• Birth Name: Kurtis Walker
• Genre: Rap
• Active: '70s - 2000s
• Instruments: Vocals, Keyboards

Biography

As the first commercially successful rap artist, Kurtis Blow is a towering figure in hip-hop history. His popularity and charisma helped prove that rap music was something more than a flash-in-the-pan novelty, paving the way for the even greater advances of Grandmaster Flash and Run-D.M.C. Blow was the first rapper to sign with (and release an album for) a major label; the first to have a single certified gold (1980's landmark "The Breaks"); the first to embark on a national (and international) concert tour; and the first to cement rap's mainstream marketability by signing an endorsement deal. For that matter, he was really the first significant solo rapper on record, and as such he was a natural focal point for many aspiring young MCs in the early days of hip-hop. For all his immense importance and influence, many of Blow's records haven't dated all that well; his rapping technique, limber for its time, simply wasn't as evolved as the more advanced MCs who built upon his style and followed him up the charts. But at his very best, Blow epitomizes the virtues of the old school: ingratiating, strutting party music that captures the exuberance of an art form still in its youth.

Kurtis Blow was born Kurtis Walker in Harlem in 1959. He was in on the earliest stages of hip-hop culture in the '70s -- first as a breakdancer, then as a block-party and club DJ performing under the name Kool DJ Kurt; after enrolling at CCNY in 1976, he also served as program director for the college radio station. He became an MC in his own right around 1977, and changed his name to Kurtis Blow (as in a body blow) at the suggestion of his manager, future Def Jam founder and rap mogul Russell Simmons. Blow performed with legendary DJs like Grandmaster Flash, and for a time his regular DJ was Simmons' teenage brother Joseph -- who, after changing his stage name from "Son of Kurtis Blow," would go on to become the first half of Run-D.M.C. Over 1977-1978, Blow's club gigs around Harlem and the Bronx made him an underground sensation, and Billboard magazine writer Robert Ford approached Simmons about making a record. Blow cut a song co-written by Ford and financier J.B. Moore called "Christmas Rappin'," and it helped him get a deal with Mercury once the Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" had climbed into the R&B Top Five.

Blow's second single, "The Breaks," was an out-of-the-box smash, following "Rapper's Delight" into the Top Five of the R&B charts in 1980 and eventually going gold; it still ranks as one of old school rap's greatest and most enduring moments. The full-length album Kurtis Blow was also released in 1980, and made the R&B Top Ten in spite of many assumptions that the Sugarhill Gang's success was a one-time fluke. Although the album's attempts at soul crooning and rock covers haven't dated well, the poverty-themed "Hard Times" marked perhaps the first instance of hip-hop's social consciousness, and was later covered by Run-D.M.C. Blow initially found it hard to follow up "The Breaks," despite releasing nearly an album a year for most of the '80s. 1981's Deuce and 1982's Tough weren't huge sellers, and 1983's Party Time EP brought D.C. go-go funksters E.U. on board for a stylistic update. Around this time, Blow was also making his mark as a producer, working with a variety of hip-hop and R&B artists; most notably, he helmed most of the Fat Boys' records after helping them get a record deal. 1984's Ego Trip sold respectably well on the strength of cuts like the DJ tribute "AJ Scratch," the agreeably lightweight "Basketball," and the Run-D.M.C. duet "8 Million Stories." Blow followed it with an appearance in the cult hip-hop film Krush Groove, in which he performed "If I Ruled the World," his biggest hit since "The Breaks."

"If I Ruled the World" proved to be the last gasp of Blow's popularity, as hip-hop's rapid growth made his style seem increasingly outdated. 1985's America was largely ignored, and 1986's Kingdom Blow was afforded an icy reception despite producing a final chart hit, "I'm Chillin'." Critics savaged his final comeback attempt, 1988's Back by Popular Demand, almost invariably pointing out that the title, at that point, was not true. In its wake, Blow gave up the ghost of his recording career, but found other ways to keep the spirit of the old school alive. In the early '90s, he contributed rap material to the TV soap opera One Life to Live, and later spent several years hosting an old-school hip-hop show on Los Angeles radio station Power 106. In 1997, Rhino Records took advantage of his status as a hip-hop elder statesmen by hiring him to produce, compile, and write liner notes for the three-volume series Kurtis Blow Presents the History of Rap. The same year, he was a significant presence in the rap documentary Rhyme and Reason. Blow's music has also been revived by younger artists seeking to pay tribute; Nas covered "If I Rule the World" on 1996's It Was Written, and R&B group Next sampled "Christmas Rappin'" for their 1998 smash "Too Close." ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide

20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of Kurtis Blow Buy this CD

The Best of Kurtis Blow Buy this CD

Kurtis Blow Buy this CD

rap musician; music producer

Personal Information

Born Kurt Walker on August 9, 1959, in Harlem, NY; married; children: three sons.
Education: City College of New York, studied vocal performance, 1976.

Career

Worked as a club DJ in Harlem, began rapping, c. 1976; changed his stage name from Kool DJ Kurt to Kurtis Blow; released hit holiday single "Holiday Rapping," 1979; signed a record contract with Mercury Records, becoming first rap artist to cut records for a major label; released single "The Breaks," 1979; released first LP, Kurtis Blow, 1980; toured United States and Europe with Davey D, 1980-81; Deuce, 1981; Party Time?, 1983; appeared in the film Krush Groove, 1983; Ego Trip, 1984; appeared in commercials for Sprite, 1986; organized all-star King Dream Chorus and Holiday Crew to record the Martin Luther King tribute, "King Holiday"; Kingdom Blow, 1986; recorded antidrug song, "Ya Gotta Say No," 1987; wrote rap segments for the soap opera One Life to Live, 1991-92; hosted radio program "The Old School Show" on KPWR-FM, 1995; organized "Old-School Reunion Tour," featuring rappers Grandmaster Flash, Whodini, Sugarhill Gang, and Kool Moe Dee, 1999.

Life's Work

Considered by some the "King of Rap," Kurtis Blow is at the very least one of the genre's leading pioneers. For many years rap's best-selling solo artist, Blow was the first rap artist to release a major-label single, 1979's "The Breaks," and the first rapper to sell over a million copies. Blow's profile dropped in the late 1980s and the hard-core hip-hop sound began to take over. Inspired by his role in the rap film Krush Groove, he then sought to test his mettle as an actor. Blow's career was revived somewhat in the 1990s as interest grew in the "old-school" rap of his heyday. He hosted a radio show called "The Old-School Show," and organized a concert tour of some of rap's pioneers called "The Old-School Reunion Tour."

Born Kurt Walker on August 9, 1959, in New York City's Harlem borough, Blow enrolled in the City College of New York in 1976, where he studied vocal performance. He became program director of the college's radio station, and started hanging out with friends and City College fellows who would become rap legends. His circle in those days included Grandmaster Flash, Mele Mel, and future rap producer and cofounder of the Def Jam record label, Russell Simmons, among others.

Rap's First Major-Label Artist

As early as 1976, Blow was rapping in Harlem clubs, including Small's Paradise and Charles Gallery. Blow borrowed heavily from his inspirations, including Cool DJ Herc, a Jamaican who has been described, according to the Los Angeles Times, as the "Godfather of Hip-Hop," and "blatantly copping rhymed lines from an originator of rap, Deejay Hollywood (Anthony Halloway)," according to the Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. Blow began his career with Russell Simmons as his manager and Simmons's younger brother, Joey--who would become Run of Run-DMC--on the turntables.

In 1979 Blow recorded the single "Christmas Rapping," which was cowritten by Billboard columnist Rocky Ford. The song became an underground hit, and attracted the interest of the Mercury record label. Blow was the first rap artist to sign to a major label and released "The Breaks," from his forthcoming debut album, 1980's Kurtis Blow. "The Breaks" made it to Number four on Billboard's R&B chart and was certified gold for sales over a million. The single brought Blow up from the underground and placed him at the forefront of commercially successful rap.

As the 1980s wore on, Blow's career began to wane. Rap was becoming increasingly harder-edged and began to outgrow its innocence. Blow's 1983 five-song EP, Party Time?, deserved more attention than it got, according to critic Ron Wynn in the All Music Guide, but failed to make waves beyond peaking at Number 67 on the UK charts. 1984's Ego Trip produced the novelty single, "Basketball," which made it to Number 71 in the United States, but failed to win critics' favor.

Though his own star was fading, Blow increasingly became known for his talents as a producer, guiding the sounds of such acts as Sweet G, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and the Fearless Four. He was named Producer of the Year in New York for three consecutive years, 1983-85. In 1985, Blow appeared on a single by René & Angela called "Save Your Love (For Number One)," and on the Artists United Against Apartheid single, "Sun City." Though it produced what would be his last, albeit lukewarm, hit, "I'm Chillin'," Blow's 1986 album, Kingdom Blow, was a "commercial and critical flop," according to a review found on RollingStone.com, as was 1988's Back by Popular Demand. In 1987 Blow wrote and recorded the antidrug rap "Ya Gotta Say No" with funding from President Ronald Reagan's "War on Drugs" campaign.

On Screen in Krush Groove

Blow made an appearance on the big screen in 1985's hip-hop drama, Krush Groove. The story is based on the life of Russell Simmons, and stars pop artist Sheila E., Run-DMC, The Fat Boys, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Blow. In the movie, Run-DMC has a hit record on their hands, but no money to press copies of it. The fictitious young record producer, Russell Walker, played by Blair Underwood, borrows money from a shady character while attempting to woo Sheila E. Though it won only lukewarm reviews, the film has become something of a cult classic--a visual piece of rap history. Blow has also appeared on the small screen on the soap opera One Life to Live, and wrote some rap segments for the show in the early 1990s.

After the moderate success of Krush Groove, Blow moved to Woodland Hills, California with his wife and three sons to pursue an acting career in Hollywood. His acting career didn't take off beyond an appearance in a Sprite ad, but Blow found himself back on the radio airwaves. As a weekend DJ and Sunday host of "The Old-School Show" on Los Angeles' KPWR-FM, Blow revisited the music of rap's early days and played the soul, funk, and R&B standards that inspired rap's pioneers. A renewed interest in "old-school" music in general had breathed a little life into Blow's waning career. When Blow started hearing some of his old hits on the radio, he saw it as an opportunity for a comeback. A variety of guests made appearances on the weekly four-hour show, including pop singer Jody Watley, rappers Tone-Loc and Ice-T, and Blow's old pals Run-DMC.

The Old-School Revival

Blow's radio show evolved into 1999's "Old-School Reunion Tour," featuring rappers Grandmaster Flash, Whodini, Sugarhill Gang, and Kool Moe Dee. The tour played dates across the United States, but "What could have been an enjoyable evening of old-school hip-hop," wrote Soren Baker in the Los Angeles Times, "... turned into a showcase for a group of narcissistic artists who seemed more concerned with celebrating themselves than their music's achievements." The aging rappers appeared to be moving a little slow, Baker noted. She did add, however, that Blow's performance--backed by the New York City Breakers break-dancing crew--was the "most enjoyable" of the show.

While Blow respected the work today's hard-core rappers have done to succeed, he lamented that rap and hip-hop have evolved into such a negative stereotype. "I have mixed feelings," he told Crowe in the Los Angeles Times. "I hate it because you work so hard ... to build something positive ... and it turns out to be negative. And that's not cool." While commercially successful rappers like Eminem, Snoop Dogg, and the late Tupac Shakur's rhymes are peppered with expletives and other controversial lyrics, Blow never even so much as uttered a single curse word on any of his releases. The rapper himself believed that his cleaner, more philosophical rhymes were the reason his career took a downturn. Blow told the Los Angeles Times, "The sacrifice was I didn't sell a lot of records [after his initial success], because a lot of people thought my stuff was corny."

Awards

Named Producer of the Year in New York for his work with Sweet G, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and the Fearless Four, 1983-85.

Works

Selected discography

• Kurtis Blow, Mercury, 1980.
• Deuce, Mercury, 1981.
• Tough, Mercury, 1982.
• Ego Trip, Mercury, 1984.
• Rapper in Town, Mercury, 1984.
• America, Mercury, 1985.
• Kingdom Blow, Mercury, 1986.
• The Breaks, Mercury, 1986
• Back by Popular Demand, Mercury, 1988.
• The Best of Kurtis Blow, Mercury, 1994.
• Only the Strong Survive, Mercury.

Further Reading

Books

• Erlewine, Michael, editor, All Music Guide, Miller Freeman Books, 1997.
• Larkin, Colin, editor, Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Muze UK Ltd., 1998.
• Pareles, Jon, and Romanowski, Patricia, editors, Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, Rolling Stone Press, 1983.
• Rees, Dafydd, and Crampton, Luke, Encyclopedia of Rock Stars, DK Publishing, 1996.

Periodicals

• Entertainment Weekly, February 21, 1992, p. 52.
• Los Angeles Times, September 24, 1995, p. 76; September 14, 1999, p. 2.
• Time, November 18, 1985, p. 94.
• Washington Post, January 4, 1987, p. G3.

Online

• AMG All Music Guide, http://www.allmusic.com (July 10, 2001).
• Internet Movie Database, http://www.imdb.com (August 21, 2001).
• Rolling Stone, http://www.rollingstone.com (August 3, 2001).

— Brenna Sanchez

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)