Song:Rump Shaker
Album:Classic Hip Hop
Rump Shaker was a big hit back in 1992. It was the only big hit by Wreckx-N-Effect. Due to political correctness, I don't know if a record like this would be released today. Even back then there were protests about the video. Not surprisingly, the man behind Wreckx-N-Effect was New Jack Swing creator Teddy Riley. His brother Markell Riley was a member of Wreckx-N-Effect along with Aqil "A-Plus" Davidson, Keith "K.C." Harris and Brandon Mitchell. They released an EP on Atlantic in 1988 that went nowhere. Riley and partner Gene Griffin were unhappy with Atlantic's promotion so they moved the group to Motown. By the time the album Wrecks-N-Effect was released, Harris had left. They had modest success on the R&B charts. Then Mitchell was killed in a 1990 shooting incident. They changed the group name to Wreckx-N-Effect as a tribute to Mitchell. They moved to MCA Records for the 1992 album Hard Or Smooth. Rump Shaker reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. The only thing that kept it from being #1 was the monster Whitney Houston hit I Will Always Love You. The raps are by Davidson and the Riley brothers. It samples plenty of songs but the big one is the sax riff from Darkest Light by the obscure 70s band Lafayette Afro Rock Band. They also sample the obscure 70s group Manzel, Magic Disco Machine, James Brown, The Emotions, MC Lyte and DeBarge. The video was criticized for exploiting women. But the song was a hit anyway. And the album was certified Platinum. You can get Rump Shaker on this Rhino 3CD various artists comp. By the time their 1996 album Raps New Generation was released, Davidson and the Rileys weren't getting along and MCA was sick of them. So that was the end of Wreckx-N-Effect. Here's the video for Rump Shaker by Wreckx-N-Effect.
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