Legendary DJ Grandmaster Flash touched down on planet Earth as Joseph Saddler on New Year’s Day 1958. He came up in the Golden Era of hip-hop and got his start out of The Bronx. He is Bajan in descent and he connected with fellow immigrant DJ Kool Herc to help spread the early gospel of hip-hop at house and block parties across NYC. He’s credited with originating the backspin.
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were a notorious crew of rappers that rose to prominence as rap culture garnered more attention. Flash persevered and has continued to move crowds as a predecessor of everything we know about hip-hop culture. His legacy was depicted as a character in the Netflix show The Get Down.