Lately i've been on a frestyle kick. Freestyle was great because it was a nice combo of pop, electro beats, new wave and rap with a little latin flavor. I'm getting into Trinere at the moment. By the way, does anyone know who did "lookout wekend" first? i swear i've heard so many versions but Debbie Deb's is my fave.

Best freestyles i have heard

was Nas on Tim Westwood, Biggie and Tupac freestyle, where Biggie shits on Tupac wack ass rhymes, Gunit and Roc A Fella hot 97 freestyles. Juice Crew freestyles, LL Cool J freestyle at his 18yr old birthday party.

man those freestyles where insane

Trinere was hot! Speaking of "freestyle", Pretty Tony was her producer and he had a group called....Freestyle. They had some of the baddest rap jams on 12 Inch of the mid to late 1980s. Some were released under the name "Pretty Tony" and others were released under the name "Freestyle".....

Fix It In The Mix - Pretty Tony
Freestyle Express - Freestyle
The Party Has Just Begun - Freestyle
Jam The Box - Pretty Tony
Don't Stop The Rock - Freestyle
It's Automatic - Freestyle
In Your Face - Freestyle

I listed them from memory without pulling my 12 Inches so I may have the artist name switched on one or two or them, but you get the picture.

As for the genre that later became known as freestyle. I never quite understood what it consisted of. Would it be mabybe groups like Company B, Corina, or Expose?

KingKrazy said:

I think she means freestyle as in latin/club/dance music.

oh shit she meant that Stevie B type music,

OOPS DAZE, BOO I AM CRAZED

vainandy said:

yeah, groups like company b. and expose are definitely considred freestyle. i wish people were still making that kind of music. actually Ciara's new cd has some freestyle influences in it. so pretty tony was a pioneer of that sound? i wish i could find some of the stuff you listed. are they cheesy and dated sounding. that's my favorite!

KingKrazy said:

aw man, you're talking about the wrong kind of freestyle. think more sweet sensation, the cover girls, expose!

dancerella said:

Back in the day it was called Latin hip-hop. I had so many freestyle records in high school and early college. I later condensed all my 12" singles down into three compilation cassettes. I'll post them when I go home.

KingKrazy said:

by george you've got it!

sextonseven said:

who did you listen to back then? drop some names? anyone i should check out?

KingKrazy said:

Rookie!

You want latin freestyle?!? I"ll give to ya:

Don't Break My Heart -- Sa-Fire
Show Me -- The Cover Girls
Yo Little Brother -- Nolan Thomas
One Way Love -- TKA
Come Go With Me -- Expose
All Night -- Trinere
I Wanna Be The One -- Stevie B.
Take It While It's Hot -- Sweet Sensation




.....I'll have more shortly!

Let Me Be The One -- Sa-Fire
Together Forever -- Lisette Menendez
No Reason To Cry -- Judy Torres
Boy I Been Told -- Sa-Fire
Lookout Weekend -- Debbie Deb
Let Me Be The One -- Expose
For Tonight -- Nancy Martinez
Catch Me (I'm Falling) -- Pretty Poison
Hooked On You -- Sweet Sensation
Fascinated -- Company B.



.....more to come!

vainandy said:

Hell yeah! Those artists were the Miami Freestyle scene (especially Pretty Tony & Stevie B.).

EDIT: BTW, Don't Stop The Rock is the ultimate badass freestyle/electro/hip-hop classic!
[Edited 12/6/06 17:54pm]

Temptation -- Corina
In A Dream -- Rockell
Can't We Try -- Rockell/Collage
I Just Die In Your Arms Tonight -- Collage
Take Me In Your Arms -- Lil Suzy
Exposed To Love -- Expose
Point Of No Return -- Expose
Bad Of The Heart -- George Lamond
Silent Morning -- Noel
Honey To A Bee -- Tina B.
Baby Talk -- Alisha
Yo No Sé -- Pajama Party
Time After Time -- Timmy T.


.....more to come (so many freaking freestyle songs to remember)!!!
[Edited 12/6/06 18:14pm]

dancerella said:

Debbie Deb was the first (and only version that matters, IMO).

Diamond Girl -- Nice 'N Wild
Pop Goes My Love -- Freeze
What's On Your Mind -- Information Society
Think -- Information Society
If You Leave Me Now -- Jaya
Don't Stop Now -- The Cover Girls
Because Of You -- The Cover Girls
Inside Out -- The Cover Girls
Set U Free -- Planet Soul
Feel So Good -- Lina Santiago
Never Let You Go -- Sweet Sensation


.....still more to come!

People fail to release that the first COVER GIRLS CD, which was "Show Me" and issued on Fever Records was the most succesful indie lable release of its time, and to this day its the ONLY indie CD to Chart 5 Singles on the Hot 100, its never been matched nor will it ever in these changing times.

Oh damn, I forgot to post my compilations last night. Tony posted most of the songs already anyway, though.

TonyVanDam said:

alright now we're talking! damn, i forgot about that yo little brother track. you are taking it way back. i love take it while it's hot by sweet sensation. is it safe to say that stevie b was the most successful male freestyle artist?

TonyVanDam said:

i'm with you on that. her version kills it so as far as i'm concerned it her track! by the way, your lists are rocking! i need to find me some comps or albums at the wrecka stow. aren't most of these out of print?

don't you wish frestyle would come back? nina sky should bring it back!

lastdecember said:

dancerella said:

Most successful male freestyle artist: Stevie B.

Most successful female freestyle artist: Expose, The Cover Girls

TonyVanDam said:

All and all by Joyce Sims is the jam! By the way, I bought Connie's cd at lunchtime. I hope it's good.

Don't you wish there were artists doing freestyle now? I could see Lumidee and Nina Sky!

Freestyle was/is a great thing, but like anything that starts as a cult/underground favorite, once the labels get hold of it, corruption. Thanks to labels, the Cover Girls and Expose were doing Ballads, Lisa Lisa was doing motown sounding songs. Actually i do blame "Clivilles and Cole" for this. This two guys sold out Freestyle big time, lets not forget that they were behind the whole Lypsnching thing in the later 80's-very early 90's, putting a hot female out front and having someone else doing vocals behind the scenes. So once this whole fiasco came to a head, no one trusted groups like Expose,Cover Girls,Lisa Lisa or any of the other Freestyle greats.

dancerella said:

Freestyle still exist. It didn't "die" like disco or anything. The genre went back underground in NYC & Miami. And the sorry state of FM radio will not help matters any (except for Miami, Florida where they're still playing even the new generation of freestyle artists).

There has been Freestyle reunion shows as of late. TKA reunited more than one. Stevie B. still release albums & do live show in Miami & Las Vegas. The Cover Girls line-up has change like Menudo!!! Lisette Menendez, Sa-Fire, & Judy Torres are still touring the dance club circult. You can easily find some of the videos of these show over on YouTube.

TonyVanDam said:

To me this album should get a VH! classic album special too, not only for the facts mentioned, just by what the girls and the label had to work with, no budgets, no money to do Videos, but they did More with Less, unlike todays artists who do so much less with so much more available. Its funny "The Cover Girls" video for "Because of You" was shot here in Nyc in a club after hours, they couldnt afford extras to dance, so its just the 3 girls, two camera mix, but its a classic.

TonyVanDam said:

Oh i know that, living here in NYC and going to the clubs back then i was always meeting the groups and still have contact with some of them now through their Myspace sites, Evelyn who joined the Cover Girls in 1990 when Angel Left is now still fronting the group, she was the lead vocalist on the Club hits, "Dont Stop Now" and "Funk Boutique" and i have known her since 1992. And back in the day Freestyle artists where the only ones i could get autographs from, my collection of Lisa Lisa,Cover Girls,Expose,Pajama Party,Lisette Melendez to name a few.

lastdecember said:

I know that C+C sold-out on house music as well! They also fail to publicly credit Marsha Walsh for her lead vocals (C+C Music Factory's Gonna Make You Sweat) and backing vocals (Seduction's first and only album) on their tracks. Even the producers of Black Box fail to credit Marsha for put vocals on their tracks as well.

As for the downfall of frestyle, you can give almost all of the blame on mainstream hip-hop (especially gangsta rap). FM Radio follow the lead of the major recrd labels by putting more focus on the genre that generated the most profit at the fastest rate (again, gangsta rap).