from the 12” single, CBS Records, 1984Even though rap music, with beats & an MC, has certainly triumphed far beyond any plausible measure of success, I would argue that it was hip-hop’s cyborg cousin, electro, which has wound up influencing a much broader range of musical subcultures in its wake: breaks, techno, Miami bass, and freestyle all used pieces of the electro template for varying portions of each scene’s particular blueprints. One of the first, and probably most successful & remembered, freestyle acts was Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam, produced and assembled by the famous NYC crew Full Force; although they are most remembered for their #1 hits “Head to Toe” and “Lost in Emotion”, it’s this debut single which has never let me go, eternal favorite to the pop-n-lock set and all around explosion of bump. Puerto Rican power baby!
