Difference between revisions 106856028 and 106856343 on dewiki

{{Importartikel}}
[[File:Kurtis Blow im Musiktheater Bad (Hannover, Germany), 2012-03-30.JPG|thumb|Kurtis Blow in concert (Hannover, Germany), 2012-03-30]]
{{Infobox person
|name=Kurtis Blow
|birth_name=Kurt Walker
|birth_date={{birth date and age|1959|8|9}}
|birth_place=[[Harlem, New York]], [[United States|U.S.]]
|death_date=
|death_place=
|occupation=rapper, record producer
}}
'''Kurt Walker''' (born August 9, 1959), professionally known by his stage name '''Kurtis Blow''', is an [[United States|American]] [[rapping|rapper]] and [[record producer]].<ref name="The Great Rock Discography">{{cite book
| first= Martin C.
| last= Strong
| year= 2000
| title= The Great Rock Discography
| edition= 5th
| publisher= Mojo Books
| location= Edinburgh
| page= 93
| isbn= 1-84195-017-3}}</ref> He is the first commercially successful rapper and the first to sign with a major [[record label]]. "[[The Breaks]]", a [[single (music)|single]] from his 1980 [[Kurtis Blow (album)|debut album]], is the first certified [[music recording sales certification|gold record]] rap song.

== Life and career ==

In 1979, aged twenty, Kurtis Blow became the first rapper to be signed by a major label, [[Mercury Records|Mercury]], which released "Christmas Rappin'". It sold over 400,000 copies. Its follow-up, "[[The Breaks]]", sold over half a million copies.<ref name="The Great Rock Discography"/> He was also the first rapper to perform overseas.<ref name=raphistory>{{cite news|author=Benny Negro|title=Exclusive Interview with Kurtis Blow |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bnk4dwy19Ks|work= ''Bcyde Video'' |publisher=''[[YouTube]]''|accessdate=2011-06-03}}</ref> He released ten albums over the next eleven years. His first album was ''[[Kurtis Blow (album)|Kurtis Blow]]'', while his second was the [[Top 40|Top 50]] pop album ''Deuce''. ''Party Time'' featured a fusion of rap and [[go-go]]. ''Ego Trip'' included the hits: "8 Million Stories," "AJ Scratch," and "Basketball". His 1985 album, ''America'', garnered praise for its title track's [[music video]]. From this album, the song "If I Ruled the World" became a Top 5 [[hit record|hit]] on ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'''s [[Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs|R&B]] [[record chart|chart]]. In 1996, fellow rapper [[Nas]] debuted at #1 on the [[Billboard Hot 100]] with a [[cover version]] of the song.

Besides his own work, Kurtis has been responsible for hits by [[The Fat Boys]] &&and [[Run DMC]].<ref name="The Great Rock Discography"/> Run began his career billed as 'The Son of Kurtis Blow.' [[Lovebug Starski]], Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, [[Full Force]], [[Russell Simmons]] and [[Wyclef Jean]] all have been produced by, or have worked with, Kurt. Former label mates [[René & Angela]] had their R&B chart topping debut "[[Save Your Love (Rene & Angela song)|Save Your Love (For #1)]]" gift rapped by Kurt.

Along with [[Dexter Scott King]], Kurt co-ordinated "King Holiday," a song to celebrate [[Martin Luther King]]’s birthday. The Mercury/Polygram single, co-produced by Kurt, included the collaborative efforts of [[Stephanie Mills]], [[Whitney Houston]], [[New Edition]],  [[El Debarge]], [[James "JT" Taylor]], The Fat Boys, [[Menudo]] ([[Ricky Martin]]), [[Teena Marie]] and Run DMC. The music video was sponsored and paid for by [[Prince (musician)|Prince]].

Kurt's acting performances and music coordination in several [[film]]s includes Leon Kennedy’s ''[[Cry of the City]]'' and the hip hop film ''[[Krush Groove]]''. ''[[The New York Daily News]]'' called his cinematic works, “Noteworthy, a dynamic presence.”{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}} As host and co-producer for ''Das Leben Amerikanischer Gangs'', an international film production's focus on the West Coast gang scene, Kurt crossed international waters for inner city justice (1995). As host and associate producer for ''[[Rhyme and Reason]]'' Kurtis gives an informative account of the status of hip hop (1998). ''The History Of Rap'', which he produced and wrote, has been planned for a cinema release.

Kurt has spoken out emphatically against [[racism]]. He was an active participant in the Artists Against Apartheid record “[[Sun City (song)|Sun City]]”. Kurt has worked with Rev. [[Jesse Jackson]]'s [[Operation Push]] and [[the Rainbow Coalition]] in Chicago. Kurt has also worked with Rev. [[Al Sharpton]]'s [[Action Network]] in New York City.  In 1995, he started working on-air in radio, Power 106, the #1 CHR radio station in Southern California. He hosted 'The Old School Show' on Sunday nights, featuring hits from the past. He also worked for [[Sirius Satellite Radio]] on the Classic Old School Hip Hop station Backspin 43.

Beginning in 1996, Kurt was featured in a hip hop display at the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]]. The display still stands. In 1998, the group [[Next (group)|Next]] released "[[Too Close]]", in which the music of "Christmas Rappin'" was [[sampling (music)|sampled]]. [[ASCAP]] honored Kurt and Next at a gala affair on May 26, 1999. In 2002, he traveled to the [[Middle East]] to tour the Armed Forces bases performing seventeen shows for the troops. The tour consisted of shows in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Kyrgyzstan, Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman. Kurt said, “It was a tour I will never forget,” and “I did the [[Bob Hope]] thing.”

Kurt was a judge for the 8th annual [[The Independent Music Awards|Independent Music Awards]].<ref>[http://www.independentmusicawards.com/ima_new/pastjudges.asp Independent Music Awards - Past Judges]</ref>

==Minister==
Deeply committed to [[Christianity]], Kurtis attended ministry classes at [[Nyack College]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} As Founder of The Hip Hop Church, Kurtis serves as rapper, DJ, worship leader and licensed minister.<ref>[http://www.hiphopministry.com/ Hip Hop Ministry]</ref> He became an ordained minister on August 16, 2009. There are several hip hop churches in the US, and he is involved with many of them. "Don't get it twisted, God has always existed," said Kurtis, "and in terms of these young people out here who love Jesus but do not like to go to church, maybe hip hop can bring them back to the church."{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}

==References in popular culture==
* The [[They Might Be Giants]] song "Where Your Eyes Don't Go" on their second album, ''Lincoln'', featured the lines "You're free to come and go/Or talk like Kurtis Blow."
* The [[Ice Cube]] song "Now I Gotta Wet 'Cha" featured the line "I'll Kurtis Blow yo ass away/Like AJ".
* The [[R.A. the Rugged Man]] song "L.I.'s Finest" featured the line "These are the breaks like Kurtis." and his song "On the Block (Golden Era)" features the line "At the roller rink no skates on, early 80's girl chasing, Kurtis Blow these are the breaks on."
* The [[Tom Tom Club]] song "Genius of Love" featured the lines "Steppin' to the rhythm of a Kurtis Blow / Who needs to think when your feet just go."
* The song "Christmas Rappin{{' "}} was featured during a Christmas episode of the TV sitcom ''[[Martin (TV series)|Martin]]''.
* [[Bruce Haack]]'s 1982 single "Party Machine" featured the lyric, "Low low low like Kurtis Blow/ Down down down like [[James Brown]]."
* The song "Music Matters" by [[Faithless]] mentioned Kurtis Blow: "From Bamma Lamma to Tamla Mo, [[Curtis Mayfield]] to Kurtis Blow".
* Blow is mentioned in the film ''[[Notorious (2009 film)|Notorious]]''. When [[The Notorious B.I.G.]] was a child, he is shown to be a fan of Blow. As an adult, The Notorious B.I.G. sings Blow's "The Breaks" with his young daughter listening and learning it.
* The [[Tupac Shakur|2Pac]] song "Old School" featured the line "Remember poppin' and lockin' to Kurtis Blow, the name belts".
* In the fourth chapter of ''[[Chronicles: Volume One]]'', [[Bob Dylan]] says he knew Blow, and that it was Blow who introduced Dylan to the rap genre of the time (mentioning contemporary artists like [[Ice-T]], [[N.W.A.]] and [[Public Enemy (group)|Public Enemy]]). Dylan also appears on the first track "Street Rock" of Kurtis Blows 1986 album [[Kingdom Blow]]
* A brief reference to "8 Million Stories" was made in the 2009 hit "[[Empire State of Mind]]" by [[Jay-Z]].
* In 50 Cent's film debut "Get Rich Or Die Tryin", there is a party scene in Marcus's house where two girls are holding a Kurtis Blow album and are singing lyrics from "The Breaks".
* In Chris Rock's movie "CB4", MC Gusto says he's going to send a search party and find Kurtis Blow.
* In the video game ''[[NBA 2K12]]'', "Basketball" is used in the opening video and is also part of the game's soundtrack.
* A poster of Kurtis Blow can be seen in an episode of [[Everybody Hates Chris]]. The episode is Everybody Hates Houseguest.
* "The Breaks" is a featured song on the game Dance Central 2 for the Xbox Kinect.
* In [[Cedric The Entertainer]]'s Starting Lineup, Cedric speculates on having a black president.   After some comparisons of [[Bill Clinton]]'s behaviors, he predicts that, [[Scooby Doo]]-like, Clinton will remove a mask, to reveeal he is Kurtis Blow.

==Discography==
===Albums===
* ''[[Kurtis Blow (album)|Kurtis Blow]]'' (1980, Mercury)
* ''[[Deuce (Kurtis Blow album)|Deuce]]'' (1981, Mercury)
* ''[[Tough (Kurtis Blow album)|Tough]]'' (1982, Mercury)
* ''[[The Best Rapper on the Scene]]'' (1983, Mercury)
* ''[[Ego Trip (Kurtis Blow album)|Ego Trip]]'' (1984, Mercury)
* ''[[America (Kurtis Blow album)|America]]'' (1985, Mercury)
* ''Kingdom Blow'' (1986, Mercury)
* ''Back by Popular Demand'' (1988, Mercury)

===Other albums===
30th Anniversary of The Breaks CD - Krush Records - 2010

===Gospel albums/Collaboration albums or mixtapes===
* ''Kurtis Blow Presents: Hip Hop Ministry'' (2007, EMI Gospel)
* ''Just Do It'' (2008, Krush Groove/Trinity/B4 Ent.) <small>(with The Trinity)</small>
* ''Father, Son, and Holy Ghost'' (2009, Krush Groove/Trinity/B4 Ent.) <small>(with The Trinity)</small>

===Compilation albums===
* ''The Breaks'' (1986, Polygram)
* ''The Best of Kurtis Blow'' (1994, Mercury)
* ''Best of... Rappin''' (2002, Spectrum Music)
* ''20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of Kurtis Blow'' (2003, Mercury)

===Singles and EPs===
* 1979: "Christmas Rappin{{' "}} (Mercury MDS-4009)
* 1980: "[[The Breaks]]" (Mercury MDS 4010)
* 1982: "Tough EP" (Mercury)
* 1983: "[[Party Time?]]" (Mercury)
* 1983: "Nervous" (Mercury)
* 1984: "Ego Trip" (Mercury)
* 1986: "The Bronx" (Mercury)
* 1988: "Back By Popular Demand" (Mercury)

== Einzelnachweise ==
<references />

==External links==
*[http://kurtisblow.net Official Website]
*[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0089423/ Kurtis Blow] on the [[Internet Movie Database]]
*[http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p12 Kurtis Blow] on [[AllMusic]]

{{Persondata
| NAME              =Blow, Kurtis
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH     =August 9, 1959
| PLACE OF BIRTH    =Harlem, New York
| DATE OF DEATH     =
| PLACE OF DEATH    =
}}nfobox musical artist
| Name                = Kurtis Blow
| | Img_capt            = 
| Img_size            = 
| Background          = solo_singer
| Birth_name          = Curtis Walker
| Alias               = 
| Born                = {{birth date and age|1959|8|9}}
| Died                = 
| Origin              = [[Harlem]], [[New York City]], [[United States|US]]
| Instrument          = [[Keyboard instrument|Keyboards]], [[Rapping|Vocals]]
| Genre               = [[Hip hop]]
| Occupation          = [[Rapping|Rapper]], [[Record producer|producer]], [[Disc jockey|DJ]]
| Years_active        = 1979–1988
| Label               = [[Mercury Records|Mercury]]
| Associated_acts     = 
| URL                 = 
}}

'''Curtis Walker''' (born [[9 August]] [[1959]]), better known by his stage name '''Kurtis Blow''', is one of the first commercially successful [[rapping|rappers]] and the first to sign with a major [[record label|label]]. "[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]", a [[single (music)|single]] from his 1980 debut [[album]], is an early [[hip hop music|hip hop]] classic.

==History==
Born in [[Harlem]], [[New York City|New York]], Curtis Walker got his public start in 1976 as a break-dancer and a block party DJ known by the name of Kool DJ Kurt. That same year he enrolled at the City College of New York and became a program director for the college radio station <ref name="autogenerated2">[http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/blow_kurtis/bio.jhtml Kurtis Blow | View the Music Artists Biography Online | VH1.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>]. Also in 1976, he joined a group called “The Force.” Russell Simmons was a lead member of that group. The Force sponsored parties around Harlem until 1977, when Simmons moved the group to Queens, New York <ref name="autogenerated1">[http://www.oldschoolhiphop.com/artists/emcees/kurtisblow.htm OldSchoolHipHop.Com - Kurtis Blow Biography<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>.  After becoming an MC on his own, Kool DJ Kurt changed his name, with the persuasion of his manager Russell Simmons, to Kurtis Blow (as in body blow) <ref name="autogenerated2" />. Kurtis began trying to sell himself as “the number one rapper in Queens,” with Russell’s help [<ref name="autogenerated1" />]. For a short time Blow’s regular DJ was Simmons’ younger brother Joseph, who at the time was known as “DJ Run, the Son of Kurtis Blow.” He later changed his name and went on to become the first third of Run-D.M.C. <ref name="autogenerated2" />

    
In the late 70s, a Billboard Magazine reporter named Robert Ford made contact with Blow and Simmons and gave them magazine press. Russell convinced Ford that Blow was ready to hit the studio, and a music industry insider named J.B. Moore put the cash up for the recording <ref name="autogenerated1" />] . Blow put out his first song co-written by Ford and Moore called “Christmas Rappin” or “Rappin’ Blow.” Even though the song was a success, no major label wanted anything to do with “Christmas Rappin” because they assumed that rap was going to be a one hit wonder. Eventually an A&R (Artist and Repertoire) man from Mercury heard the song and signed Blow. It was the first major label hip hop release <ref name="autogenerated1" /> . His second single, "[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]," broke into the top five of Billboard's R&B chart, and soon after went gold. "[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]" was voted the best single of 1980 in the Village Voice's influential Pazz & Jop music critics' poll <ref>[http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres80.php Robert Christgau: Pazz & Jop 1980: Critics Poll<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>]. In 1980 he opened for reggae legend Bob Marley at the Madison Square Garden where he performed for an audience of 20,000. In the early 1980s, Kurtis found it hard to follow up after his hit song even though he released an album almost every year during the decade of the 80s, but his persistence paid off <ref name="autogenerated2" /> . As further evidence of Blow's ability to crossover to non-hip hop audiences, he opened for English punk rock band the Clash at their outdoor concerts on Pier 84 in New York City in 1982. On his 1986 album, Kingdom Blow, Bob Dylan and Dylan's backing singer, Debra Byrd contributed vocals to the cut "Street Rock" Around this time Blow became a record producer, helping new groups such as the Fat Boys sign on for record deals <ref name="autogenerated2" /> . Blow released a few more songs in the mid to late 1980s and made an appearance in the hip-hop film [[Krush Groove]], where he performed “If I Ruled the World,” which was Blow’s biggest hit since his 1980 smash “[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]] <ref name="autogenerated1" /> .”
 
“If I Ruled the World” was the last of Blow’s hit songs. His mainstream reputation  decreased as newer hip hop made his rap style seem old-school and outdated <ref name="autogenerated2" /> .  He went on to record a song with Dexter King, son of Martin Luther King Jr., titled “King Holiday” in observance of the civil rights leader’s holiday <ref name="autogenerated1" /> . Blow finally gave up his fast fading recording career, but in the early 90s, he contributed rap material to the soap opera One Life to Live. He also spent several years hosting as a DJ for the Los Angeles based hip hop FM radio station, Power 106, every Sunday night on the "Kurtis Blow Old School Show." He now DJs on Sirius Satellite Radio's old school hip hop station, Backspin.<ref>http://www.sirius.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Sirius/Page&c=Channel&cid=1104779639871&s=person Backspin DJ profiles</ref>. Although no longer recording music, Blow starred in the 1997 rap documentary, Rhyme and Reason. A theology major at Nyack College (Class of 2009) <ref>http://sunetesubsol.net/v4/10-01-2007:kurtis-blow</ref>, Blow's recent focus has been on spirituality, evidenced by Kurtis Blow Presents: Hip Hop Ministry (2007, EMI Gospel), a compilation of Christian rap. In 2004, Kurtis collaborated with [[Bomfunk MC's]] on the track ''Hey Everybody'' from their album "Reverse Psychology".

==References in popular culture==

The [[They Might Be Giants]] song "Where Your Eyes Don't Go" on their second album, ''Lincoln'', features the lines "You're free to come and go / And talk like Kurtis Blow."

The [[Tom Tom Club]] song "Genius of Love" features the lines "Steppin' to the rhythm of a Kurtis Blow/ Who needs to think when your feet just go."

The Kurtis Blow hit, ‘Basketball’ is arguably, the most famous song about the sport in existence and it still timeless and popular today.  He still works a crowd 20+ years later with that same hit according to various postings on youtube.com.  'Basketball' is heard at dozens of NBA games during half time each season and it was the theme music for ‘Like Mike’ a major studio film starring Lil Bow Wow released in 2002.

''[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]'' was featured in the video game [[Grand Theft Auto Vice City]] on the Wildstyle Pirate Radio station.

''[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]'' was used in the video game [[True Crime: New York City]]

''[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]'' was sampled in the song [[Macarron Chacarron]] which has become an internet phenomenon.

''[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]'' was used in the video game [[Scarface: The World Is Yours]]

The song "Music Matters" by [[Faithless]] references Kurtis Blow, ''From Bamma Lamma to Tamla Mo, Curtis Mayfield to Kurtis Blow.''

The [[Jurassic 5]] song ''Quality Control'' features the line ''We can rule the world without Kurtis and still Blow.''
 
''[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]'' mentioned on 'Everybody hates Chris' during Chris' running for class president.

==Discography==
===Albums===
* ''[[Kurtis Blow (album)|Kurtis Blow]]'' (1980, Mercury)
* ''[[Deuce (Kurtis Blow)|Deuce]]'' (1981, Mercury)
* ''Tough'' (1982, Mercury)
* ''Ego Trip'' (1984, Mercury)
* ''[[America (Kurtis Blow album)|America]]'' (1985, Mercury)
* ''Kingdom Blow'' (1986, Mercury)
* ''Back by Popular Demand'' (1988, Mercury)
* ''Kurtis Blow Presents: Hip Hop Ministry'' (2007, EMI Gospel)

===Singles and EPs===
* ''Christmas Rappin''' (1979, Mercury)
* ''[[The Breaks (song)|The Breaks]]'' (1980, Mercury)
* ''Tough'' EP (1982, Mercury)
* ''Party Time?'' EP (1983, Mercury)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [[Allmusic]] [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:fifqxq95ld6e~T0 entry]
* {{imdb name|0089423}}
* [http://www.oldschoolhiphop.com/artists/emcees/kurtisblow.htm Old school hip hop]


{{DEFAULTSORT:Blow, Kurtis}}
[[Category:1959 births]]
[[Category:African American musicians]]
[[Category:American rappers]]
[[Category:African American rappers]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from New York City]]

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