Enjoy performances by old school hip hop artists Doug E. Fresh, Kurtis Blow, and Special Ed.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Concert Series is free to the public. There are limited seats in the general seating area, available on a first-come, first-served basis. The public is encouraged to bring their own chairs. Performers are subject to change without notice. Check the Brooklyn Concerts website or call the concert for updates at (718) 222-0600, or listen to WBLS-FM 107.5.
Hosted by Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams.
Doug E. Fresh is an American rapper, record producer, and beatboxer. One of the earliest beatboxers, and still seen as one of the best, Fresh is able to imitate drum machines and various special effects with often startling accuracy. Fresh’s breakthrough was 1984’s “Beat Street” behind the Treacherous Three. That same year saw Fresh’s debut as a solo artist with the singles “Just Having Fun” and “Original Human Beatbox.”
Fresh became a major rap star in 1985. His single “The Show/La Di Da Di,” is an early hip hop classic. The “Get Fresh Crew” was featured: DJs Barry B., Chill Will, and MC Ricky D (who would later achieve fame as Slick Rick).
KURTIS BLOW
Kurtis Blow, one of the founders and creators of recorded rap, stands as an emerging leader in a generation of rappers with street sense, social criticism, and commercial savvy. A timeless artist, he has been instrumental in raising up a generation of MC’s. In 1979, at the age of 20, Kurtis Blow became the first rapper to be signed by a major label. Mercury released “Christmas Rappin’,” which sold over 400,000 copies. Its gold follow-up “The Breaks” helped ignite a still-spreading international “Rap Attack.” He released ten albums over 11 years; the first, entitled Kurtis Blow, was his full-length debut, and his second, Deuce, was a Top 50 Pop Album. Party Time featured a pioneering fusion of rap and go-go;Ego Trip included the hits “8 Million Stories,” “AJ,” and “Basketball.” 1985’s America featured the song “If I Ruled the World” which became a top 5 hit on Billboard’s R&B chart.
SPECIAL ED
Special Ed, raised in Flatbush before moving to Canarsie, is best known for the songs “I Got It Made,” “Think About It” and “I’m The Magnificent,” released in 1989 on the Youngest in Charge album, recorded when Ed was 16 years old. The album sold more than half a million copies. In 1990, he released his albumLegal, with the singles “Come On Let’s Move It” and “The Mission,” followed by the albums Revelations in 1995, and Still Got It Made in 2004.