“Two turntables and a microphone.” Presenting Run-D.M.C. at their induction into the rock HOF in 2009, Eminem described the only tools the group needed to change the face of music and usher in the hardcore hip hop style that has dominated the genre for 30 years now. Named the Greatest Hip Hop Artists of All Time by MTV and VH1, they are also in Rolling Stone’s top 50 rock artists of all time. They are acknowledged to be the group most influential in merging rap with rock, and establishing mainstream acceptance and popularity of hip hop music and fashion.
Jam Master Jay, born Jason Mizell, was the heart and soul of Run-D.M.C. A music prodigy who began playing trumpet at age 3, he moved on to play guitar, bass and drums in various Brooklyn NY bands, before moving to Hollis, Queens, and discovering what he could do with turntables. He was already DJing in clubs, at parties and in the parks where “turntablists” and rappers performed and competed. That’s where he met Joseph Simmons (Run) and Darryl McDaniels (D.M.C.) in 1982. “Jazzy Jase”, as he was then known, agreed to DJ for them just "because he wanted to be in a band". They practiced at his mother’s house. And, they imitated his street-wise style: laceless Adidas, black Lee denims, black hats and leather coats, and gold chains.
Jam Master Jay’s forte was cutting, sampling and re-working classic guitar riffs, and merging them into the musical backdrop for Run-D.M.C. raps, all while scratching out the backbone rhythms for the songs. He also played live keyboards, bass and drums on the group’s third and most popular album, Raising Hell. For his skill, Jam Master Jay was ranked No. 10 of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time by Spin.
Run-D.M.C. was the first rap act to appear in television music videos, and several of these remain as fresh as when they debuted. Perhaps the best example of this is “Walk This Way”, an Aerosmith cover concept of Jam Master Jay and producer Rick Rubin. The videos for “Rock Box”, “King of Rock” and “It’s Tricky” are also especially good.
Run-D.M.C. is rightly credited for enabling the popularity of hip hop acts that followed, as well as paving the way for the rap rock movement and its precursors, exemplified by Faith No More, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and in the late 1990s, by bands like Rage Against the Machine, KoRn, Sublime, Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park.
Jam Master Jay’s life was tragically cut short on October 30, 2002, when he was shot and killed at his recording studio in Queens. His murder remains unsolved.
