Daddy-O (musician) - Stetsasonic

Stetsasonic

Stetsasonic was an American hip hop group formed in 1981 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York. It is remembered as one of the first hip hop crews to use a live band. Their positive, uplifting lyrics have made the group forerunners of alternative hip hop and jazz hip hop.

Stetsasonic was composed of 7 members: Wise, ‘’’’Daddy-O’’’’, Frukwan, Prince Paul, DBC (Devastating Beat Creator), MC Delite, and Bobby Simmons.

The group was originally known as The Stetson Brothers, after Stetson hats, but it changed its name to Stetsasonic for its debut album, On Fire (1986). The album received mixed reviews, though the follow-ups, In Full Gear and Blood, Sweat & No Tears were critically acclaimed. A 1988 New York Times article said that the group mirrored the rise of artistic, profound rap music: "While pop's political commentary often seems secondary to catchy melodies and commercial acceptability, rap's tough sound sharpens its commentary". As a "hip hop band", dependent on instruments as well as turntables, the group was also famous for their live shows, though sometimes the "rap-show format prevented Stetsasonic from employing the band instrumentation and studio layering that make their records so distinctive."

The group disbanded soon after the release of Blood, Sweat & No Tears. Frukwan and Prince Paul were founding members of the Gravediggaz, while the latter also became a record producer,

Former member Bobby Simmons pursued work in public access, forming the show Flava Videos in the mid-'90s on Channel 26 (New York).

Wise is known as one of the pioneers of beatboxing along with Doug E. Fresh.

‘’’’Daddy-O’’’’ went on to be a well-respected record producer, who worked with Freestyle Fellowship, Mary J. Blige, Positive K, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, among others.