The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop trio. Their 1979

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

Rapper's Delight "Rapper's Delight" is a 1979 hip-hop track by the Sugarhill Gang, produced by Sylvia Robinson. Although it was shortly preceded by the Fatback Band's "King Tim III (Personality Jock)", "Rapper's Delight" is credited for introducing hip-hop mus ...

" was the first rap

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

to become a

top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100; reaching a peak position of number 36 on January 12, 1980. This was the trio's only U.S. hit, though they did have further success in Europe until the mid-1980s. The trio reformed in 1994 and did a world tour in 2016.

Formation and early years

The members, all from Englewood,

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 ...

, consisted of Michael "Wonder Mike" Wright, Henry "Big Bank Hank" Jackson, and Guy "Master Gee" O'Brien. The three were assembled into a group by producer

Sylvia Robinson Sylvia Robinson (née Vanderpool; May 29, 1935 – September 29, 2011) was an American singer, record producer, and record label executive. Robinson achieved success as a performer on two R&B chart toppers: as half of Mickey & Sylvia with ...

, who founded

Sugar Hill Records Sugar Hill Records is an American bluegrass and Americana record label. It was founded in Durham, North Carolina in 1978 by Barry Poss and David Freeman, the owner of County Records and Rebel Records. Poss acquired full control of Sugar Hil ...

with her husband, record producer Joe Robinson. The group and the record company were named after the

Sugar Hill, Harlem Sugar Hill is a National Historic District in the Harlem and Hamilton Heights neighborhoods of Manhattan, New York City, bounded by West 155th Street to the north, West 145th Street to the south, Edgecombe Avenue to the east, and Amsterdam Av ...

, neighborhood. Their 1979

" was the first rap

to become a top 40 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The group never had another U.S. hit, though it had multiple European hits, such as "

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", " 8th Wonder" (which was performed on the American music show ''

Soul Train ''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. It aired in syndication from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. Across its 35-year history the show primarily featured performances by R&B, soul, and hip hop artists. The series w ...

'' in 1981), "Rapper's Reprise (Jam Jam)", and "Showdown" (with the

Furious Five Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were an American hip hop group formed in the South Bronx of New York City in 1978. The group's members were Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel, Kidd Creole (not to be confused with Kid Creole), Keef Cowboy, Sc ...

). The trio wound down over the next five years and disbanded in 1985.

Later years

In 1999, the trio reunited and recorded ''Jump on It!'' a hip hop children's album. After Wonder Mike and Hen Dogg left Sugarhill Records in 2005, the original members of Sugarhill Gang (besides Jackson) have performed as the Original Sugar and as Rapper's Delight Featuring Wonder Mike and Master Gee. This is largely due to a string of legal cases against them regarding the use of 'Sugarhill Gang' as their name. On November 11, 2014, Big Bank Hank died at the age of 58 after a long battle with cancer. In 2016, the remaining living members of the original Sugarhill Gang, including Wonder Mike, Hen Dogg and Master Gee embarked on their first world tour in over a decade under the name The Sugarhill Gang. During this, they performed as the Sugarhill Gang for the Art of Rap festival tour in 2016, and at V Festival in Hylands Park and Weston Park in the UK as part of their world tour in 2016. Other places included, the Clockenflap Festival in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

on November 27, 2016, and they headlined at the Depot in the Park Festival in Cardiff, United Kingdom on August 5, 2017. In July 2019 they played the North Nibley Festival in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

. In 2019, The Sugarhill Gang celebrated the 40th anniversary of the release of "Rapper's Delight" and the group's formation. They went on a worldwide tour called ''Rapper's Delight 40th Anniversary World Tour''. The gang made new music in early 2019. The tour lasted from May 24th to July 26, 2019. They are still going on tours to this day despite the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. On October 25, 2019, the group performed "Rapper's Delight" on ''

Jimmy Kimmel Live! ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The nightly hour-long show debuted on January 26, 2003, at Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywood, Los ...

''.

Discography

The discography of The Sugarhill Gang includes five studio albums, nine compilations and fifteen singles.

Studio albums

Compilation albums

* ''Sugarhill Gang Greatest Hits'' (1984) * ''Boyz from Da Hill'' (1994) * ''Ain't Nothin' but a Party'' (1998) * ''Hip Hop Anniversary Europe Tour: Sugarhill Gang Live'' (2008)

Singles

References

External links

Sugarhill Gang playlist on WaveCat

"I Want My Name Back" documentary on the Sugar Hill Gang, Featuring Master Gee and Wonder Mike

Master Gee interview

The Sugarhill Gang - Rapper's Delight (Official Video)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sugarhill Gang, The East Coast hip hop groups Rappers from New Jersey African-American musical groups 1979 establishments in New Jersey Musical groups established in 1979 American musical trios Musical groups from New Jersey Hansa Records artists Sugar Hill Records (hip hop label) artists