Run-D.M.C.

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(Redirected from Run DMC)

Run-D.M.C. (or Run DMC) was a hip hop group founded by the late Jason "Jam Master Jay" Mizell that included Joseph "Run" Simmons and Darryl "D.M.C." McDaniels. The group had an enormous impact on the development of hip hop through the 1980s and is credited with breaking hip hop into mainstream music. The three members of Run-D.M.C. grew up in Hollis, Queens, New York, USA.

1 Early history
2 Mainstream success
3 Later career
4 Run's solo career
5 DMC's solo career
6 Discography
7 See also
8 External links

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Early history

"Run" Simmons is the brother of hip hop legend Russell "Rush" Simmons, and entered the hip-hop scene by DJing for his brother's first big act, Kurtis Blow. He shared his experiences on stage with Darryl McDaniels, one of his best childhood friends. The pair began performing at an underage club in Hollis, and remained in contact as they went off to college - Run to LaGuardia Community College and Darryl to St. John's University. They soon brought in a third member, Jam Master Jay, and in 1983 released their first single, "It's Like That".

The group soon found its way onto MTV, a notable accomplishment for a black music group at the time. They became the first rap act to have a music video played on MTV and their self-titled debut album was the first rap album to go gold. They had the first rap album to go to number one on the R&B charts, as well as the first to break into the top ten charts for pop albums.

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Mainstream success

The band signed a record deal with Profile Records in 1983, and Run's older brother, Russell "Rush" Simmons signed Run-D.M.C. to his newly formed management company Rush Productions that same year. On their first major U.S. tour, the group set new trends by performing dressed in baggy black clothing, Adidas sneakers (with the shoelaces strictly removed), and Fedora hats.

Their mainstream success continued as the group performed at the famous Live Aid concert in 1985, and their 1986 album Raising Hell became the highest-selling rap album in history (this record was later broken as rap gained more popularity with artists like Notorious B.I.G and Eminem), reaching number 3 on the Billboard album charts and selling over 3 million copies. The album featured the famous cover version of Aerosmith's "Walk This Way", a rap-rock collaboration performed with Aerosmith members Steven Tyler and Joe Perry. The song was the first hip-hop track to make the Top 10 on Billboard's singles charts.

Run-DMC were renowned for breaking new ground in rap music. "It's Like That" and "Sucker MC's" (1983) were the first hip hop tracks that relied on electronic beats and nothing else. "Peter Piper" (1986) was the first rap record in which the DJ cut up a record (in this case, "Take Me to the Mardi Gras" by jazz musician Bob James). Run-DMC became the first rap act with a platinum album and multi-platinum album, as well as the first rappers to appear on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, to receive a Grammy nomination and to appear on Saturday Night Live and American Bandstand.

After a period of lackluster commercial success after the Raising Hell album, the group made a comeback in 1993 with their album Down With the King, which made Billboard's Top 10 for album and the Pete Rock assisted single "Down With the King".

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Later career

The group's three members began pursuing separate careers after the 1993 comeback, but continued to perform and tour together, including a 2002 summer tour co-headlining with Aerosmith.

Jam Master Jay was shot and killed in a recording studio in Queens, New York on October 30, 2002, and the group officially retired from performing shortly thereafter. The case remains unsolved.

Prior to Jay's murder, the band had filmed a Dr Pepper television commercial with protégé LL Cool J. When the commercial aired in the winter of 2002, a dedication to Jam Master Jay was appended to the initial airings of the commercial.

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Run's solo career

Rev Run recently completed his first solo album, titled Distortion. The first single from the album, Mind On the Road, is featured in EA Sports Madden NFL 2006. Rev Run also starred, along with his family, in the MTV reality-sitcom Run's House starting in the fall of 2005. As of November 2005, MTV had already renewed the series for a second season.

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DMC's solo career

DMC released his first solo album, entitled Checks Thugs and Rock N Roll, on March 14, 2006. The first single is "Just Like Me", using samples and the chorus from Harry Chapin's "Cat's in the Cradle", with the chorus sung by Sarah McLachlan.

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