Luther Campbell
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Luke | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Miami, Florida, USA |
| Years active | 1985 – Present |
| Genres | Hip hop Dirty rap |
| Labels | Luke Records Loud |
Luther R. Campbell (born December 22, 1960), also known as Luke Skyywalker, Uncle Luke or Luke, is a record label owner and rap performer (taking the non-rapping role of "hype man"). He is perhaps best known as a one-time member of 2 Live Crew.
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[edit] Career
Campbell's work as a performer can be characterised as Southern Rap; most of it is part of the Miami Bass sub-genre. The sexual content of his group's lyrics caused controversy and led to legal cases. Usually, Campbell does not rap but rather shouts or chants—very often in a call and response manner, with him calling and the crowd responding. He was not an original member of the 2 Live Crew, only joining them after their first steps as a California rap crew. Only through Campbell did they become "Southern" rappers.
Campbell runs Luke Records, which shortened its name from Luke Skyywalker Records after George Lucas filed a legal case against them for infringing on the name of his Star Wars character, Luke Skywalker.
Luke actually began as a concert promoter in Miami, bringing all the hot rap groups of the early 1980s to the city. In 1985, 2 Live Crew's initial single (2 Live AKA Beat Box) was a smash hit on the South Florida club circuit, so Luke brought them from California to Miami for a performance. He took a special interest in the group and began managing them, and only after he saw a lack of stage presence in the front men did he insert himself into the group as their "hype man". He was dissed by Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg on the song "Dre Day".
Luke's first solo LP, Banned in the USA, was basically a 2 Live Crew record, yet he did not offer royalties to the group for creating the album; rather, a small flat fee was paid. When 2 Live Crew's contracts with Luke Records ended in 1991, the group's producer (and Luke Records's in-house producer for the entire label) Mr. Mixx left the group and returned to California. However, the group did decide to do a sequel to their biggest album. Initially, Luke employed the label's second string producers The O.D.S. to produce the album, but it was not turning into the group's vision, so Luke recruited Mr. Mixx to return and produce the album as an independent producer (T-Shirt and Khakis Productions).
However, by the time of the album's completion, they sought to make it appear as if the group was totally intact. Shortly after, all members of the group drew up a lawsuit against Luke for unpaid royalties, which member Fresh Kid Ice backed out of and revamped a new 2 Live Crew with Luke in 1994. Finally a settlement was reached for the remaining plaintiffs. Shortly after this, label-mate MC Shy D would effectively sue Luke Records for $1 million dollars in unpaid royalties. The judge in the case, a former musician himself, verbally stated that he wanted to make an example of Luke.
Luke released a solo record (technically, his first) in 1991 entitled I Wanna Rock (also known as Doo Doo Brown), but he remained true to his call and response style rather than rapping, and hired outside producers. The song is seen as a pivotal point in Miami Bass, sparking what some call its third wave. He released it on the heels of the final 2 Live Crew album, going so far as to stop promotion on their album while the 2 Live Crew single "Pop that Coochie" was still in the charts. It is suggested that Luke wanted his solo song to be seen as the next 2 Live Crew single, despite not having rights to the group's name.
Luke Records filed for bankruptcy in the mid-1990s. Former Luke Records' Chief Financial Officer Lil Joe Weinstein acquired the Luke Records catalog, and reunified the original three members of 2 Live Crew without Luke during the mid-1990s to release music on Lil Joe Records. Some suggest Lil Joe deliberately forced Luke Records into bankruptcy over unpaid loans between the two men.
Campbell was also infamous in the late 1980s–early 1990s for his association with the University of Miami Hurricanes football team. Campbell told The Miami Herald that he offered "bounties" to Miami players for scoring touchdowns, intercepting passes, sacking quarterbacks, and knocking opposing players out of games.
It may be interesting to note that Lil Jon (who used to produce Miami Bass records) has a vocal style not too dissimilar from Luke—in any case, they both (normally) do not rap and use guest rappers. Crunk music may be seen as the heir of Campbell's brand of Miami bass—both lyrically and musically.
He has a new album that is to be released in April 2006. It will be called My Life & Freaky Times. It will feature Trick Daddy, Petey Pablo, Jacki-O, Pitbull, Dirtbag, and Big Tigger to name a few. The first singles being serviced to radio and the clubs from the compilation album are "Holla At Cha Homeboy", featuring Pitbull & Petey Pablo, and the reggaeton-leaning "Pop That" by Plan B and Rey Chester Secretweapon.[1]
[edit] Trivia
- Campbell was raised Catholic.[2]
- In the summer of 1993, Campbell had a brief feud with Dr. Dre and Death Row Records when Dre and Snoop Dogg dissed him on Fuck Wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebratin'), from his 1992 album The Chronic. Campbell responded with the single "Cowards In Compton." The video received solid airplay on BET and lampooned the video for Dre's "Nuttin' But a G Thang."
- Death Row Records president Suge Knight was arrested when he was found with a gun going to one of Campbell's concerts.
- Campbell wrote a book titled As Nasty as They Wanna Be about his days with the 2 Live Crew and the political controversy surrounding their album with the same name.
- Campbell is from Miami's notorious Liberty City neighborhood.
- Campbell is a huge fan of University of Miami football and allegedly offered a "pay-for-play" system, rewarding UM football players with cash for exceptional plays during the 1980s.
- Campbell appears in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories as DJ Luke for period hip-hop station Fresh 105 FM. In real life, Campell is a very popular DJ in Miami on Power 96 FM and is also a major player in Miami's rap scene.
- Campbell's Label tried to sue 50 Cent for stealing lyrics fro In Da Club from Campbells own song 'It's Your Birthday'. They lost. Cambell had said that he had nothing to do with the case.
[edit] Discography
- 1990 The Luke LP featuring The 2 Live Crew: Banned in the USA (Luke Records)
- 1992 Luke Solo: I Got Shit On My Mind (Luke/Atlantic)
- 1993 Luke: In the nude (Luke)
- 1994 Luke: Freak For Life... 6996 (Luke)#174 on Billboard 200
- 1996 Luke: Uncle Luke (Luther Campbell Music/Alliance)#51 on Billboard 200
- 1997 Luke: Changing the Game (Luke/Island)
- 2001 Uncle Luke: Something Nasty (Luke/Koch) #149 on Billboard 200
- 2000 Luke's Freak Fest 2000 (Luke/Loud)
- 2006 My Life & Freaky Times (Luke/Loud)
[edit] References
- ^ Clark, Carlos. "2 Live Crew Member Tells All", CMJ, February 1, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-03-12.
- ^ Luther Campbell profile at VH1.com
