Young MC
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"Young MC" (born Marvin Young on 10 May 1967 in London, England) was a rapper most known for his 1989 hit, "Bust a Move", which won the first-ever Grammy Award for Best Rap Recording. His debut album, Stone Cold Rhymin, is generally seen as a brilliant pop rap album. It was re-issued by Rhino Records and originally recorded on the Delicious Vinyl record label.
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[edit] Early life
Young was born in London, but was raised in Queens, New York. After graduating from Hunter College High School in New York City, he moved to the opposite coast to attend the University of Southern California. He graduated in 1989 with a bachelor's degree in economics, which he received before Stone Cold Rhymin completed production.
[edit] Music career
As well as producing the hit "Bust a Move," (with a bass-line provided by Red Hot Chili Pepper's Flea), along with lead vocals sung by (one of Stevie Wonder's studio background vocalist's Crystal Blake), he was also an accomplished songwriter, having co-written the hits "Wild Thing" and "Funky Cold Medina" for Tone Loc. In 1990, he appeared in several Taco Bell and Pepsi commercials.
Even though his follow-up to "Bust a Move," "Principal's Office," did not become a huge hit, it was still nominated for Best Rap Video at the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards.
Young's follow-up album, Brainstorm, began his fade into obscurity. His first single off the album, "That's The Way Love Goes", received some play from MTV, but very little radio airplay. The song failed to be a hit, and signaled that Young MC had drifted out of favor with the ever changing music scene. Despite that, Young MC continued to record albums into the new millennium. His later albums favour East Coast Rap, West Coast Rap and conscious minded Hip Hop instead of the often vapid Crunk and Southern Rap that was popular during the early-mid 2000s.
Young MC was briefly featured on the 2002 VH1 program 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders. In 2002, he also appeared on the hip hop edition of The Weakest Link, of which he was the winner. He returned to the spotlight in 2006 by appearing on VH1's Celebrity Fit Club 3.
[edit] Cultural References
Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine turned "Bust a Move" into a swingin' Lounge style on their 2006 album "The Sunny Side of the Moon: The Best of Richard Cheese".
"Bust a Move" is the track which accompanies the beginning of the closing credits of 2006 film You, Me and Dupree. It is also the first song played in a trailer of the film Norbit.
"Bust a Move" was ranked #85 on VH1's 100 Greatest One-hit Wonders.
"Bust A Move" was sampled for an advertisement camphign Old Navy Tunicks. MC Lyte rapped the ad's theme song called, Bust A Tunick.
[edit] Recent Times
Young currently lives in Arizona and still does concerts. One of the most recent high profile concerts Young MC was a part of was WKTU New York's Beatstock in mid 2006.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- 1989 Stone Cold Rhymin' (Delicious Vinyl) The Billboard 200 # 9, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums #8
- 1991 Brainstorm (Capitol) The Billboard 200 #66, Top R&B/Hip-Hp Albums #61
- 1993 What's the Flavour (Capitol)
- 1997 Return of the 1 Hit Wonder (Overall)
- 2000 Ain't Going Out Like That (Young Man Moving) Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums #85
- 2002 Engage the Enzyme (Stimulus)
[edit] Singles
- "Bust A Move" feat./ Crystal Blake
- "Principal's Office"
- "I Come Off"
- "That's The Way Love Goes"
- "Madame Buttafly"
- "What's The Flavor?"
- "On & Poppin'"
- "Ain't Goin' Out Like That"
- "Got More Rymes"
Categories: 1967 births | Living people | African American musicians | African American hip hop musicians | American rappers | Rhythmic contemporary musicians | British hip hop musicians | Grammy Award winners | Celebrity Fit Club participants | People known by pseudonyms | Wikipedia requested photographs | Queens (NY) rappers