DMC Stands For Devastating Mic Control

the king of rock

It was 1985, just six years after the incident known as Disco Demolition Night in Chicago, where a frenzied crowd of thousands gathered in Comiskey Park with hatred in their eyes and hearts. The abominable mob gathered for the sole purpose of sealing the fate of the longstanding disco movement by torching their albums and music cassettes en masse. It was a riot in the truest sense, unlike any negative outpouring towards a particular style of music before. This wasn’t a simple slip up the charts; it was an execution.

The disco was dead.

The heavy metal era had really begun. The Bee Gees, now the official former kings of the airwaves, would no longer be Stayin’ Alive. His bass lines and high-pitched vocal stylings blazed in a fiery Disco Inferno that an all-too-happy bunch of long-haired rockers were dumping gasoline on.

It was not Kung Fu Fighting. No. The war between disco and rock that raged from the mid-’70s to the mid-’80s was finally over. Rock prevailed and claimed the throne atop the mountain, the only vanquished challenger to him.

Who else dares to challenge the king?

Jazz? “Please…”

Blues? “Come again?”

Country? “Are you serious?”

How about rapping? “Rap? What is rap?”

Rap was still a new and relatively unknown product, largely ignored by the mainstream audience, critics, and radio stations. Most of the rising shape of music sales could not even be accurately tracked, as most artists were selling their material out of the trunks of their cars, unable to secure a record deal.

Distributors would roll their eyes at the rappers as they listened to the demos. The so-called professionals did not have the vision to see and understand the music that would eventually spark a revolution. Backed into a corner, the only way forward was obvious.

A few brave entrepreneurs started their own rap labels. One was known as Sugarhill Records. It received modest distribution and was the label that released what many have called “The First Real Rap Song”. The Sugarhill Gang’s Rappers Delight was the best-received rap single up to that point by far.

Looking back, some define the moment as the official beginning of rap music, as the classic single received airplay, peaked at number thirty-eight on the music charts, and was available in many stores.

The Sugarhill Gang was knocking on the door to legitimate entry into the world of music, but a 20-something rapper known simply as DMC wasn’t content to just knock on the door. He had his hand wrapped around the doorknob and was opening it.

There would be no knocking for Darryl Mcdaniels who, along with fellow rapper Joseph “Run” Simmons and DJ Jam Master Jay, released the self-titled album Run DMC in the spring of 1984 on Profile Records.

It seemed that no one knew what to make of it. Run DMC was nothing like or like anyone before them. The group of three black men from Hollis Queens defied any and all rankings. They weren’t rockers, although they did have electric guitar on some of their songs. They weren’t disco.

What are they? What style of music is Run DMC?

“They’re rapping.”

“Oh, rap. I think I’ve heard of that.”

The trio was slowly gaining an audience, catching up on their catchy mix of back-and-forth rhymes between Run and DMC over deft record scratching and Jay’s 808 drum machine beats. Throw in some samples and the occasional guitar riff and you had a fresh new sound that just screamed to be heard.

Run DMC would not refuse, nor that first historic release that has sold more than three million units. Things weren’t blowing up yet for Run DMC, but that was only a matter of time.

The door was ajar, but the rap music was still a foot inside. Rock music kept looking down the mountain, carefree, rapping and laughing. The reigning king did not feel any threat. There could be no challenge to the throne unless someone in the rap world was ready to step up.

Enter the DMC stage on the left.

Merge:

Slavery may have been abolished in 1862 and there was a supposed equality between the races being talked about, but a quick glance at the music charts was all it took to show the glaring division still present. White artists dominated the airwaves. The number of black rock groups was minimal and the number of them that made it to the charts was almost non-existent.

Run DMC ultimately changed the face of the music world and helped bridge the gap on racism by promoting racial equality, not favoritism in either direction, and becoming celebrities in an era that embraced the exact opposite of what they embodied.

forget-rock. Forget rapping.

Run DMC transcended musical style and classification and in doing so changed the face of the music world at a watershed moment when Darryl McDaniels mustered up enough testicular strength for the entire rap community and performed an act that contained the ramifications of painting a target on his back. He easily risked being a dead man.

It seemed like a suicide.

During a year in which rock music sales to a predominantly Caucasian audience were in the millions, Run DMC released their second album. The title track features a confident DMC throwing out five words, with no music accompaniment, which changed the music scene forever.

The young man who inspired so many to follow him made an undeniably provocative statement when he rapped five simple acapella words into a microphone all those years ago.

In the world of politics and government, it was Martin Luther King with the famous words: “I have a dream.”

The world of music has its equivalent and the quote belongs to Darryl Mcdaniels. His five words, as powerful as King’s four, continue to inspire as they reach a whole new audience. No one can forget the first time they heard DMC utter the last words no one expected to hear from a black man’s mouth.

“I am the king of rock!”

Darryl Mcdaniels was a legend.

The statement was so powerful; it was used to name the album and was largely responsible for the eventual platinum status.

DMC kept the theme going with his next lyric, “There Ain’t None Higher,” in case anyone missed the fact that he was the king of rock and the fiery electric guitar that pulsed throughout the track and the album, which can only be described as an innovative masterpiece, was not enough to persuade them.

Rock music was against the ropes; he needed to perform a rope a drug if he wanted to survive. He got his help from a highly unlikely source.

Rather than pick a fight, Run DMC continued their fusion of rock and rap by extending the olive branch to a group of disgraced rockers whose best days had been buried in the ’70s. Aerosmith produced some mediocre records since then and hadn’t had a hit in almost a decade.

Mcdaniels and his henchmen joined forces with struggling rockers and recorded a classic new version of one of Aerosmith’s old hits. Walk This Way was an even bigger seller the second time around and helped catapult Run DMC’s third release Raising Hell to multi-platinum international sales.

Run DMC didn’t seem to be fighting rock for musical supremacy, but if anyone was keeping score; it was clear to see who really was the king.

It has been quite a roller coaster for the young people who made Adidas a phenomenon. Since the release of Raising Hell over twenty years ago, the superstars have released four more albums, all of which have achieved platinum status.

Unfortunately, the trio was whittled down to two on October 30. 2002 when the legendary Jam Master Jay was called upon to his creator.

Joseph “Run” Simmons is now known as Reverend Run. The new man on the web, when he’s not filming his hit reality show, still finds time to rock the mic with his often imitated but never duplicated emcee skills. His solo release, Distortion, served to fill many fans’ desire for a new Run DMC recording.

DMC, years after his St. John’s college days, is ready to match his partner in crime and will even feature the Reverend on a few tracks from the King of Rock’s solo debut, Checks, Thugs, & Rock -N -Roll.