Whodini Appreciation Post

batmon · May 2006

I was listening to the ESCAPE lp last night and some of the tracks are just EXTRA.During theyre heyday, I felt they really gave RUN-DMC a run for their money.Yes, Jalil always rhymed off beat,and Ecstacy wore tight leather shorts, but on the real these cats get overlooked. That also had an R&B vibe that wasnt some "we want to be fusion" shit. Just show some love.

drbrownscelray · May 2006

I never liked them as much as much as Run DMC, mainly because as a young suburban kid their whole early-jiggy, club-rap, leather-suits take on hip-hop was just too foreign, not as compellingly "rockesque" as Son of Byford, et. al. I remember this spawning a thousand arguments on some Mets/Yankees, Coke Pepsi, Iran/Iraq type shit. That said mang, I think people lose sight of just how huge these douds were. They're like the Salieri (sp?) to Run DMC's Mozart or whatever...dudes were right there in the thick of things, as popular in their day as just about anyone, but just didn't seem to have the same longevity as their rivals. One thing is for sure though, their beats were fucking impeccably sick (Larry Smith?) and for giving us the opening music to Video Music Box (local rap experience stand up!) alone they get uber-props. I try hard to forget their comeback attempt though, even though "It All Comes Down to Money" actually kind of made a splash out here for a second.

Edit: I just peeped out the poster above and it brought back the wild memories. My camp counselor was a very cool guido-type from Trenton, and definitely one of the folks that got me addicted to the rap music. I remember him offering to take me to the above-postered concert and me being amped as hell and then, of course, my mom being like "you might get killed, or kidnapped, or blah blah blah" and me being one assed-out unhappy nine year old. I got a tshirt as a consolation prize, and damn do I wish I still had that shit so that I could pass it on to a little Dr. Brown Jr. one day...

faux_rillz · May 2006

I was a fan until Phill Most informed me that they were not that real schitt.

batmon · May 2006

They're like the Salieri (sp?) to Run DMC's Mozart or whatever...dudes were right there in the thick of things, as popular in their day as just about anyone, but just didn't seem to have the same longevity as their rivals. One thing is for sure though, their beats were fucking impeccably sick (Larry Smith?)

RUN DMC had a better promotions.

When you see alot of these "Retro" stylings in video's. Most cats only reference the RunDMCs?BeastieBoys/Adidas Suit robot clones type shit. But Whodini were reflectin' a "jiggy" street style that ran along side the "popular Hiphop" style.

Slacks have always been here.

BACK IN BLACK > TOUGHER THAN LEATHER
But I really want to critique these guys alone without comparing them to anyone.
You can almost say they were their own animal w/ UTFO takin' cues from them.

Diamante_D · May 2006

I loved/still love whodini - top shit, no doubt. The Five minutes of Funk/Friends 12" was one of the first 12"s I remember having. Shit like that's what's responsible for the 20 odd years of rap rackerd buying madness that followed.

batmon · May 2006

RAP MACHINE =

Battlin' a Rhymin Robot.....

Phill_Most · May 2006

Gotta give props to Whodini, no doubt... only them and Jeckyl & Hyde were really doing "grown folks rap" back in that era (maybe Kurtis Blow, too). I wouldn't call what they were doing "jiggy", because even though they dressed kinda upscale their subject matter dealt with real life schitt and not really material excess like how many diamonds are on the rolex and how much was paid for the whip. Lyrically, what they were putting down was real rap, no question. jalil rhymed off beat, but as the main writer of the group, he was one IMO of the best lyricists of that era when it comes to content.

Musically, was Whodini "that real schitt"? No. I still dug that schitt anyway. "5 Minutes Of Funk", "Friends", "Escape", "Big Mouth", "Magic's Wand", "Funky Beat"... OH BABY. When I was out there on the skreets with them kids sellin' that butter in '86 I had to convince dudes how dope "One Love" was. Dudes were not feelin' me on that. But, then again, that was the era of "THAT REAL SCHITT"... if you didn't live it you ain't gonna know it, I guess (what up fauxy!

).

Phill_Most · May 2006

BTW, I was at that show. Very memorable to me because it sparked a rift between me and my cousin (who was also my partner in our rap group The Devastating Two) that unfortunately has lasted to this day. I met a shorty with a nice little butt up in that piece, though!

Phill_Most · May 2006

Last thing I forgot- Grandmaster Dee on the wheels was so

drbrownscelray · May 2006

When you see alot of these "Retro" stylings in video's. Most cats only reference the RunDMCs?BeastieBoys/Adidas Suit robot clones type shit. But Whodini were reflectin' a "jiggy" street style that ran along side the "popular Hiphop" style.

Yeah, it's kind of a selective memory of how dudes were dressing, with people choosing to emulate only the particular elements of the style that they feel looks cool NOW. Just like there's a big nostalgia for certain 90s shit, like Lo, but you don't see anyone going around proudly sporting vintage Cross Colors or tie-top hats. I shouldn't speak too soon though, because I sure some hipster-hop ironic douchebag will be wearing a shortsleeve orange Cross Colors hoodie with long purple shorts and a striped tie top hat on the streets of Williamsburg within seconds of my making this post.

batmon · May 2006

I had to convince dudes how dope "One Love" was. Dudes were not feelin' me on that.

Sheeeeit. Cats are still using that beat pattern today.

drbrownscelray · May 2006

Last thing I forgot- Grandmaster Dee on the wheels was so

Wasnt it part of their show for him to DJ while wrapped in chains? I distinctly remember this...

DocMcCoy · May 2006

They were one of the first rap groups I ever saw. Back in October 1983, they opened for Run-DMC at the Hacienda in Manchester, a while after "Haunted House of Rock" came out, and when Run-DMC were touring the "King Of Rock" album. I thought they put on a tight show, but then, for most of the people who were there to see them & Run-DMC, it was all still pretty new and exciting at that point anyway. I saw them again about a year later at the same venue, when UTFO were opening for them (this was when "Roxanne Roxanne" was the hot shit), and they were good then as well. They seemed to spend quite a bit of time over here. I think they were signed directly to Jive UK, rather than the US branch, and they recorded a lot of their stuff at Battery Studios in Willesden, which was owned by Jive. Whether they were "that real schitt" or not, "Freaks" and "Friends" have become bona-fide hip-hop classics, and even the pop crowd were feeling "Magic's Wand" back in the day. Appreciated.

batmon · May 2006

Last thing I forgot- Grandmaster Dee on the wheels was so

If - If - If - If - if_IF U PLEEZ!!!!!!!!!

Tobi · May 2006

My Whodini Top 5:

1. Five Minutes Of Funk
2. The Freaks Come Out At Night
3. Haunted House Of Rock (Vocoder Version)
4. It's All In Mr.Magic's Wand (12" Version)
5. Rap Machine

batmon · May 2006

My Whodini Top 5:

1. Five Minutes Of Funk
2. The Freaks Come Out At Night
3. Haunted House Of Rock (Vocoder Version)
4. It's All In Mr.Magic's Wand (12" Version)
5. Rap Machine

WE ARE WHODINI from ESCAPE is that Extra.

faux_rillz · May 2006

Gotta give props to Whodini, no doubt... only them and Jeckyl & Hyde were really doing "grown folks rap" back in that era (maybe Kurtis Blow, too). I wouldn't call what they were doing "jiggy", because even though they dressed kinda upscale their subject matter dealt with real life schitt and not really material excess like how many diamonds are on the rolex and how much was paid for the whip. Lyrically, what they were putting down was real rap, no question. jalil rhymed off beat, but as the main writer of the group, he was one IMO of the best lyricists of that era when it comes to content.

Musically, was Whodini "that real schitt"? No. I still dug that schitt anyway. "5 Minutes Of Funk", "Friends", "Escape", "Big Mouth", "Magic's Wand", "Funky Beat"... OH BABY. When I was out there on the skreets with them kids sellin' that butter in '86 I had to convince dudes how dope "One Love" was. Dudes were not feelin' me on that. But, then again, that was the era of "THAT REAL SCHITT"... if you didn't live it you ain't gonna know it, I guess (what up fauxy! ).

Haha... dude, it's not that I can't hear the difference between Whodini's sound and that of other groups; I just think "real" vs. "not real" is a silly way of characterizing that difference.

But enough of that. Thanks for sharing your memories--and I mean that.

Tobi · May 2006

My Whodini Top 5:

1. Five Minutes Of Funk
2. The Freaks Come Out At Night
3. Haunted House Of Rock (Vocoder Version)
4. It's All In Mr.Magic's Wand (12" Version)
5. Rap Machine

WE ARE WHODINI from ESCAPE is that Extra.

I love the vocoder on that one! Man the whole LP is

catchdubs · May 2006

plus a pre-teen (tho probably same height) Jermaine Dupri was their dancer

drbrownscelray · May 2006

plus a pre-teen (tho probably same height) Jermaine Dupri was their dancer

Hence his championing of their comeback attempt. I would also say that pop-rap douds like him and Puffy are the direct inheritors of the Whodini steez. Also, don't sleep on Jermaine's rap knowledge, nor his dj'ing skillz, both of which are pretty top notch. Real gazillionaire midgetz know tha deal.

DocMcCoy · May 2006

Didn't he dance for UTFO as well? That's what I always heard. I've often wondered if he was one of the dancers they had with them when I saw them with Whodini in '84, but unfortunately my memory's not that good.

batmon · May 2006

Didn't he dance for UTFO as well? That's what I always heard. I've often wondered if he was one of the dancers they had with them when I saw them with Whodini in '84, but unfortunately my memory's not that good.

Whenever they show footage of the FRESHFEST TOUR, Yung DuPree is always featured.
UTFO , I think, danced themselves.

DocMcCoy · May 2006

Didn't he dance for UTFO as well? That's what I always heard. I've often wondered if he was one of the dancers they had with them when I saw them with Whodini in '84, but unfortunately my memory's not that good.

Whenever they show footage of the FRESHFEST TOUR, Yung DuPree is always featured.
UTFO , I think, danced themselves.

OK, cool. I could have sworn that, somewhere or other, I read an interview with him where he said that his entry into the game was as a dancer for UTFO on a European tour with Whodini. Maybe Whodini offered him a gig with them afterwards? I definitely remember there being dancers with UTFO at that show other than themselves.

JacobWizzle · May 2006

I remember recording Nasty Nes playin "Friends" and "Five Minutes of Funk"when they first dropped and playin it every day. Their beats were really blappery. "I'm a Ho" was really my shit. I even remade that ish recently. I don't remember "Boyz in the Hood" but it had to be after "I'm a Ho". Dre was on his bitin game real tough on that one.

batmon · May 2006

I remember recording Nasty Nes playin "Friends" and "Five Minutes of Funk"when they first dropped and playin it every day. Their beats were really blappery. "I'm a Ho" was really my shit. I even remade that ish recently. I don't remember "Boyz in the Hood" but it had to be after "I'm a Ho". Dre was on his bitin game real tough on that one.

I'm A HOE......Boyz in the Hood.....Laffy Taffy?

batmon · May 2006

Ecstacy's Twin, Dynasty was a Part of the duo....Dynasty & Mimi. Shit was wack.
Anybody got this "randomrap"?

PEK · May 2006

Gotta give props to Whodini, no doubt... only them and Jeckyl & Hyde were really doing "grown folks rap" back in that era (maybe Kurtis Blow, too). I wouldn't call what they were doing "jiggy", because even though they dressed kinda upscale their subject matter dealt with real life schitt and not really material excess like how many diamonds are on the rolex and how much was paid for the whip. Lyrically, what they were putting down was real rap, no question. jalil rhymed off beat, but as the main writer of the group, he was one IMO of the best lyricists of that era when it comes to content.

Musically, was Whodini "that real schitt"? No. I still dug that schitt anyway. "5 Minutes Of Funk", "Friends", "Escape", "Big Mouth", "Magic's Wand", "Funky Beat"... OH BABY. When I was out there on the skreets with them kids sellin' that butter in '86 I had to convince dudes how dope "One Love" was. Dudes were not feelin' me on that. But, then again, that was the era of "THAT REAL SCHITT"... if you didn't live it you ain't gonna know it, I guess (what up fauxy! ).

First rap concert I attended as a 12 or 13 year old ('82/'83) - @ a venue where they were letting underage people in despite serving alcohol; promoters got wind of cops about to barge in and instructed guys to pair up w/ a female and start slow dancing (B*ll* - *dri*n went to this show w/ me - he had just gotten back up permanently from the Caribbean)... Lasting memory is mostly of Grandmaster Dee cutting it up pretty furiously on the decks...

Looking @ the credits of the early Whodini material: Conny Plank and Thomas Dolby (having enjoyed success w/ 'She Blinded Me w/ Science' then) on production - and then

, fresh from his gig w/ Run-DMC, took over the boards -

Phill_Most · May 2006

"I'm a Ho" was really my shit.

Yeah, I forgot about that one! I used to luh that schitt.

batmon · May 2006

Funky Beat

Phill_Most · May 2006

Haha... dude, it's not that I can't hear the difference between Whodini's sound and that of other groups; I just think "real" vs. "not real" is a silly way of characterizing that difference.

But enough of that.

Naw, can't be "enough of that" since you done brought it up! Let's have yet another debate about what is and isn't THAT REAL SCHITT, the true meaning of THAT REAL SCHITT, the reason why currently popular southern rap is not THAT REAL SCHITT and waste precious minutes out of our lives in the time-honored SOULSTRUT WAY???. I swear, my manhood grows an inch everytime I get involved in one of these debates (plaese to insert TOO MUCH INFORMATION graemlin here, thanks).

And tell the truth, faux... you are only thanking me for my comments because I mentioned being out on the skreets with those kids sellin' that butta back in '86. Come on, you know that's what made it all worthwhile to you.

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