DJ Mark the 45 King

Mark Howard James (born October 16, 1961) professionally known as The 45 King (also known as DJ Mark the 45 King), is an American hip hop record producer and disc jockey (DJ) from The Bronx borough of New York City. James began DJing in The Bronx, in the mid-1980s. His pseudonym, the 45 King, came from his ability to make beats using obscure 45 RPM records.

Career

The 45 King first gained fame with his breakbeat track "The 900 Number" in 1987. The song featured a looping of a baritone sax solo from Marva Whitney's "Unwind Yourself" (1968). The 45 King signed with Tuff City Records that year and was given a production deal. "The 900 Number" remains his signature work, having been resampled by many artists. He was also featured on the ''1989-Hustlers Convention'' album on the UK label Music of Life, which is considered by many to be hip-hop's first-ever live album.

Using his popularity from the previous release, the 45 King was able to help the other members of his crew, dubbed the Flavor Unit, which included many well-known hip-hop acts including Chill Rob G, Lakim Shabazz, Apache, and Queen Latifah. The 45 King's big break came when Queen Latifah signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1989 and released the album ''All Hail the Queen''. The 45 King did extensive production on this album, and it is considered by critics to be among his best production work. Over the next few years, many other Flavor Unit members also signed with Tommy Boy, and the 45 King frequently contributed to their albums with his productions. In November 1989, the re-release of "The King is Here" / "The 900 Number" peaked at #60 in the UK Singles Chart, his only appearance in a UK chart.

In the early 1990s, drug addiction caused him to lose a production deal that he signed with Warner Bros. Records. Around this time the 45 King released multiple series of breakbeat records (the ''Lost Breakbeat'' series, the ''Breakapalooza'' series, etc.) and remixed Madonna's Top-10 single " Keep It Together", but he stayed mainly with his breakbeat record franchises.

In July 1990, Manchester-born DJ Chad Jackson sampled "The 900 Number" on his single "Hear the Drummer (Get Wicked)", which reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart. A remixed version was also a minor UK hit in 2007. Jackson was apparently unaware that the song had itself been sampled from the original "Unwind Yourself", as he credited himself, and King, as co-writers of the song.

In 1996, Washington, D.C.-based go-go artist DJ Kool had a hit with the song "Let Me Clear My Throat

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