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Flavor Flav
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| Flavor Flav | |
|---|---|
 Flavor Flav performing at the Bilbao Urban Musikaldia, Vista Alegre bullring on October 8, 2006.
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | William Jonathan Drayton, Jr. |
| Also known as | Flav MC DJ Flavor Flav |
| Born | March 16, 1959 [1] |
| Origin | Long Island, New York |
| Genre(s) | Hip-hop |
| Occupation(s) | Rapper |
| Instrument(s) | Rapping, Piano, Guitar, Bass, Saxophone, Drums[2] |
| Years active | 1983 - present |
| Associated acts |
Public Enemy Chuck D Professor Griff DJ Lord Terminator X Sister Souljah S1W |
William Jonathan Drayton, Jr. (born March 16, 1959) known by his stage name Flavor Flav,[1] is an American rap artist, television star, hype man, and member of the politically conscious hip hop group Public Enemy. Flavor Flav's visual trademark is an oversized clock hanging from his neck. After falling out of the public eye in former years, he has recently reappeared as a star of American reality television. He has starred in multiple VH1 programs, including Flavor of Love, and the 2007 Comedy Central Roast.
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Born in Roosevelt, New York in Long Island, William Jonathan Drayton Jr. attended Freeport High School on Long Island.He dropped out of high school in his junior year after joining a local gang. Later on, he sought to become an entertainer and was given his own Saturday night radio show at Adelphi University, in Garden City, New York. While rapping at Adelphi under the name MC DJ Flavor Flav, he met a graphic design student, Carlton Ridenhour (Chuck D) On October 23, 2006, Flav revealed on the nationally syndicated Tom Joyner Morning Show that "a shorty in Vegas" was carrying his seventh baby and was due any minute. The new baby brought Flav one child closer to his goal of having 10 kids.[3]
Chuck D, DJ Terminator X, Professor Griff, and Flavor Flav formed Public Enemy and released their debut album Yo! Bum Rush the Show in 1987.
Flavor Flav provided vocals and occasional drum beats, (according to Ms. Terry Heldreth), as well as a comic foil to the political message of Chuck D. Some also credit Flavor Flav as a major influence in the development of the rap sidekick (often referred to as a "hype man"). Unlike later practitioners of the hype man role, Flavor Flav provided a much stronger stage presence and musical contributions. He was the center of attention on songs such as "Too Much Posse", "Cold Lampin' with Flavor" and "911 Is a Joke". On the group's 1998 "comeback" single--following a four-year hiatus--"He Got Game," the title song to a contemporaneous film by Spike Lee, Flav essentially performs a duet with Chuck D. Flav has reportedly completed two solo albums, both of which were rejected by his record label,[4] Def Jam. A third LP, It's About Time, was due to be released in 1999 but never appeared. A self-titled album was released on October 31, 2006. In a rare guest appearance in 1999, he performed alongside Afrob and MC Rene on the track "1, 2, 3...Rhymes Galore" by the German artist DJ Tomekk
In 2004, Flav appeared in the third season of The Surreal Life on VH1. During the season, he developed an on-screen relationship with 6' 1" Danish actress Brigitte Nielsen, who called Flav "Foofy Foofy" VH1 continued to explore the couple's odd pairing in a spin-off reality series, called Strange Love. In March 2005, Nielson ended her relationship with Flavor Flav, choosing instead to live with her other boyfriend, Mattia Dessi. The show ended with the end of the relationship.
In 2005, Flavor Flav was a contestant on the second series of The Farm on the UK channel five. Contestants had to complete farming-related tasks and were "chopped" - voted off - by the public weekly. Flavor Flav didn't make it into the top 5 farmers.
Sometime after the premiere of Strange Love, Flav came under fire from various organizations and individuals. He was also reported to have said, "Flav bangs on like a gun in the night." Episodes have shown Flav acting up at a Public Enemy concert as well as having confrontations with his children and their mother, who has received no child support from him. Chuck D went so far as to issue a statement denouncing Flav's participation on Strange Love [5]. A petition was set up in conjunction with Chuck D's criticisms in hopes of convincing VH1 to pull the show off of the air. In spite of protests, VH1 continued to broadcast the program, which showed Flav and Nielson going their separate ways in the end.
More recently, Drayton has taken a role as the star of the VH1 reality series Flavor of Love. The show premiered on January 1, 2006. It features Flav and 20 women (reduced to 15 in the first show, and then 10 after the January 8 airing) from which he will eventually choose one (in the style of The Bachelor).
The first season finale was among the highest-rated shows in VH1 history. The relationship between Flav and first season winner Hoopz ultimately sputtered, and Flav and VH1 agreed to do a second season of the Flavor of Love. Flav brought New York, season 1 finalist, to the house to spy on the girls, in order to give Flav an inside scoop as to who was being "real" and who was being "fake". New York's visit to the house, rekindled some sparks with Flav, and at the elimination round, Flav asked New York for a second shot at love and gave her a clock. This sparked flames amongst many of the contestants, as they did not get along with New York. The second season ends with Flav choosing Deelishis over New York, leaving her as the runner-up once again. Rapper Mike Street ridiculed the show, stating that it was "obviously staged" and cliché. Flav reportedly responded saying that "Long Island rappers should be proud" of what he has done for Long Island.
VH1 announced Flavor of Love 3 by asking people to create profiles as possible contestants and to vote for people who already have signed up, similar to the process used to produce some of the contestants in I Love New York 2. The winners will be announced in January 2008, and the season premiere is set to January 13th, 2008.
In Fall 2006, Flav and seven of the season two contestants appeared on The Tyra Banks Show to discuss the series.
New York from 'Flavor of Love' then got an opportunity to start her own show called I Love New York, in which she seeks a mate.
In March 2007, MTV UK added the second season of Flavor of Love after season one's stellar success in VH1. The show was an integral part of MTV's 'Phat Tuesday', alongside other popular shows like Jackass, Nick Cannon's Wild n Out and Drawn Together.
The finale of the second season, which aired on 17th April 2007, was the highest rated episode - with audiences of up to 3 million. The show was a success for MTV UK, bringing in more audiences on prime-time Tuesdays than any other channel.
Having appeared on 4 reality shows consecutively, Flavor Flav has mentioned that he would not appear on TV unless he has a contract. However, comedian/actress Mo'Nique has signed a deal with Flav to endorse his name on television. The two worked together on a development deal for VH1 in which Flavor of Love contestants would attend an academy school for etiquette and beauty, known as Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School. The show, which is hosted by Mo'Nique, showcased contestants of Flavor of Love 1 and 2 as they battled out for top honors at the Connecticut School of Etiquette and for a cash prize of $50,000. The show had a premiere of 7.1 million viewers, which was larger than any other previous show on VH1.
Flav was roasted on Comedy Central. The roast first aired on August 12, 2007.[6]Guests appearing at the roast: Snoop Dogg, Brigitte Nielsen, Jimmy Kimmel, Carrot Top, Lisa Lampanelli, Ice T, Jeff Ross, Katt Williams, Patton Oswalt, Greg Giraldo, and Sommore.
- In 2003, Flav appeared in Taking Back Sunday's video for "You're So Last Summer".
- In 2004, he appeared in TV spots for the then upcoming second season of Reno 911! on Comedy Central in his signature garb. He sang the Public Enemy song 911 is a joke.
- Flav appeared in the 6th episode of the 5th season of ABC's hit show My Wife and Kids, appearing as himself. The episode also featured other rappers Kool Moe Dee, MC Lyte, and Special Ed.
- On June 14, 2006, Flav's participation, with WEVR-MRC[7], in the Lisa Tolliver Show celebration of National Safety Month earned kudos from Surgeon General of the United States Richard Carmona.[8][9][10]
- Flavor Flav topped People Magazine's list of the '10 Ugliest Celebrities'.
- Flav appeared in EA Games Def Jam: Fight for NY as a playable character.
- Flavor Flav appeared in 2K Sports NBA 2K6 as a playable streetballer in 24/7 Mode and Street Mode.
- Flavor Flav appeard in BET's 2007 BET Awards with Public Enemy.
- Flavor Flav appears as Lucky in the upcoming film Confessions of a Pit Fighter.
- Roast of Flavor Flav on Comedy Central (2007)
- VH1 is currently asking for applicants for Flavor of Love 3.
- In 2007, Metal band Blackened Days Chanted "FLAVOR FLAV" in their song, Victor of Aveyron
- On the comedy short "Cat" by Stella, Michael Ian Black suggests they name the cat "Flavor Flav" after his grandfather.
- On December 18, 2007 he was at a Basketball game at Notre Dame - Biship Gibbons School.
- Yo! Bum Rush The Show (1987)
- It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988)
- Fight the Power...Live! (video and album, 1989)
- Fear of a Black Planet (1990)
- Apocalypse '91...The Enemy Strikes Black (1991)
- Greatest Misses 1986-1992 (1992)
- Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age (1994)
- He Got Game (1998)
- BTN 2000 (online released mega-mix which initiated PE's leaving Def Jam Records) (1999)
- There's A Poison Goin On (1999)
- Revolverlution (2002)
- There's A Poison Goin On (worldwide re-release via Slamjamz.com) (2004)
- Son of a Bush (EP) (released before the 2004 Presidential Election); contained the songs "Son of a Bush", "Get Your Shit Together" and the song featuring Fine Arts Militia (featuring Chuck D) entitled "Twisted Sense of God"
- New Whirl Odor (2005)
- Rebirth of a Nation (featuring Paris, Guerrilla Funk Recordings) (2006)
- How You Sell Soul To A Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul? (2007)
- Barshem, "Where's My $5 At?"
- Chad Muska, "Flavor Man"
- Crime Mob, "I'll Beat Yo Azz"
- De La Soul, "Come On Down"
- DJ Hurricane, "Freeze The Frame" (w/Chuck D & Money Mark)
- DJ Tomekk, "1, 2, 3,...Rhymes Galore" (w/Grandmaster Flash, MC Rene & Afrob)
- George Clinton, "Paint The White House Black" (w/Chuck D, Ice Cube, MC Breed, Kam, Yo-Yo & Dr. Dre), "Tweakin" (w/Chuck D)
- Ice Cube, "I'm Only Out For One Thang"
- Living Colour, "Funny Vibe" (w/Chuck D)
- Moby, "MKLVFCKWR" (w/Chuck D)
- Nigo, "From New York To Tokyo"
- Prince Akeem, "Only We Can Do This"
- Will Smith featuring Biz Markie and Slick Rick. "So Fresh" (Music Video)
- Snoop Dogg, "Bad Bitch"
- Taking Back Sunday, video for "You're So Last Summer"
- Various, "Self Destruction" (Public Enemy, Heavy D, Stetsasonic, MC Lyte, KRS-One, Kool Moe Dee, and others)
- Wu-Tang Clan, "Soul Power"
- P.Diddy, Music video for "P.E. 2000"
- Tuesday August 14, 2007 Flavor Flav was the guest of honor on Comedy Central's Roast.
- ^ a b Jason Ankeny. VH1 Bio. vh1.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
- ^ Un-J (October 04, 2006). Chuck D. Interview. Youtube.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
- ^ Vibe Magazine - After Taste: Flavor of Love 2 Report
- ^ VH1 - Flavor Flav Biography
- ^ Chuck D Blasts Flava Flav For 'Strange Love'
- ^ Comedy Central Press Release - Roast of Flavor Flav
- ^ Westchester Emergency Volunteer Reserves-Medical Reserves Corps (WEVR-MRC)
- ^ Blogcritics Magazine - Flavor Flav Celebrates National Safety Month
- ^ Lisa Tolliver show notes blog
- ^ Lisa Tolliver's Blog
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| Cast: | Flavor Flav | Tiffany Pollard | Saaphyri Windsor | Chandra Davis | Nicole Alexander | |||
| Seasons: | Season 1 | Season 2 | |||
| Spinoffs: | I Love New York • I Love New York 2 • Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School | |||
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|---|---|
| Chuck D • Flavor Flav • Professor Griff • Terminator X • DJ Lord | |
| Studio albums | Yo! Bum Rush the Show • It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back • Fear of a Black Planet • Apocalypse 91... The Enemy Strikes Black • Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age • There's a Poison Goin' On • Revolverlution • New Whirl Odor • Rebirth of a Nation • How You Sell Soul to a Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul? |
| Compilations, soundtracks, and live albums |
Fight the Power... Live! • Greatest Misses • He Got Game (soundtrack) • Power to the People and the Beats: Public Enemy's Greatest Hits • Beats and Places |
| Related articles | Discography |
Categories: Articles lacking reliable references from December 2006 | All articles lacking sources | 1959 births | Living people | African American musicians | American rappers | New York musicians | People from Long Island | People from Nassau County, New York | Public Enemy members | Participants in American reality television series | Adelphi University alumni | Rappers from Long Island