Everything about Doug E Fresh totally explained
Doug E. Fresh is the
stage name of
Douglas E. Davis (born
September 17 1966), an
American rapper,
record producer, and
beatboxer—he's also known as "The Human Beatbox." One of the earliest recorded beatboxers, Fresh is able to accurately imitate
drum machines and various
special effects using only his mouth.
Biography
Born in
Barbados, Doug E. Fresh moved to the
United States with his family when he was young.
He made his recording debut in 1983, as part of the Boo-Dah Bliss Crew (with
Spoonie Gee and
DJ Spivey) on the Top Flight Records
single "Pass the Boo-Dah". He gained greater recognition the following year—appearing in
Beat Street, backing the
Treacherous Three. Later that same year, Fresh released his first records as a solo artist: "Just Having Fun" and "Original Human Beatbox".
His 1985 single "The Show" (which borrows the melody of the
Inspector Gadget theme), and its B-side, "La Di Da Di," are considered early
hip hop classics. The single featured the "Get Fresh Crew": DJs Barry B. and Chill Will, and MC Ricky D (who would later achieve fame as
Slick Rick).
In 1986, Doug E. Fresh and the Get Fresh Crew released their debut full-length album,
Oh, My God!. It included such notable tracks as "Play This Only at Night" and "All the Way to Heaven", and was critically hailed for incorporating elements of
reggae and
gospel music. The next year saw another album,
The World's Greatest Entertainer, which appeared on
Billboard magazine's charts, due in part to the popular single, "Keep Risin' to the Top". MC Ricky D's input wasn't appreciated by the
record label,
Fantasy Records, and he was asked to leave the group. (Rick's 1989 solo debut,
The Great Adventures of Slick Rick brought the MC greater success than he'd attained as part of the Get Fresh Crew, reaching #1 on the
Billboard R&B/Hip Hop charts.)
In 1989, Fresh recorded the song "Spirit" for the film
Ghostbusters II soundtrack.
Fresh didn't record again until 1992's
Doin' What I Gotta Do, issued by
MC Hammer's Bust It Records. Fresh also beatboxed the drumline for the song "Freaks", by child reggae artist
Lil' Vicious. Fresh also appeared in the video.
In 1995, Slick Rick and Fresh reunited for a record entitled
Play which found Fresh back on his feet.
Play received positive reviews; Bret Love writes that the record is "a welcome flashback to the days when guns, drugs, sex and violence were not the genre's primary lyrical focus."
In the late 1990s, Fresh collaborated with
Prince on a number of recordings, notably
Newpower Soul and the
1999, the New Master EP. Recently, Fresh has appeared on
VH1's
I Love the 80s and on
March 29,
2007 he appeared on
Nickelodeon's ME:TV for Beatbox Week.
Fresh recorded the current theme used for the
New York Knicks, in their highlight videos and during the pregame warm-up's, titled
Take Me Home, based very much off of the
John Denver hit
Take Me Home, Country Roads in 2001.
Fresh also made a few
Drum and Bass tracks in collaboration with
E-Z Rollers in 2003, the best well-known being "Rhyme & Punishment".
In 2004 (October 9) (Oc, Fresh performed onstage with the
Beastie Boys in
Madison Square Garden. The performance was captured on video for the 2006 in-concert movie
Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That!.
On
May 23,
2007, Fresh performed variations upon "The Show" with finalist
Blake Lewis on
the season six finale of
American Idol, the first ever hip-hop performance on the show, which was watched by over 200 million people around the world.
Fresh is often called upon to host events for Tom Cruise, Will Smith, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Bill Clinton and many other high profile celebrities.
He currently resides in Central Harlem with his 5 sons. Two of his sons are in a rap group called "Square Off" and are featured on
Fresh's recently released single "Left-Right".
Involvement with Scientology
Fresh is a member of the
Church of Scientology. He has performed for large audiences of Scientologists at the Scientology Celebrity Centre's Anniversary Gala in 2004, 2005, and 2006. He also performed two tracks on the all-star Scientology music album
The Joy of Creating (other artists appearing include
Isaac Hayes,
Chick Corea,
Edgar Winter, and
Carl Anderson).
Discography
Albums
Singles
"Just Having Fun (Do the Beatbox)" (1984, Enjoy)
"The Original Human Beatbox" (1984, Vintertainment) (credited as Dougy Fresh)
"The Show" (1985, Reality) (with the Get Fresh Crew)Platinum
"La Di Da Di" (1985, Reality) (with the Get Fresh Crew)Platinum
"Spirit" (1989, MCA) (with the Get Fresh Crew)
"Summertime" (1989, Reality) (with the Get Fresh Crew)
"I-ight (Alright)" (1993, Gee Street)
"Superstition" (1997, Hollywood) (with the Get Fresh Crew)
"We Not Giving Up" (2005, The Xtatik Experience) (Featuring Doug E Fresh and Machel Montano)
"You"ll Never Know (2005, E-Z Rollers) (Featuring Doug e Fresh & Sharon Brown)
"Rhyme & Punishment (2005, E-Z Rollers) (Featuring Doug e Fresh) [DistortedMinds Remix]
"Rhyme & Punishment (2005, E-Z Rollers) (Featuring Doug e Fresh)
"Virgo" (2005) (with Ludacris, and Nas)
"Left-Right" (2007, Entertaining Music) (featuring Square Off)Further Information
Get more info on 'Doug E Fresh'.
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