An audio-Visual performance, with a huge selection of classic tracks that have influenced Hip Hop over the years, with live visuals synchronise interactively with the music and audience, including live camera footage of him mixing and scratching.
There are lots of stories about the birth of jazz and the beginning of rock n’ roll, but hip-hop has founding fathers: one ofthem is DJ Grandmaster Flash. In the early '70s Joseph Saddler was living in the South Bronx and studyingelectricalengineering. However, Saddler, a native of the Bronx, had a much deeper passion for music; he had been experimentingwith his father’s vinyl since he was a toddler. His knowledge of audio equipment led him to an idea that wouldrevolutionize theway he played music: the turntable would become his instrument.The career of DJ Grandmaster Flash began in the Bronx withneighbourhoodblock parties that essentially were the start ofwhat would become a global phenomenon—the dawn of a musical genre.He was the first DJ to physically lay his handson the vinyl and manipulate it in a backward, forward orcounter clockwisemotion, when most DJs simply handled therecord by the edges, put down the tone arm, and let it play. Those DJs let the tone arm guide their music, but Flash markedup the body of the vinyl with crayon, fluorescent pen, and grease pencil—and those markings became his compass.He invented the Quick Mix Theory, which included techniques such as the double-back, back-door, back-spin, andphasing.This allowed a DJ to make music by touching the record and gauging its revolutions to make his own beat and his ownmusic. Flash’s template grew to include cutting, which, in turn, spawned scratching, transforming, the Clock Theory and thelike. He laid the groundwork for everything a DJ can do with a record today, other than just letting it play. What we call a DJtoday is a role that Flash invented.By the end of the ‘70s, Flash had started another trend that became a hallmark around the world:emcees followed Flashto the various parts and parties to rap/emcee over his beats. Before long, he started his own group, Grandmaster Flash andthe Furious Five. Their reputation grew up around the way the group traded off and blended their lyrics with Flash’sunrivalledskills as a DJ and his acrobatic performances—spinning and cutting vinyl with his fingers, toes, elbows, and anyobject at hand.Although Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five is widely known for their single, “The Message,” it was “TheAdventuresof Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel” that introduced DJing to a larger listening audience than it had ever knownbefore; it became the first DJ composition to be recorded by a DJ. Punk and new wave fans were introduced to FlashthroughBlondie, who immortalized him in the hit, “Rapture.”By the time the ‘90s rolled around, Flash was hand picked by Chris Rock to spend five years as the music director for hisground-breakingHBO series, The Chris Rock Show. More recently, Flash has playedfor audiences as large as the SuperBowl and as elite as Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain.The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame also recognized Flash with anhonourno one else in hip hop had previously received:Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five becamethe first hip hop group ever inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in2007. Flash is the first DJ to ever receive thathonour.On top of his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Flash has been the recipient of many awards, including VH1 HipHopHonours; The Icon Award from BET inhonourof his contribution to hip hop as a DJ; The Lifetime Achievement Awardfrom the RIAA; and Bill Gates’ Vanguard Award.Grandmaster Flash’s memoirs, The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash–My Life, My Beats wasreleased in bookstoresworldwide. The book was co-written with David Ritz, author of both Marvin Gaye’s and Ray Charles’ biographies. In thisextraordinary book, Grandmaster Flash sets down his musical history, sharing for the first time his personal anddifficult lifestory—along with no small amount of wisdom and experience.In 2008, the Smithsonian Museum of American History hosted the exhibition RECOGNIZE! Hip Hop and ContemporaryPortraiture in which Grandmaster Flash, along with other hip hop artist such as LL Cool J, Erykah Badu and Common, werefeatured. Flash’s turntable and cap have long been a part of the Smithsonian’s permanent collection.Flash is also one of the DJs featured in the video game, DJ Hero.Although Flash has been in the business for many years, he shows no sign of slowing down. He serves as an associateproducer and consultant on Baz Luhrmann’s hit Netflix series, The Get Down, which features actor Mamoudou Athie as ayoung Grandmaster Flash.
