Remembering Whodini in 10 Songs
A journey through the jams that defined the often overlooked hip-hop pioneers.
With the passing of founding member John “Ecstasy” Fletcher, fans of true school hip-hop find ourselves thinking back on the fun filled moments soundtracked by Whodini’s funky beats. Newer generations of hip-hop junkies may wonder what all of the fuss is about. While they were instrumental in laying the foundation for rap’s emergence into the mainstream, history has too often excluded them from chapters on the genre’s formative years, focusing instead on peers like Run-DMC and LL Cool J.
Whether you’re looking back or learning, here’s a playlist that captures the energy, innovation, and spirit of these musical trailblazers.
1. “Magic’s Wand” (1982)
Whodini’s debut single embodies the synth funk that was dominating dance floor’s in the the early 80s, but it’s the breakbeat behind the the synthesizers that truly rooted the track in the still-nascent hip-hop tradition. The deliveries of MCs Ecstasy and Jalil mimicked the straight forward “A-B” rhyme schemes and affected deliveries of first generation mic rockers, but the magnetic charisma and chemistry of the two hinted at bigger things to come.
