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Melle Mel | |
|---|---|
 Mel in 2010 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Melvin Glover |
| Also known as | Grandmaster Melle Mel |
| Born | (1961-05-15)May 15, 1961 (age 63) The Bronx,New York City, U.S.[1] |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1978–present |
| Labels |
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| Formerly of | Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five |
Melvin Glover (born May 15, 1961), better known by his stage nameGrandmaster Melle Mel or simplyMelle Mel (/ˈmɛlimɛl/), is an American rapper who was the lead vocalist and songwriter ofGrandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2024) |
Glover began performing in the late 1970s. He may have been the firstrapper to call himselfMC (master of ceremonies). Other Furious Five members included his brotherKidd Creole (Nathaniel Glover), Scorpio (Eddie Morris), Rahiem (Guy Todd Williams) and Cowboy (Keith Wiggins).[2] While a member of the group, Cowboy created the termhip-hop while teasing a friend who had just joined the US Army, byscat singing the words "hip/hop/hip/hop" in a way that mimicked the rhythmiccadence of marching soldiers.[3]
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five began recording for Enjoy Records and released "Superrappin'" in 1979.[2] They later moved on toSugar Hill Records and were popular on theR&B charts with party songs like "Freedom" and "The Birthday Party". They released numerous singles, gaining agold disc for "Freedom", and touring. In 1982 Melle Mel began to turn to more socially-aware subject matter, in particular theReagan administration's economic (Reaganomics) and drug policies, and their effect on the black community.
The song "The Message" became an instant classic and one of the first examples ofconscious hip-hop by exploring personal and social themes.[2] Mel recorded a rap over session musicianDuke Bootee's instrumental track "The Jungle". Some of Mel's lyrics on "The Message" were taken directly from "Superrappin'". Other than Melle Mel, no members of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five actually appear on the record. Bootee also contributed vocals (Rahiem was to laterlip sync Bootee's parts in the music video).
"The Message" would later be the first hip-hop record ever to be added to theUnited States National Archive of Historic Recordings and the first hip hop record inducted into theGrammy Hall of Fame. Mel would also go on to write songs about struggling life inNew York City ("New York, New York"), and making it through life in general ("Survival (The Message 2)"). Grandmaster Flash split from the group after contract disputes between Melle Mel and their promoterSylvia Robinson in regard toroyalties for "The Message".[2] When Flash filed a lawsuit against Sugar Hill Records, the factions of The Furious Five parted.[2]
Mel became known as Grandmaster Melle Mel and the leader of the Furious Five.[2] The group went on to produce the anti-drug song "White Lines (Don't Don't Do It)".[2] An unofficial music video starred up-and-coming actorLaurence Fishburne[4] and was directed by then-unknown film studentSpike Lee. The record was falsely credited to "Grandmaster + Melle Mel" by Sugar Hill Records,[2] in order to fool the public into thinking Grandmaster Flash had participated on the record.
Mel gained greater fame and success after appearing in the movieBeat Street, with a song based on the movie's title. He performed a memorable rap onChaka Khan's smash hit song "I Feel for You",[2] which introduced hip hop to a wider and more mainstream R&B audience. Grandmaster Melle Mel & The Furious Five had further hits with "Step Off", "Pump Me Up", "King of the Streets", "Jesse", and "Vice", the latter being released on the soundtrack to the TV showMiami Vice. "Jesse" was a highly political song which urged people to vote for then presidential candidateJesse Jackson.
In 1988, after an almost four-year layoff, Mel and Flash reunited and released the albumOn The Strength, but with up-and-coming new school artists such asEric B. & Rakim,DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince,Public Enemy,Boogie Down Productions, andBig Daddy Kane dominating the hip-hop market, the album failed miserably. Mel performed with The King Dream Chorus and Holiday Crew on "King Holiday" aimed at having Dr.Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday declared anational holiday. Mel also performed withArtists United Against Apartheid on the anti-apartheid song "Sun City" which was aimed at discouraging other artists from performing in South Africa until its government ended its policy of apartheid. Mel ended the decade by winning twoGrammy Awards for his work onQuincy Jones'Back on the Block andQ – The Autobiography of Quincy Jones albums.
In 1995,Duran Duran did a cover version of "White Lines" featuring performances from Grandmaster Flash and Melle Mel and released it as the second single from their cover albumThank You.
In 1996, Mel contributed vocals to the US edition ofCher's hit "One By One". Their version is only available on the maxi CD format.
In 1997, Melle Mel signed to Straight Game Records and releasedRight Now,[2] an album which features Scorpio (from the Furious Five) and Rondo. This album took more of a harder rap style. It barely sold at all in the US and the UK.[2]
In 2001, under the name Die Hard, he released the song "On Lock" with Rondo on the soundtrack of the movieBlazin. Die Hard released an album of the same name in 2002 on 7PRecords.
On November 14, 2006, Mel collaborated with author Cricket Casey and released the children's bookThe Portal in the Park, which comes with a bonus CD of his rapped narration. It also features two songs, "World Family Tree" and "The Fountain of Truth", by a then unknownLady Gaga performing with Mel. The book was re-released in 2010. Also in 2006, Melle Mel attendedprofessional wrestling school. In 2007 (at age 45), he stated in an interview with allhiphop.com that "I'm going to try to take some ofJohn Cena's money and get withWWE and do my thing".
On January 30, 2007, Mel released his first ever solo album,Muscles. The first single and music video was "M3 – The New Message". On March 12, 2007, Melle Mel and The Furious Five (joined by DJ Grandmaster Flash) became the first rap group ever inducted into theRock and Roll Hall of Fame. In his acceptance speech, Mel implored the recording industry members in attendance to do more to restore hip hop to the culture of music and art that it once was, rather than the culture of violence that it has become. He added, "I've never been shot, I've never been arrested, and I've been doing hip hop all my life. I can't change things all by myself. We need everybody's help, so let's do it and get this thing done."
On October 10, 2008, Mel appeared on Bronx-based culinary adventure showBronx Flavor alongside hostBaron Ambrosia. In the episode "Night at the Bodega", he appears as a spiritual mentor to sway the Baron from his over-indulgent ways and get him on the right path to success.
In April 2011, it was revealed that he would take part in a new hip hop/pro wrestling collaboration, the Urban Wrestling Federation. Its first bout "First Blood" was recorded in June 2011.
Mel also appeared inIce-T's 2012 hip hop documentarySomething from Nothing: The Art of Rap.
In August 2015, Mel appeared withKool Moe Dee andGrandmaster Caz inMacklemore and Ryan Lewis's song and music video "Downtown".
In May 2016, Mel and Scorpio, performing as Grandmaster's Furious Five ft. Melle Mel & Scorpio, released their single "Some Kind of Sorry".[5]
Most Recently He has Joined Legends of Hip Hip Grandmaster Melle Mel, Grand Puba on a Track by Son of Sam for Eric Spade Rivas Film "The Brooklyn Premiere 2024" song by the same name. This was last film Angel Salazar From Scarface appeared in and the song is also a tribute idea that Director had about finishing a film with such a loss occurring during production and yet persevering. The three legends pep talk the director into continuing.
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| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Muscles (as Grandmaster Mele Mel) |
|
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [6] | US R&B /HH [7] | AUS [8] | NZ [9] | UK [10] | ||||||||||
| The Message (as part ofGrandmaster Flash and the Furious Five) |
| 53 | 8 | 78 | 14 | 77 | ||||||||
| On the Strength (as part of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five) |
| 189 | — | — | — | — | ||||||||
| On Lock (as part of Die Hard) |
| — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US R&B /HH [7] | UK [10] | |||||||||||||
| Grandmaster Melle Mel and the Furious Five (with the Furious Five) |
| 43 | 45 | |||||||||||
| Piano (with the Furious Five) |
| — | — | |||||||||||
| Right Now (with Scorpio) |
| — | — | |||||||||||
| Portal in the Park (with Cricket Casey) |
| — | — | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
| Year | Title | Chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US 200 [11] | US R&B [11] | CAN | UK [12] | ||
| 1983 | Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five
| — | — | — | — |
| 1984 | Greatest Messages
| — | — | — | 41 |
| 1993 | The Greatest Hits
| — | — | — | — |
| 1994 | Message from Beat Street: The Best of Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel & the Furious Five
| — | — | — | — |
| 1996 | The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel & the Furious Five: More of the Best
| — | — | — | — |
| 1997 | The Greatest Mixes
| — | — | — | — |
| 1999 | Adventures on the Wheels of Steel
| — | — | — | — |
| 1999 | The Showdown: The Sugarhill Gang Vs. Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
| — | — | — | — |
| 2005 | Essential Cuts
| — | — | — | — |
| 2006 | Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel and the Furious Five: The Definitive Groove Collection
| — | — | — | — |
| 2007 | The Essential
| — | — | — | — |
| 2010 | Kings of the Streets
| — | — | — | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | |||||
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | "Back on the Block" | Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group | Won | [15] |
| 1996 | "Stomp" | Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals | Nominated |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
