Das EFX
is an American hip-hop group. It consists of emcees Skoob
(also known as Books
, born William "Willie" Hines
on January 2, 1971) and Dre
(also known as Krazy Drayzy
, born Andre Weston
on June 1, 1972). They rose to popularity in the early 1990s due to their affiliation with EPMD's Hit Squad and the group's stream of consciousness lyrical delivery, which became one of the most influential lyrical styles in hip hop music during the early 1990s. [1] Their style combined nonsensical lines with a fast-paced ragga-influenced flow (that included words that end with "iggedy
") and numerous pop culture references.
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DAS EFX TICKETS
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History
Group member Skoob hails from
Brooklyn, New York City while Krazy Drayzy hails from
Teaneck, New Jersey but the two met at
Virginia State University in 1988 and began performing together. They named themselves "Das" standing for "Drayz and Skoob" and "EFX" meaning "effects". Das EFX caught the attention of EPMD at a local talent show where, despite losing the competition, they did well enough to convince EPMD to sign them to a recording contract. The duo gained critical and commercial fame with the release of their landmark debut album,
Dead Serious
, which highlighted their unusual rapping style which they nicknamed "
sewage".
Dead Serious
went
platinum and its lead single, "They Want EFX," (which contains samples from
James Brown's "
Blind Man Can See It" and
Malcolm McLaren's "
Buffalo Gals") reached the top ten on
Billboard
magazine's R&B chart, the top 40 on its
Hot 100 Singles chart and #1 on its
Hot Rap Tracks chart. Follow-up singles "Mic Checka" and "Straight Out the Sewer" did not chart on the Hot 100 but reached #1 and #3 on the
Hot Rap Tracks chart, respectively.
The duo also made a guest appearance on
Ice Cube's smash hit single "
Check Yo Self". The song reached #20 on the Hot 100 and #1 on the Rap Tracks chart. Their
refrain of "Chiggedy-check yo self before you wriggedy-wreck yo self" became a
catchphrase in 1993. The song has since appeared in the
videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
, playing on the radio station
Radio Los Santos.
From the time of their debut in 1992 to 1993, several elements of their style were adopted by other hip-hop artists, including the
Lords of the Underground, The
Fu-Schnickens,
Kris Kross,
Common and even, to a lesser extent,
Public Enemy. The
iggedy
style was also referenced in the 1996
BLACKstreet song "
No Diggity" with "diggity" meaning "doubt". This also became popular catchphrase at the time.
As their career progressed, however, Das EFX's once-distinctive and unique lyrical delivery became more commonplace as other artists, including a young
Jay-Z, imitated it. Derailed by the popularity of their own style, the duo slowed down their fast-paced flow, eliminated the
iggedy
prefix and downplayed their
cartoonish content on their second album,
Straight Up Sewaside
. However, around the time of their third album
Hold It Down
(which was far less commercially successful than their debut release), Das EFX found themselves caught in the middle of EPMD's ugly breakup; it led to a three-year absence from recording. They returned in 1998 with the album
Generation EFX
and followed up in 2003 with the album
How We Do
; both were panned by critics. Das EFX continue to record and perform today to a much smaller yet devoted
cult following.
In 2006, after a hiatus,
Das Efx went on many International tours with DJ Rondevu.
In 2007, the group appeared on the remix of
Nas' "Where are They Now" and continues to tour the globe on a regular basis.
In 2007 the group had a large European tour and performed in Serbia, Italy, Bulgaria, Hungary, Spain, Germany, Japan, Chile and many other countries.They are currently working on a new album that is scheduled to come out in sometime in 2008.
Chappelle's Show
Comedian
Dave Chappelle has made numerous references to Das EFX's unique style and lyrics in sketches of his popular
Chappelle's Show
. In one sketch, a teenaged Chappelle tells his girlfriend "I riggity-realize that I liggity-love you". In another, Chappelle as
President Bush announced that a country named "Riggity-Row" will join the
Coalition of the Willing. In yet another sketch, Chappelle as a
news anchor announces the opening lyrics of "They Want EFX" as a
special report.
Discography
Album information
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Dead Serious
- Released: April 7, 1992
- Certification: Platinum
- Billboard 200 chart position: #16
- R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #1
- Singles: "They Want Efx"/"Jussummen", "Mic Checka", "Straight From Da Sewer"
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Straight Up Sewaside
- Released: November 16, 1993
- Billboard 200 chart position: #20
- R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #6
- Singles: "Freakit"/"Gimme Dat Microphone", "Baknaffek", "Kaught In Da Ak"/"It'z Lik Dat"
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Hold It Down
- Released: September 26, 1995
- Billboard 200 chart position: #22
- R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #4
- Singles: "Real Hip-Hop"/"No Diggedy", "Microphone Master"
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Generation EFX
- Released: March 24, 1998
- Billboard 200 chart position: #48
- R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #10
- Singles: "Rap Scholar"
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How We Do
- Released: September 23, 2003
- Billboard 200 chart position:
- R&B/Hip-Hop chart position:
- Singles: "East Coast Husslaz"/"How We Do"
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References
- allmusic ((( Das EFX > Biography )))