J.J. Fad is an American female

rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

group from

Rialto, California Rialto is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States, 56 miles east of Los Angeles, near the Cajon Pass, Interstate 15, Interstate 10, State Route 210 and Metrolink routes. Its population was 104,026 as of the 2020 Census, u ...

. The name was an acronym of the original group members' given names (Juana, Juanita, Fatima, Anna, and Dana), but when the line-up changed the tradition developed that it stood for Just Jammin', Fresh and Def.J. J. Fad Website.
Retrieved 15 February 2015. The group was backed by

DJ Train CPO (an abbreviation of Capital Punishment Organization) was an American hip hop group from Compton, California, founded in 1989 by rapper Vince "Lil' Nation" Edwards and DJ Clarence "D.J. Train" Lars, and enlisted producer Daron "Young D" Sa ...

(Clarence Lars). In June 2022, the city of Rialto held a ceremony to honor JJ Fad by naming a street after the group. Lead by local councilman Joe Baca, Jr, parts of Lurelane off Cactus, was named JJ Fad Way.

History

Beginnings

J.J. Fad began in 1985 as a quintet comprising Juana Burns (MC J.B.), Dana Birks (Baby-D), Anna Cash (Lady Anna), Fatima Shaheed (O.G. Rocker) and Juanita Lee (Crazy J.). It was one of the original acts signed to

Ruthless Records Ruthless Records was an American record label founded by Eric "Eazy-E" Wright and Jerry Heller in Compton, California in 1986, where all of the Ruthless trademarks have been owned by Comptown Records, Inc. since 1997. Several artists on the la ...

Eazy-E Eric Lynn Wright (September 7, 1964 – March 26, 1995), known professionally as Eazy-E, was an American rapper who propelled West Coast rap and gangsta rap by leading the group N.W.A and its label, Ruthless Records. He is often referred t ...

. In 1987, this line-up released its only recording, the single "Anotha Ho" backed with "Supersonic" ("Anotha Ho" was the

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

), produced by

Arabian Prince Kim Renard Nazel (born June 17, 1965), better known by his stage names Arabian Prince or Professor X, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and DJ. He is best known as a founding member of N.W.A. Early life Nazel was born i ...

''Supersonic''

Due to management and financial disagreements, Cash, Shaheed and Lee quit the group, leaving J.J. Fad as a duo. The remaining original members (Burns and Birks) were joined by Michelle Franklin (Sassy C.) and DJ Train, and together they re-recorded and re-released "

Supersonic Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound ( Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately . Speeds greater than five times ...

" in 1988, this time as the A-side. It sold 400,000 copies independently before Eazy-E and

Jerry Heller Gerald Elliot Heller (October 6, 1940 – September 2, 2016) was an American music manager and businessman. He was best known for his management of West Coast rap and gangsta rap pioneers N.W.A and Eazy-E. He rose to prominence in the 1960s a ...

secured the group a major-label recording contract with

Atco Records ATCO Records is an American record label founded in 1955. It is owned by Warner Music Group and operates as an imprint of Atlantic Records. After several decades of dormancy and infrequent activity under alternating Warner Music labels, the comp ...

. The single was followed by the album ''

'', produced by

, who made J.J. Fad accessible to pop audiences—unlike many West Coast rappers of the day—by including electro elements in their music. Due to their involvement with

, co-producer credits were added for

Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...

and

DJ Yella Antoine Carraby (born December 11, 1961), better known by his stage name DJ Yella, is an American DJ, rapper, record producer and film director from Los Angeles, California. DJ Yella began his career as a member of the World Class Wreckin' Cru a ...

. Both the single "Supersonic" and the album ''Supersonic'' were certified gold. (The group believes the single sold 1 million copies in the U.S.—equivalent to platinum status—but this has not been certified.)Layli Phillips, Kerri Reddick-Morgan and Dionne Patricia Stephens, "Oppositional consciousness within an oppositional realm: The case of feminism and womanism in rap and hip hop, 1976–2004," ''Journal of African American History'', Vol. 90, No. 3 (Summer, 2005), p. 257.

''Not Just a Fad''

With Eazy and Heller enjoying success with

N.W.A N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip hop group whose members were among the earliest and most significant popularizers and controversial figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, and the group is widely considered ...

, it was three years before J.J. Fad returned with a follow-up album. ''

Not Just a Fad ''Not Just a Fad'' is the second studio album by the American female rap group J.J. Fad. It was released in 1990 via Ruthless Records. The album spawned three singles: "We in the House", "Gold", and "Be Good ta Me". Neither the album nor the sing ...

'' was released in 1991, produced by Arabian Prince, Yella and overseen by Eazy, but failed to make an impact. The group disbanded shortly afterward. DJ Train died in 1994 of smoke inhalation.

Later years

After almost two decades out of the music industry raising families, the classic trio of J.J. Fad reunited. The group performs at old-school and freestyle concerts. In 2004,

MF Doom Daniel Dumile ( ; July 13, 1971October 31, 2020), best known by his stage name MF Doom or simply Doom (both stylized in all caps), was a British-American rapper and record producer. Noted for his intricate wordplay, signature metal mask, and ...

sampled the beatboxing intro from the 1988 video for "Supersonic" in his song "Hoecakes" from his album '' Mm.. Food''. In 2006, Fergie used an

interpolation In the mathematical field of numerical analysis, interpolation is a type of estimation, a method of constructing (finding) new data points based on the range of a discrete set of known data points. In engineering and science, one often has a n ...

of "Supersonic" in her song "

Fergalicious "Fergalicious" is a song recorded by American singer, songwriter and rapper Fergie for her debut studio album, ''The Dutchess'' (2006). The title is a portmanteau of ''Fergie'' and ''delicious''. It was written by Fergie and The Black Eyed Peas ...

". "Supersonic" appeared in the music video game ''

Dance Central 3 ''Dance Central 3'' is the third game in the ''Dance Central'' series. It was revealed at E3 2012 at the Microsoft Conference. It was released on October 16 in the US, Canada and South America and October 19 everywhere else. Gameplay Gameplay has ...

'' (2012), which J. J. Fad promoted on its Facebook page. The 2015 biopic film ''

Straight Outta Compton ''Straight Outta Compton'' is the debut studio album by rap group N.W.A, which, led by Eazy-E, formed in Los Angeles County's City of Compton in early 1987. Released by his label, Ruthless Records, on August 8, 1988, the album was produced b ...

'' left out the story of J. J. Fad and how some in the media felt the group was responsible for "forging a path for the breakout success of

". The second trailer for the 2020 movie ''

Sonic the Hedgehog is a Japanese video game series and media franchise created by Sega. The franchise follows Sonic, an anthropomorphic blue hedgehog who battles the evil Doctor Eggman, a mad scientist. The main ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' games are platformers mo ...

'' features the song "Supersonic".

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

As lead artist

Featured singles

Guest appearances

References

External links

*
J. J. Fad's Facebook page
*
J. J. Fad at Discogs
{{Authority control African-American musical groups American women rappers African-American women rappers American dance girl groups Atco Records artists West Coast hip hop groups Women hip hop groups Musical groups established in 1985 Musical groups disestablished in 1992 Musical groups reestablished in 2009 People from Rialto, California Ruthless Records artists Hip hop groups from California 1985 establishments in California