David James Parker (born October 26, 1962), known by the stage name Busy Bee, is an American

old-school hip hop Old-school hip hop (also spelled old skool) is the earliest commercially recorded hip hop music and original style of the genre. It typically refers to the music created around 1979 to 1983, as well as any hip hop that does not adhere to contem ...

musician from New York, NY. First coming on the New York City music scene in 1977, Busy Bee worked with many of hip-hop's founding fathers, including

Melle Mel Melvin Glover (born May 15, 1961 in The Bronx), better known by his stage name Grandmaster Melle Mel (or simply Melle Mel) () is an American hip hop recording artist who was the lead vocalist and songwriter of Grandmaster Flash and the Furio ...

, Afrika Bambaataa, and Kool DJ AJ.

Career

Known for his comedic rhymes, Busy Bee originally gained a large following through MC rap battles in Staten Island,

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. He was famously roasted by

Kool Moe Dee Mohandas Dewese (born August 8, 1962), better known by his stage name Kool Moe Dee, is an American rapper, writer and actor. Considered one of the forerunners of the new jack swing sound in hip hop, he gained fame in the 1980s as a member of one ...

at Harlem World in

Manhattan, NY Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, December 1981, in one of the earliest documented rap battles. In 1985, he won the New Music Seminar's MC World Supremacy Belt. In the early 1980s Afrika Bambaataa asked Busy to join his Zulu Nation where the young MC would DJ for Bambaataa's Zulu Nation parties. Busy Bee continues to rhyme today, most recently appearing on KRS-One and

Marley Marl Marlon Williams (born September 30, 1962), better known by his stage name Marley Marl, is an American DJ, record producer, rapper and record label founder, primarily operating in hip hop music. Marlon grew up in Queensbridge housing projects ...

's collaborative 2007 album ''

Hip-Hop Lives ''Hip Hop Lives'' is the collaborative studio album by American rapper KRS-One and record producer Marley Marl. It was released on May 22, 2007 via Koch Records. Recording sessions took place at House Of Hits in New York and at Westlake Recording ...

''. Busy Bee was featured in the 1983 film '' Wild Style'', billed as the first hip-hop motion picture, directed by

Charlie Ahern Charles Ahern (25 June 1905 – 7 April 1931) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Collingwood in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Despite having played just two VFL games, in rounds nine and 12 earlier in the year, Ahe ...

. More recently, he played himself in the 2002 inner-city drama '' Paid in Full''. In 2007, he was included in the video documentary ''Hip Hop Legends''. Thirty years after the song's initial release, in 2018 Robert Rippberger directed the official music video for “Suicide” by Busy Bee, the single off his gold album ''Running Thangs''. The video features a cameo by artist Ice-T.

Personal life

He currently resides in Las Vegas Nevada, with Michelle, his wife of over 20 years. He has two daughters.

Discography

Albums *1988 – ''Running Thangs'' (Strong City/Uni/MCA Records) - #48 on the

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated ...

*1992 – ''Thank God for Busy Bee'' (Pandisc Records) Singles *"The Marvelous Three and the Younger Generation" (Busy Bee, DJ Small, AJ, Cowboy, Kid Creole, Melle Mel, Mr. Ness, Rahiem) - Rappin' All Over (Brass Records - 1980) *"School Days" (Master Five - 1981) *"Making Cash Money" (Sugar Hill - 1982) *"Busy Bee's Groove" (Sugar Hill - 1985) *"Suicide" (Strong City/Uni/MCA - 1987) *"Express" (Strong City/Uni/MCA - 1988) *"Keep It Movin'" (Blazin' - 2002) *"Rock the House" (Blazin' - 2002)

Guest appearances

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Starski, Busy Bee 1962 births African-American male rappers American male rappers Living people Rappers from the Bronx Uni Records artists East Coast hip hop musicians 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people