GRANDMASTER FLASH

Grandmaster Flash (born Joseph Saddler on January 1, 1958 in Bridgetown, Barbados) is an American hip-hop recording artist and pioneering DJ. Grandmaster Flash begun DJing when he was intrigued by his father’s large record collection, and his interest in learning electronics. Grandmaster Flash innovated techniques such as the backspin and heralded a whole new world of pop with his scratching. Grandmaster Flash collaborated with a host of early hip-hop stars such as Kurtis Blow and Lovebug Starski, before forming his own group Grandmaster Flash and the 3 MCs with Cowboy, Melle Mel and The Kidd Creole (not to be confused with the Kid Creole from Kid Creole & The Coconuts), who morphed into the Furious Five in 1978. Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five scored a handful of hits with songs deemed iconic in the rap world, that brought hip-hop to a wider audience, such as 1982’s The Message and 1983’s White Lines which were Top 10 hits on the UK's Official Singles Chart. Grandmaster Flash was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. Image: Phil Rees/Shutterstock