint illegally on New York's subway in the early seventies, working with other artists such as ALI. In the early eighties he showed with Patti Astor at the Fun Gallery, along with Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Richard Hambleton and Kenny Scharf...
and Keith Haring
Keith Haring
Keith Haring was an artist and social activist whose work responded to the New York City street culture of the 1980s.-Early life:...
) the graffiti-related art show "Beyond Words" at the Mudd Club
Mudd Club
The Mudd Club was a TriBeCa nightclub that was opened in October 1978 by Steve Mass, art curator Diego Cortez and Anya Phillips, a figure in the downtown punk scene...
, which contained their own work along with Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat was an American artist. His career in art began as a graffiti artist in New York City in the late 1970s, and in the 1980s produced Neo-expressionist painting.-Early life:...
, Rammellzee
Rammellzee
Rammellzee was a visual artist, graffiti writer, performance artist, hip hop musician, art theoretician and sculptor from New York.-Life and work:...
, Afrika Bambaataa
Afrika Bambaataa
Afrika Bambaataa is an American DJ from the South Bronx, New York who was instrumental in the early development of hip hop throughout the 1980s. Afrika Bambaataa is one of the three originators of break-beat deejaying, and is respectfully known as the "Grandfather" and the Amen Ra of Universal...
, and others. This was the first time the many members of the Bronx hip-hop scene had appeared in a Downtown NYC art context. The following month, Freddy was booked on Henry Chalfant
Henry Chalfant
Henry Chalfant is a well known and highly regarded urban culture photographer and videographer most notable for his graffiti and breakdance photography and film...
's "Graffiti Rock" performance with Rock Steady Crew
Rock Steady Crew
Rock Steady Crew is a b-boying crew and hip hop group that was established in the Bronx, New York City in 1977. The group was initially formed by b-boys named Jimmy D and Jojo. In subsequent years, Rock Steady Crew became a franchise name for groups in other locations. The Manhattan branch was...
at Common Ground gallery in SoHo
SoHo
SoHo is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City, notable for being the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, and also, more recently, for the wide variety of stores and shops ranging from trendy boutiques to outlets of upscale national and international chain stores...
(not to be confused with Holman's Graffiti Rock
Graffiti rock
Graffiti Rock was a hip-hop based television program, originally screened June 29, 1984. Intended as an on-going series, the show only received one pilot episode and aired on WPIX channel 11 in New York City and a few other markets...
TV show pilot). That show was cancelled due to violence, but was rescheduled in October at another venue called The Kitchen. After the Rock Steady Crew and Afrika Bambaataa were booked as the opening act for Bow Wow Wow
Bow Wow Wow
Bow Wow Wow were an English 1980s New Wave band created by Malcolm McLaren to promote his and business partner Vivienne Westwood's New Romantic fashion lines.The group's music is described as having an "African-derived drum sound".-History:...
at The Ritz
Ritz (rock club)
-History:The Ritz was founded in 1980 by Jerry Brandt on 11th Street between Third and Fourth Avenues in the East Village neighborhood of New York City. Formerly a ballroom known as Webster Hall, The Ritz still retained some of its previous incarnation's Art Deco style. As a venue, it focused...
nightclub in September 1981, Ruza Blue decided to book them at Negril
Negril
Negril is a small but widely dispersed beach resort town located across parts of two Jamaican parishes of Westmoreland and Hanover. Westmoreland is the westernmost parish in Jamaica, located on the south side of the island...
and begin a night called "Wheels of Steel". That became so popular that it was closed down by the fire department for over-capacity, and Freddy helped Blue (whom he dubbed "Kool Lady Blue") find another home for the party. Together they chose The Roxy
Roxy NYC
Roxy NYC was a popular nightclub located at 515 West 18th Street in New York City. Located in Chelsea section of Manhattan it began as a roller skating rink and roller disco in 1978, it was founded by Steve Bauman, Richard Newhouse and Steve Greenberg then acquired in 1985 by Gene DiNino until it...
roller rink in NYC, which gained national fame once used in the film Beat Street
Beat Street
Beat Street is a 1984 drama film, following Wild Style in featuring New York City hip hop culture of the early 1980s; breakdancing, DJing, and graffiti.-Plot:...
(1984).
Though Fab Five Freddy's contributions to hip-hop culture are numerous, perhaps the most historic comes from his 1982 single entitled Change the Beat
Change the Beat
"Change the Beat" is a song written and recorded by Fab Five Freddy. It was recorded at OAO Studio in Brooklyn, NY and released as a 12" single on the Celluloid label in 1982. This release and all subsequent pressings of the single feature two versions of the song, one on Side A and one on Side B...
. The A-Side of the 12" single featured Freddy rapping the song in both English and French, while the B-Side was a shorter version of the same song, this time performed entirely in French by female rapper Beside, who was credited on the initial pressings of the record as "Fab 5 Betty". Freddy utilized a vocoder
Vocoder
A vocoder is an analysis/synthesis system, mostly used for speech. In the encoder, the input is passed through a multiband filter, each band is passed through an envelope follower, and the control signals from the envelope followers are communicated to the decoder...
with a white noise carrier during the chorus and at the end of the B-Side track. When the beat stops in Beside's version of the song, Freddy says "Ahhhhh, this stuff is really fresh", a line which is quite possibly the most scratched sample in the history of hip-hop music. It was first utilized as a scratch sample on the 1983 Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
single Rockit
Rockit
"Rockit" is a song recorded by Herbie Hancock. It was released as a single from his 1983 album Future Shock. The song was written by Hancock, bass guitarist Bill Laswell, and synthesizer/drum machine programmer Michael Beinhorn.-History:...
, featuring scratching by legendary DJ and turntablist GrandMixer D.ST, and has been used in countless hip-hop tracks ever since.
Media work
Fab 5 Freddy was referenced in BlondieBlondie (band)
Blondie is an American rock band, founded by singer Deborah Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. The band was a pioneer in the early American New Wave and punk scenes of the mid-1970s...
's 1981 hit song "Rapture
Rapture (song)
"Rapture" is a single by the American new wave band Blondie. It was released in January 1981 and was the second and final song to be released from the band's 1980 top 10 album Autoamerican, the first being "The Tide Is High", which had topped the chart in the US and UK. "Rapture" went on to reach...
". As recounted in the 1999 TV documentary The Hip Hop Years
The Hip Hop Years
The Hip Hop Years is a 3-part series of one hour television documentaries made for Channel 4 in 1999.The series was devised by David Upshal who produced, directed and narrated the series...
, the "Rapture" video featured Freddy in a cameo role painting graffiti art in the background. (Grandmaster Flash
Grandmaster Flash
Joseph Saddler better known as King Grandmaster Flash, is an American hip hop musician and DJ; one of the pioneers of hip-hop DJing, cutting, and mixing....
, who was also name-checked in the song, did not show up on the day of the shoot, so artist Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat was an American artist. His career in art began as a graffiti artist in New York City in the late 1970s, and in the 1980s produced Neo-expressionist painting.-Early life:...
took his place behind the turntables). "Rapture" was the first hip hop video to be shown on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
. In 1983, Fab 5 Freddy produced a hip-hop version of "Eisgekühlter Bommerlunder
Eisgekühlter Bommerlunder
"Eisgekühlter Bommerlunder" is a German drinking song. The song is repeated over and over, each time the song is sung quicker and a pitch higher, until performers can't sing anymore....
" called "Hip Hop Bommi Bop" together with German punk rock band Die Toten Hosen
Die Toten Hosen
Die Toten Hosen is a German punk band from Düsseldorf. They have enjoyed decades-long mass appeal in Germany.The band's name literally means "The Dead Pants" in English, although the phrase "tote Hose" is a German expression meaning "nothing going on" or "boring"...
which is said to be the very first co-production of Punk and Hip Hop. In 1988 Freddy became the first hip hop VJ by hosting the MTV music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
show entitled Yo! MTV Raps
Yo! MTV Raps
Yo! MTV Raps was a two-hour American television music video program, which ran from August 1988 to August 1995 through its original Yo! MTV Raps name and later by Yo! . The program was the first hip hop music show on the network, based on the original MTV Europe show, aired one year earlier. The U.S...
. He later went on to be an associate producer on the 1991 film New Jack City
New Jack City
New Jack City is a 1991 crime film starring Wesley Snipes, Ice-T, Mario Van Peebles, Judd Nelson, and Chris Rock. Snipes stars as Nino Brown, a rising drug dealer and crime lord in New York City during the crack epidemic...
in which he also made an appearance. In 1994 he directed the music video "One Love" by rapper Nas
Nas
Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...
.
Most recently credited in the movie Rachel Getting Married
Rachel Getting Married
Rachel Getting Married is a 2008 drama film directed by Jonathan Demme, and starring Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt, Bill Irwin and Debra Winger. The film was released in the U.S. to select theaters on October 3, 2008. The film opened the 65th Venice International Film Festival. The film also...
, he appears as a special wedding guest, along with other notable musicians, as conceived by producer Jonathan Demme
Jonathan Demme
Robert Jonathan Demme is an American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. Best known for directing The Silence of the Lambs, which won him the Academy Award for Best Director, he has also directed the acclaimed movies Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married, the Talking Heads concert movie Stop...
to enhance the expansive and varied soundtrack and wedding members, in contrast with the normal duality of a traditional wedding. He also worked on the film American Gangster directed by Ridley Scott
Ridley Scott
Sir Ridley Scott is an English film director and producer. His most famous films include The Duellists , Alien , Blade Runner , Legend , Thelma & Louise , G. I...
, in which he makes a small cameo.
External links
- Fab 5 Freddy on Twitter
- Safra Ducreay, "Fab 5 Freddy" Format, Jan 21, 2008 (interview, with pictures of Fab 5 Freddy's paintings)