Big Bank Hank (born Henry Jackson in 1956 in New York City, United States) is an American old school rapper. Also known as Imp the Dimp, he is a member of The Sugarhill Gang, the first hip hop act to have a hit single, "Rapper's Delight".[1]
Hank was born in the Bronx, New York City. He graduated from Bronx Community College with an A.S. degree in Oceanography. While attending college, he won several championships in wrestling. After graduating from college, Hank found it very hard to attain a position in oceanography, so he worked at a pizzeria. He did his job so well that when the owner of the shop expanded his business to Englewood, New Jersey, he brought Hank over to head the Crispy Crust store, where Hank was later discovered. Hank was 22 years old at the time when the Sugarhill Gang's self-titled album was released.
Hank's act is known for his competition with the comic book superhero Superman. His verse depicts him meeting Lois Lane and convincing her to drop her boyfriend, Superman. Says Hank: "He's a fairy, I do suppose, flying through the air in panty hose...He can't satisfy you with his little worm, but I can bust you out with my super sperm". In his three sections of the song, Hank uses his well-known chant: "Ho-tel, Mo-tel, what you gonna do today (say what)/I'm gonna get a fly girl, gonna get some spank n' drive off in a def O.J." (An "O.J." refers to a luxury American car, such as a Lincoln Continental. The reference is from popular TV commercials of the 1970s where NFL running back O.J. Simpson was the spokesperson for Hertz's rental cars.[2])
In the years following the release of "Rapper's Delight", many of the pioneers of the New York City hip hop community have claimed that Grandmaster Caz, a rapper under Hank's management who also went by the name of Casanova Fly, wrote the lines. His first line of the song "check it out, i'm the c-a-s-an-the-o-v-a and the rest is f-l-y" adds a lot of weight to this argument.
Busta Rhymes' breakout single "Woo-Hah!! Got you all in check" samples Hank's line in the 1981 hit "Eighth Wonder". "See it's up my back, it's around my neck, Woo-hah!! Got them all in check."
The song "Big Bank Hank" is currently featured on a commercial for the Amazon Kindle. Mr. Jackson also did the chorus background voices for the lovable characters in the first Gremlins movie.