Kurtis Blow

A pioneering emcee out of Harlem, Kurtis Blow found his first hit in 1979 with "Christmas Rappin." The following year he came back with "The Breaks," a bona fide hip-hop classic (and his first gold single) which is still loved today. He was the first rapper signed to a major label, and released nearly ten albums between '80 and '88. His other hits include "Basketball," "If I Ruled The World," and "Hard Times." In the nineties, Mercury put out the Best Of Kurtis Blow compilation, and Rhino released the three volume collection Kurtis Blow's History Of Rap. In 2000, Kurtis worked on Sunset Park, a play about the beginnings of hip-hop.