Whodini
Coming out of the fertile early-'80s New York hip-hop scene, Whodini were one of the first rap groups to add a straight R&B twist to their music, laying the groundwork for the new jack swing movement. The group scored several major hits throughout the '80s, including the Thomas Dolby-produced "Magic's Wand" from their self-titled 1983 debut, to dancefloor classics like "Friends" and "Freaks Come Out at Night" from 1984's platinum Escape. Whodini slowed down in the '90s, releasing no new music after 1996's Six, but the impressions left by their earliest material continued to be felt in new waves of rap, pop, and dance music.
Whodini formed in 1982, consisting of rappers Jalil Hutchins and John "Ecstasy" Fletcher, and legendary DJ Drew "Grandmaster Dee" Carter, known for being able to scratch records with nearly every part of his body. Whodini's self-titled 1983 album made a splash with rhythm-heavy hip-hop songs like "Magic's Wand" (the first rap song to feature an accompanying video), and "The Haunted House of Rock," a rewrite of "Monster Mash." The next year's Escape would be the group's biggest commercial success, selling in platinum numbers on the back of singles "Big Mouth," "Friends," and "Freaks Come Out at Night." The band explored the intersection of rap and R&B on the album, and their stage shows when touring in support of the album were the first rap concerts to feature official dancers (U.T.F.O. members Doctor Ice and Kangol Kid). Third album Back in Black arrived in 1986, selling less than Escape but still performing respectably. Following their fourth album, 1987's Open Sesame, Whodini went on hiatus due to problems with their record company, and to concentrate on their respective new families. The group signed on with MCA Records for their 1991 album Bag-a-Trix, at this point known more for their samples being used by newer artists than their contemporaneous output. In 1996, the group released their sixth album, Six, on Jermaine Dupri's So So Def label; it would be the final album of new material from the group, though their legacy and influence continued to grow over the next several decades as new fans and artists discovered their innovative albums. Whodini's music, particularly their material from the early '80s, was included in multiple collections of genre-defining early hip-hop, and they toured sporadically throughout the 2000s and beyond. Founding member John "Ecstasy" Fletcher died on December 23, 2020 at the age of 56.
© Fred Thomas & Steve Huey /TiVo
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Discography
14 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Escape (Expanded Edition)
Electronic - Released by Sony Music UK on 1 Jan 1984
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Whodini (Expanded Edition)
Electronic - Released by Sony Music UK on 13 Oct 1983
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Open Sesame
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Sony Music UK on 27 Aug 1987
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Music Is Life, Vol. 1
R&B - Released by Limitless Music Group on 28 Jan 2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Funky Beat: The Best Of Whodini
Pop - Released by Jive - Legacy on 6 Jun 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Freaks Come out at Night
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by X - Ray Records on 6 Jan 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Greatest Hits
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by X - Ray Records on 19 Dec 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Spread the Love
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Whodini & A.Haze on 23 Sep 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo