Funky Four Plus One
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Funky Four Plus One (sometimes written Funky 4 + 1) was an early hip hop group. Formed in 1979, the group was notable in that it was one of the first hip hop acts to contain a female MC in Sha Rock. The group was also notable for being the first hip hop act to appear on Saturday Night Live in 1981, in an episode hosted by Deborah Harry (but because of how widely-panned season six was to SNL fans, many of them purposefully forget this and mistakenly name Run-D.M.C. [who appeared on a season 12 episode hosted by "Cosby Show" star, Malcolm Jamal-Warner] as the first rap group SNL has had on the show) The group managed this without actually releasing a full le
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[edit] Members
Original members were Keith Keith (Keith Caesar), Sha Rock (Sharon Green), KK Rockwell (Kevin Smith), Rahiem (Guy Todd Williams) and Jazzy Jeff see note 1 (Jeffrey Myree). Later Raheim left the group to join Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five and was replaced by Lil' Rodney Cee (Rodney Stone).
[edit] Career
In 1980 Funky Four Plus One got a record contract with Sugarhill Records and subsequently released That's The Joint (possibly their most well-known track).
The group split up by 1983. KK Rockwell and Lil' Rodney Cee left to start their own group called Double Trouble. Sha Rock joined a female hip hop trio, the Us Girls (band). Jazzy Jeff went off to have a solo career.
[edit] Released tracks
- That's The Joint
- Rapping & Rocking The House
- The Mexican
- Do You Want To Rock
- King Heroin
- Square Biz
- Feel It
- Superstars
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
1. Note that Jazzy Jeff from Funky Four Plus One is not the same artist as DJ Jazzy Jeff from DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince. In fact when Jazzy Jeff was setting up a solo career after Funky Four Plus One split up around 1983 he sued Jive Records (who had subsequently signed DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince) and won a lawsuit against over the rights to the name Jazzy Jeff.fr:Funky 4+1
