Theodore Livingston (born March 5, 1963), better known as Grand Wizzard Theodore, is an American hip hop DJ. He is widely credited as the inventor of the scratching technique.[1][2] In addition to scratching, he gained credibility for his mastery of needle drops and other techniques which he invented or perfected.
Born in the Bronx, New York, Theodore's brother, Mean Gene, was his mentor, who began teaching him the technique of DJing at an early age. Theodore was later apprenticed by Grandmaster Flash.
In 1975, Theodore was playing records in his bedroom with the volume all the way up. Furious with the noise, his mother entered the room and Theodore paused the record to hear his mother scold him about the volume of the music. While holding the record still, he accidentally moved it back and forth but liked the sound it made. From there on, he played with records often and developed the technique known as scratching.[2]
A dramatization of Theodore's invention of the record scratch was featured on Comedy Central's television show Drunk History, narrated by Questlove.[3]
Career
In the early 1980s, Theodore was a part of the group Grandwizard Theodore & the Fantastic Five. They released "Can I Get a Soul Clap" in 1982.[4] He was also featured in the 1983 film Wild Style, as well as contributing to the film's soundtrack. He explains the origin of the scratch in the documentary, Scratch.[2]
GrandWizzard Theodore at BelTek Festival in Belmont, Maine, 2009
Legacy
Theodore's phrase "Say turn it up" from his track "Fantastic Freaks at the Dixie" was sampled by hip hop and rap acts such as Public Enemy (on the track "Bring the Noise"), Bomb the Bass (on the track "Megablast"), and many others.
References
^David Dye (February 22, 2007). "NPR: The Birth of Rap: A Look Back". NPR.
^ abcSteve Huey. "Grand Wizard Theodore". AllMusic. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
^""Drunk History" Game Changers (TV Episode 2018)". IMDb.
^"Grand Wizard Theodore, the Fantastic Romatic Five* - Can I Get a Soul Clapp "Fresh Out the Pack"". Discogs.
External links
hiphop.sh/theo
. November 4, 2014. Archived from the original on December 15, 2014.
DJ Grand Wizzard Theodore Interview - NAMM Oral History Library (2012)
This article on an American disc jockey is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
grand, wizzard, theodore, theodore, livingston, born, march, 1963, better, known, american, widely, credited, inventor, scratching, technique, addition, scratching, gained, credibility, mastery, needle, drops, other, techniques, which, invented, perfected, bel. Theodore Livingston born March 5 1963 better known as Grand Wizzard Theodore is an American hip hop DJ He is widely credited as the inventor of the scratching technique 1 2 In addition to scratching he gained credibility for his mastery of needle drops and other techniques which he invented or perfected Grand Wizzard TheodoreGrand Wizzard Theodore at BelTek festival 2009Background informationBirth nameTheodore LivingstonBorn 1963 03 05 March 5 1963 age 60 The Bronx New York City New York U S GenresHip hopOccupation s MusicianDJYears active1977 present Theodore doing his famous needle drop at the Experience Music Project in Seattle 2002 Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Legacy 4 References 5 External linksEarly life EditBorn in the Bronx New York Theodore s brother Mean Gene was his mentor who began teaching him the technique of DJing at an early age Theodore was later apprenticed by Grandmaster Flash In 1975 Theodore was playing records in his bedroom with the volume all the way up Furious with the noise his mother entered the room and Theodore paused the record to hear his mother scold him about the volume of the music While holding the record still he accidentally moved it back and forth but liked the sound it made From there on he played with records often and developed the technique known as scratching 2 A dramatization of Theodore s invention of the record scratch was featured on Comedy Central s television show Drunk History narrated by Questlove 3 Career EditIn the early 1980s Theodore was a part of the group Grandwizard Theodore amp the Fantastic Five They released Can I Get a Soul Clap in 1982 4 He was also featured in the 1983 film Wild Style as well as contributing to the film s soundtrack He explains the origin of the scratch in the documentary Scratch 2 GrandWizzard Theodore at BelTek Festival in Belmont Maine 2009Legacy EditTheodore s phrase Say turn it up from his track Fantastic Freaks at the Dixie was sampled by hip hop and rap acts such as Public Enemy on the track Bring the Noise Bomb the Bass on the track Megablast and many others References Edit David Dye February 22 2007 NPR The Birth of Rap A Look Back NPR a b c Steve Huey Grand Wizard Theodore AllMusic Retrieved November 25 2019 Drunk History Game Changers TV Episode 2018 IMDb Grand Wizard Theodore the Fantastic Romatic Five Can I Get a Soul Clapp Fresh Out the Pack Discogs External links Edithiphop wbr sh wbr theo Grand Wizard Theodore on Peter Rosenberg s Juan Epstein podcast November 4 2014 Archived from the original on December 15 2014 DJ Grand Wizzard Theodore Interview NAMM Oral History Library 2012 This article on an American disc jockey is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte This biographical article related to hip hop music in the United States is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Grand Wizzard Theodore amp oldid 1150688974, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
