Robert "Bobbito" Garcia (born September 25, 1966), also known as DJ Cucumber Slice and Kool Bob Love, is an American DJ, radio host, author, and member of the Rock Steady Crew. He is known as a former co-host of

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

radio show '' The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show'', alongside Adrian "Stretch Armstrong" Bartos, from 1990 until 1999. He later moved to Washington, D.C., where he currently hosts a new podcast on NPR called ''What's Good?'' alongside Bartos. Garcia was the announcer for the video game NBA Street Vol. 2.

Early life

Garcia attended Lower Merion High School and

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...

(class of 1988).

Music career

Bobbito initially started as an intern at

Def Jam Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The ...

. From 1990 to 1998, Garcia co-hosted '' The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show'' on

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

's WKCR. It featured exclusive demo tapes and in-studio freestyles from many then-unsigned hip hop artists such as Nas, Big Pun,

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after National Football League, NFL and Canadian Football Lea ...

Fat Joe Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper. He began recording as a member of Hip-hop, hip hop group D.I.T.C., Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.) in 1992, and pursued a sol ...

Cam'ron Cameron Ezike Giles (born February 4, 1976), known Mononym, mononymously as Cam'ron, is an American rapper. Beginning his career in the early 1990s as Killa Cam, Giles signed with Lance Rivera, Lance "Un" Rivera's Lance Rivera, Untertainment, a ...

, DMX,

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop collective formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its members include RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and, until his death in 2004, O ...

, Fugees, Talib Kweli, Big L and The Notorious B.I.G. who later found great success on major record labels. He set up the vinyl-only label Fondle 'Em Records in 1995 as an outlet for other guests such as MF DOOM, MF Grimm,

Kool Keith Keith Matthew Thornton (born October 7, 1963), known professionally as Kool Keith, is an American rapper and record producer known for his surreal, abstract, and often profane or incomprehensible lyrics. Kool Keith has recorded prolifically both ...

and Cage. In 1998, '' The Source'' named ''The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show'' as the "Best Hip Hop Radio Show of All Time". In 2003, García created ''Bounce: From the Playground'', a quarterly magazine devoted to streetball, especially the playground scene in New York City. He has been an editor, writer, and photographer for the magazine, and has also done work for and been featured in magazines including '' Vibe'' and ''The Source''. He was featured in a 2002 article in Vibe Magazine.

Film career

Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Garcia in 2011

In 2015, Showtime premiered a feature-length documentary on '' Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives'', directed and written by Garcia. The film includes interviews with

, Nas,

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time, he is credited with popula ...

Common Common may refer to: As an Irish surname, it is anglicised from Irish Gaelic surname Ó Comáin. Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Com ...

, Rosie Perez and DJ Premier, among others. In 2018, Garcia released his third documentary, ''Rock Rubber 45s.'' It serves as his most personal film to date. In an interview with HipHopDX, he explained, "There's a great O.C. lyric from the song 'Time's Up' where he goes, 'The more emotion I put into it, the harder I rock.' That's the sort of approach that I have with this film — that the more emotion that I put in, the better the film will be. You know you get one chance to do an autobiography, so I've decided to just bare all."

Sneakers

Garcia hosted the ESPN Films It's the Shoes, interviewing celebrities about their sneaker collection. He was featured in the sneaker documentary '' Just for Kicks'' and performed the announcer's voice in '' NBA Street Vol. 2'', '' NBA Street V3'' and '' NBA Street Showdown''. He is emcee of the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest in the video game '' NBA 2K8'', ''2K9'' and '' 2K10''. He wrote '' Where'd You Get Those?: New York City's Sneaker Culture 1960–1987'' as well as ''Out of the Box'', about limited edition sneakers. In 2007, he worked with Nike on limited edition Nike Air Force 1 and Air Force 25 models, selecting the colors, fabrics and logo used, and designed the "Project Playground" limited edition of the Adidas Superstar. In 2016, he collaborated with Puma for a brand of sneakers.

Basketball

Garcia is a streetball player and coach. In 2006, Madison Square Garden Network hired García to do the "Hot Minute at the Half" reports with celebrities in the crowd during Knicks home games. In 2009, he worked on Blokhedz animated web series on Missiong.com. Garcia is the annual Boost Mobile Elite 24 HS All-American Game play-by-play announcer for ESPNU, owner of the vinyl-only label/imprint Álala Records, and co-directing a documentary, ''Doin' It in the Park: Pick-up Basketball, New York City'', produced by 360 Creative Films, which premiered in New York theaters in June 2013. Bobbito has his own basketball tournament called Bob's Full Court 21, which he holds around the nation.

References

External links

CNN Headline News Feature
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garcia, Bobbito American magazine founders American music journalists American breakdancers American hip-hop DJs Street basketball players ESPN people American sports journalists American sports radio personalities Puerto Rican men's basketball players Wesleyan University alumni Writers from New York City 1966 births Living people Sportswriters from New York (state) American men's basketball players Lower Merion High School alumni 20th-century American sportsmen