Legendary rapper Doug E. Fresh recorded and toured with Prince, and he reveals that the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer agreed to produce live album for him before passing away in 2016.
“When I was touring with him, he loved go-go,” the “Human Beat Box” tells HipHopDX. “So based on him loving go-go, he was going to produce my live album before he transitioned.”
Fresh was featured on the Purple Rain star’s 1998 tour with Chaka Khan and Larry Graham, and he recorded two songs on The New Power Generation‘s Newpower Soul album released the same year. Also in 1998, Prince, Khan, Graham and Fresh taped the Beautiful Strange concert video at London’s Cafe de Paris.
Meanwhile, the 2014 BET Hip Hop Awards Icon honoree recently released his first album in 26 years, This One’s for Chuck Brown: Doug E. Fresh Salutes the Godfather of Go-Go.
Grammy nominee Brown is known as the leading force behind the go-go music created in the 1960s in Washington, D.C. In 1979, his signature song, “Bustin’ Loose,” remained at number one on the Billboard R&B singles chart for four weeks. The pulsating track has been used as a theme song for the Washington Nationals baseball team, Washington Wizards NBA team and Washington Capitals hockey team.
Brown died from heart failure in 2012 at the age of 75.
“Just from a cultural perspective, Chuck Brown is a culture icon, but not just from the culture of go-go music, more like what he represents,” Fresh says.
This One’s For Chuck Brown: Doug E. Fresh Salutes the Godfather of Go-Go, released September 24, includes the last verse recorded by the late Biz Markie, who passed away July 16 at the age of 57.
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