Uncle Luke | |
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 Luke in May 2017 | |
| Born | Luther Roderick Campbell (1960-12-22)December 22, 1960 (age 64) |
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| Instrument | Vocals |
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Musical artist | |
Luther Roderick Campbell (born December 22, 1960), also known asLuke Skyywalker,Uncle Luke and simplyLuke, is an American rapper, promoter,record executive, actor, and former leader of the rap group2 Live Crew. He is known for having helped create theMiami bass genre,[1] for establishing one of the first rap groups and rap labels inSouthern hip hop,[2] and his sexually crudecall and response lyrics which were unique for the time period.[3][4] He also starred in a short-lived show onVH1,Luke's Parental Advisory.
Luther Campbell was born on December 22, 1960, inMiami. His mother was a beautician ofBahamian ancestry and his father was a custodian ofJamaican ancestry.[5] He was the youngest of five sons and was named afterMartin Luther King Jr. He was raisedCatholic.[6]
After graduating fromMiami Beach Senior High School in 1979, Campbell was asked by his mother to leave the house every weekday from 8:30am to 4:30pm regardless of his employment status.[7]
In the early 1980s, Campbell worked as a cook atMount Sinai Hospital inMiami Beach and as a concert promoter inMiami, bringing rap groups of that era to Miami. In 1983, he also enrolled in an eight-week study course at Miamipublic radio stationWDNA, where he learned basic audio editing and production techniques.
In 1984, Campbell took notice of a single fromCalifornia named "Revelation" by2 Live Crew, which consisted of two rappers (Fresh Kid Ice and Amazing V) and a DJ (Mr. Mixx). The single was a hit on the South Florida club circuit, and Campbell decided to bring them from California to Miami for a performance. He took a special interest in the group and began managing them.
2 Live Crew eventually fully relocated to Florida without Amazing Vee and in 1986, 2 Live Crew recorded "Throw the D" with "Ghetto Bass" on the B-side, they went into a joint venture with Campbell to start Luke Skyywalker Records, which was also his first MC name.
In April of that year,Brother Marquis joined the group in Miami. Campbell gave The 2 Live Crew a record deal and officially joined the group. They exploded on the local scene with their gold-selling debut album,The 2 Live Crew Is What We Are (1986). This made Luke Skyyywalker and his bandmates rap superstars in south Florida.[8] On April 20, 1987, a clerk at Starship Records in Callaway, Florida was arrested and charged with a felony for selling a copy ofThe 2 Live Crew Is What We Are to a 14-year-old girl. The charges were dropped before trial.[9]
In 1988, the group released their second album,Move Somethin'. It was certified Gold and featured the singles "Move Somethin'" and "Do Wah Diddy Diddy". The album improved on the charts from the previous album, making it to #68 on theBillboard 200 and #20 on the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart.
Campbell decided to sell a separate clean version in addition to the explicit version of the album. A record store clerk in Alexander City, Alabama, was cited for selling a copy to an undercover police officer in 1988. It was the first time in the United States that a store owner was held liable for obscenity over music. The charges were dropped after a jury found the owner not guilty.
Their third albumAs Nasty as They Wanna Be (1989) became the group's largest seller, being certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. In 1990, theUnited States District Court for the Southern District of Florida ruled that the album was legally obscene;[10] this ruling was later overturned by theEleventh Circuit.[11] It is the first album in history to be deemed legally obscene.[12] An obscenity trial followed, in whichHenry Louis Gates, Jr., addressed the court on behalf of the defendants, all of whom were eventually acquitted.
Campbell was also infamous in the late 1980s and early 1990s for his association with theUniversity of Miamifootball team. Campbell was alleged to have been behind what was referred to as a "pay-for-play" system, which involved cash rewards for acts such as scoring touchdowns and big hits,[13] although Campbell has never actually donated to the University of Miami or its athletics department.
In 1993, Campbell threatened to go public with various alleged violations by the university's athletic department andits football program if Ryan Collins, a black player on the team, wasn't named starting quarterback that season.[14]
1990 saw the release ofBanned in the U.S.A., originally credited as Campbell's solo album featuring2 Live Crew and in later editions credited as a 2 Live Crew album. The album included the hits "Do the Bart" and the title track. It was also the very first release to bear theRIAA-standardParental Advisory warning sticker.[15] It peaked at number 20 on the Hot 100.[16]
The eponymous title single is a reference to the decision in a court case that the group's albumAs Nasty as They Wanna Be was obscene.Bruce Springsteen granted the group permission tointerpolate his song "Born in the U.S.A." for it.[17]
Displeased over the decision of Florida GovernorBob Martinez who, on being asked to examine the album, decided it was obscene and recommended local law enforcement take action against it and over the subsequent action ofBroward County, Florida,sheriffNick Navarro, who arrested local record-store owners on obscenity charges for selling the group's albums and the subsequent arrest of members of the group on obscenity charges, the group included the song "Fuck Martinez", which also includes multiple repetitions of the phrase "fuck Navarro". The group found two other men with the same names, and had them sign releases, as they thought that this action would make it impossible for Martinez or Navarro to sue them.
That same year they releasedLive in Concert, the group's first and only live album, and their fifth record overall. It was released under the Effect subsidiary label ofLuke Records, a move that was deemed necessary for the company to be able to release additional 2 Live Crew material outside of their distribution deal withAtlantic Records. The album peaked at number 46 on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.[18]
Sports Weekend: As Nasty as They Wanna Be, Pt. 2 (1991) is the sixth album overall and fifth studio album by the2 Live Crew. A clean version was released later that same year titledSports Weekend: As Clean as They Wanna Be Part II and was the sequel ofAs Clean as They Wanna Be. This would be the last studio album by all original members of the 2 Live Crew.[19]
In 1992,I Got Shit on My Mind was released. It was his first official solo album without The 2 Live Crew. It peaked at #52 on theBillboard 200 chart and #20 on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It was the album that spawned the hit single "I Wanna Rock" (better known more prominently as "Doo-Doo Brown"), which became Campbell's signature song. Upon its initial release in 1992, the song did not garner much attention until the following year, when it became a runaway hit, and charted at 73 on the Hot 100.[20]
June 8, 1993 saw the release of his third solo albumIn the Nude. It was another success, reaching #54 on theBillboard 200 and #8 on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.[21]
One of The 2 Live Crew’s songs, which used a parody ofRoy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman", was the subject of a 1993-1994 lawsuit,Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc., which was argued in front of theU.S. Supreme Court. TheMiami New Times described Campbell as "the man whose booty-shaking madness once made the U.S. Supreme Court stand up for free speech".[22]
In 1994, he reunited with Fresh Kid Ice, and a local rapper named Verb made an album under the banner The New 2 Live Crew. It is the last 2 Live Crew related project to feature him. The album became a moderate hit, peaking at #52 on theBillboard 200 and #9 on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, as well as producing two charting singles, "Hell, Yeah" and "You Go Girl" who were both made into music videos.[23]
Freak for Life is Campbell's fourth album. It was released on July 12, 1994, throughLuke Records.Freak for Life peaked at #174 on theBillboard 200 and #24 on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, making it his lowest charting album at the time. One single found mild success, "It's Your Birthday" peaked at #33 on theHot Rap Singles and #91 on theHot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks.
Also in 1994, Campbell co-foundedLiberty City Optimists, an inner city youth sports program. One of his notable apprentices isDevonta Freeman, who went on to play college football forFlorida State Seminoles, rival of the Hurricanes.[24]
Campbell and his label, Luke Records, Inc. went bankrupt in 1995 and sold their catalogs to Joseph Weinberger and Lil' Joe Records, Inc. in 1996.
Uncle Luke was released on May 14, 1996, onLuther Campbell Music and was mainly produced by Darren "DJ Spin" Rudnick, and Rod XL, with additional production byFrankie Cutlass,Ice Cube andDoug E. Fresh.Uncle Luke was a success, peaking at #51 on theBillboard 200 and #8 on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and spawned a single, "Scarred", which made it to #64 on theBillboard Hot 100 and #7 on theHot Rap Singles, the song was also turned into a Video.
Changin' the Game is the sixth album released by Campbell. It was released on November 11, 1997, on theIsland Black Music label in collaboration withLuke Records and featured production from Campbell, Rod XL,Lil' Jon and Louis "Ugly" Howard. Though the album was met with some positive reviews, the album was a flop and remains Campbell's lowest charting album, only making it to #49 on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. However, the single "Raise the Roof" found great success peaking at #26 on theBillboard Hot 100 and #1 on theHot Rap Singles.[25] The song helped to popularize the arm gesture by the same name which involved repeatedly extending ones arms upwards with the palms of the hands also facing upwards. The song is also featured in the compilation albumJock Jams Volume 4.
In 1998 he played a supporting role in the movieRide acomedy film written and directed byMillicent Shelton. It starsMalik Yoba,Fredro Starr, andMelissa De Sousa. Also that year he made a special cameo appearance inIce Cube'sThe Players Club. Thecomedy/drama film starsBernie Mac,Monica Calhoun,Jamie Foxx,John Amos,A. J. Johnson, Alex Thomas,Charlie Murphy,Terrence Howard,Faizon Love andLisaRaye.
Somethin' Nasty is the seventh album released by Campbell. It was released on March 13, 2001, onLuke Records throughKoch Records' short-lived independent label distribution unit, KELA (Koch Entertainment Label Alliance) and featured production by Campbell's former 2 Live Crew bandmate,Mr. Mixx,Daz Dillinger, Gorilla Tek, and Campbell himself. The album found minor success, peaking at #149 on theBillboard 200, #36 on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and #6 on theTop Independent Albums.
Campbell's last release,My Life & Freaky Times, was released in March 2006, and peaked at 32 at the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.[26] The first singles serviced to radio were "Holla at Cha Homeboy", featuring Pitbull & Petey Pablo, and thereggaeton-leaning "Pop That" byPlan B and Rey Chester Secretweapon.[27]
That same year, Campbell appeared inGrand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories as DJ Luke for the hip-hop stationFresh 105 FM. Campbell hosts a sports talk show on Miami's 790 The Ticket with former football playerTerry Kirby on Saturdays.
Campbell has previously entered theadult film industry and cites on his MySpace page the need to clean up the "sometimes amateurish new courtship of Hip-Hop and Adult Entertainment".[28] He produced the adult entertainment movieLuke's Bachelor Party in 2007.
In December 2007, Campbell launched The Luke Entertainment Group and took the company public trading under the symbol LKEN onPink Sheets.[29]
In 2008, he starred in his own short-lived show onVH1,Luke's Parental Advisory.
Campbell was interviewed about his involvement with theUniversity of Miami football program for the documentaryThe U, which premiered December 12, 2009, as part ofESPN's30 for 30 series.
In 2010, he briefly reunited withFresh Kid Ice,Brother Marquis, andMr. Mixx as the 2 Live Crew were honorees winners at the 2010VH1 Hip-Hop Honors: The Dirty South Edition.[30]
On February 2, 2011, Campbell announced his intention to run for mayor ofMiami-Dade County on a platform that includes making housing projects safer, transparency in local government, and taxing strippers.[31] He came in fourth in a field of 11 candidates, winning 11% of the vote.[32]
By Thanksgiving 2014, Campbell reunited with 2 Live Crew (Fresh Kid Ice and Brother Marquis) for a series of shows until 2015.[33][34]
On February 18, 2009, Campbell was arrested for falling behind onchild support payments. He allegedly has 6 or 7 kids, each of whom is from a different mother.[35]
In February 2010, Campbell became a columnist forMiami New Times, analternative weekly newspaper distributed in theMiami metropolitan area.[36] Campbell's column, called "Luke's Gospel",[37] provides "a forum for his crazy-ass views on current events," which include politics, sports and entertainment. He is quoted on theMiami New Times website as saying, "It's the perfect place for me. I am a free-speech guy. It's just a match made in Heaven. Can you believe it? Me turned loose on the world inNew Times. Wow."[38]
| Year | Album | Chart Positions | ||||||||
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| US | US Hip-Hop | |||||||||
| 1990 | The Luke LP | 21 | 10 | |||||||
| 1992 | I Got Shit on My Mind | 52 | 20 | |||||||
| 1993 | In the Nude | 54 | 8 | |||||||
| 1994 | Freak for Life | 174 | 24 | |||||||
| 1996 | Uncle Luke | 51 | 8 | |||||||
| 1997 | Changin' the Game | – | 49 | |||||||
| 2001 | Somethin' Nasty | 149 | 36 | |||||||
| 2006 | My Life & Freaky Times | – | 35 | "—" denotes the album failed to chart or not released | ||||||
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [39] | US R&B [40] | US Rap [41] | ||||||
| "Banned in the U.S.A." (featuring2 Live Crew) | 1990 | 20 | 13 | 1 | The Luke LP | |||
| "I Wanna Rock" | 1992 | 73 | 39 | 8 | I Got Shit on My Mind | |||
| "It's Your Birthday" | 1994 | — | 91 | 33 | Freak for Life | |||
| "Scarred" (featuringTrick Daddy and Verb) | 1996 | 64 | 31 | 7 | Uncle Luke | |||
| "Raise the Roof" (featuringNo Good but So Good) | 1998 | 26 | 20 | 1 | Changin' the Game | |||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||
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