Bomfunk MC's
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The Bomfunk MC's are a Finnish rap/electro act, formed in 1998. The group's front man is B.O. Dubb (formerly known as B.O.W., born Raymond Ebanks) and the main producer is Jaakko "JS16" Salovaara.
The debut release was the 1999's album In Stereo (Sony Music) with the singles "Freestyler", "Uprocking Beats" and "B-Boys & Flygirls", all big hits in their native land. The success led to the release of "Freestyler" first in Scandinavia and Germany.
By 2000, "Freestyler" had become a big hit in Europe and it was the year's biggest-selling single in Europe. With success especially in Denmark and Germany, the single also reached number one in Ireland and number two in the UK. Also in 2000, they won Best Nordic Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards. Nevertheless, the single did spark controversy. The line "Who the fuck is Alice, is she from Buckingham Palace?" has never been censored on any radio release, and the video - featured a lot of product placement by Sony.
In 2002, the group released the album Burnin' Sneakers, spawning the singles "Super Electric", "Live Your Life" featuring Max'C, and "Something Goin' On" with Jessica Folcker. This album gained less attention internationally, though selling well in Finland. "Something Going On" reached the German top 20.
In September 2002, DJ Gismo decided to leave the band, being promptly replaced by Riku Pentti (DJ) and Okke Komulainen (keyboards), together with bassist Ville Mäkinen collectively known as The Skillsters Plus One. After they joined, Bomfunk MC's released a special remix of "Back to Back".
In 2004, the album Reverse Psychology was released through Universal Music, preceded by the single "No Way in Hell". In the autumn that year they released another single from that album, "Hypnotic" featuring Elena Mady. Half of the album was produced by JS16, and the other half by The Skillsters Plus One.
"Reverse Psychology" and its singles did not garner much attention outside Finland and the rest of Scandinavia. Both of the singles reached the German top 100, but did not chart elsewhere in Western Europe. The band is still extremely popular in several Eastern European and former Soviet states.
Despite being on a major label, Bomfunk MC's music has been extremely hard to find in most record stores across the globe since 2001. Also, the Bomfunk MC's website is notorious among fans of the band for its lack of updates. The eastern European market is rife with bootlegs of Bomfunk MC's records- with many regularly surfacing on eBay. This has become somewhat of a standing joke among fans.
Contents |
[edit] Members
- Raymond Ebanks B.O.W aka B.O.Dubb (MC)
- Ari Toikka aka A.T (drums)
- Ville Mäkinen aka Mr Wily (bass/keyboards)
- Riku Pentti aka DJ Infekto aka Rico Tubbs (DJ, keyboards)
- Okke Komulainen (keyboards)
- Ismo Lappalainen aka DJ Gismo (DJ, left in 2002)
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- In Stereo (Sony Music/Epidrome) 1999
- Burnin' Sneakers (Sony Music/Epidrome) 2002
- Reverse Psychology (Universal Music/Polydor) 2004
[edit] Singles
- "Uprocking Beats" 1998
- "B-Boys & Flygirls" 1999
- "Freestyler" 1999
- "Other Emcees" 1999
- "Rocking Just To Make Ya Move" 1999
- "Freestyler (Continental European Re-Release)" 2000
- "B-Boys & Flygirls (Remix)" 2000
- "Uprocking Beats (Remix)" 2000
- "Super Electric" 2001
- "Live Your Life" (feat. Max'C) 2002
- "Burnin' Sneakers" 2002
- "Something Goin' On" (feat. Jessica Folcker), partial cover of a track by Anni-Frid Lyngstad 2002
- "Back To Back" (feat. Z-MC) 2002
- "No Way In Hell" 2004
- "Hypnotic" (feat. Elena Mady) 2004
