Skip to the content

Skip to main content
Collections Menu
The Brothers Disco: DJ Breakout, DJ Baron, the Funky Four MCs, Kool DJ A.J., DJ Starski, MC Sonny Gee, MC Shorn Cee, DJ Afrika Bambaataa and the Zulu Nation, the Monster 3 MCs, at the Bronx River Center, New York, NY, April 6, 1979
The Brothers Disco: DJ Breakout, DJ Baron, the Funky Four MCs, Kool DJ A.J., DJ Starski, MC Sonny Gee, MC Shorn Cee, DJ Afrika Bambaataa and the Zulu Nation, the Monster 3 MCs, at the Bronx River Center, New York, NY, April 6, 1979

The Brothers Disco: DJ Breakout, DJ Baron, the Funky Four MCs, Kool DJ A.J., DJ Starski, MC Sonny Gee, MC Shorn Cee, DJ Afrika Bambaataa and the Zulu Nation, the Monster 3 MCs, at the Bronx River Center, New York, NY, April 6, 1979

Promoter Brothers Disco
Performing artist Funky 4+1
Performing artist Monster 3 M.C.s
Performing artist M.C. Sonny Gee
Artist Buddy Esquire
DJ Afrika Bambaataa
DJ Kool DJ A.J.
DJ D.J. Starski
Venue The Bronx River Center
Production company Jazzy Dee Productions
Date1979
Mediumink; paper (fiber product)
DimensionsOverall (HWD): 13 7/16 × 7 15/16 in. (34.131 × 20.161 cm)
Credit LineMoPOP permanent collection
Object number1999.123.41
Text Entries

Party flyers were a staple in the early years of Hip-Hop and hard-copy invitations were the main medium for communicating information and promoting an event. The flyers symbolized many key appearances, acts, conventions, DJ performances, and contests in the Hip-Hop scene. Many flyers were created by local graffiti artists such as Buddy Esquire and Phase 2. The flyers were often presented by Hip-Hop promoters, DJs, and MCs who hosted the parties. Money was given to the artist to draw creative art and graphics for about $40-$60 for around 1,000 party flyers. The parks’ open public spaces have provided the perfect venues for park jams, impromptu dance-offs, and rap battles that established the sound, fashion, art, and message of Hip-Hop. Most of the Hip-Hop parties were a space for positivity where many of the Hip-Hop community could escape the realities of racism that included police brutality, drug abuse, and gang violence in their surrounding communities.

Many of the original Hip-Hop parties took place at local roller rinks, community centers, parks, and clubs. Roller rinks were an important cultural site for fun in the late 70s and 80s where adults and teens would attend roller discos and Hip-Hop parties.  The space would be used as a place for DJs to spin, rappers to show their talents, and for breakers to showcase their dancing skills on the large skate floor. Community centers were another important space in the early years of Hip-Hop for youth to gather and escape their everyday life. Additionally, community centers and recreation centers were the original spaces where DJ Kool Herc would spin in his early era of DJing. The community centers such as the Bronx River Center and the PAL were usually located in the middle of the projects. But local promoters would give parties and give money back to the center for books and trips for the local kids in the community

DJ Breakout/DJ Baron
Promoter and DJ for Funky Four + 1. DJ Breakout and DJ Baron are true Hip-Hop pioneers and very important to this culture era and was known as the Brothers Disco. As promoters and DJs for the Funky 4 plus 1, the Brothers had the biggest sound system playing from park to park. The Brothers Disco were not cut masters like Grand Wizard Theodore, Grand Master Flash, or Charlie Chase rather, they promoted a lot of historical early Hip-Hop Park jams.

Funky 4+1
Funky 4+1 More included K.K. Rockwell (Kevin Smith, b. unknown), Sha-Rock (Sharon Green, b. 1962), Keith Keith (Keith Caesar, b. unknown), Rahiem (Guy Todd Wiliams, b. unknown) until 1979 when he joined Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Lil’ Rodney C (Rodney Stone, b. unknown), MC Jazzy Jeff (Jeff Miree, b. 1962) D.J. Baron (Baron Chappell, b. unknown) and D.J. Breakout (Keith Williams, b. unknown). The Funky 4+1 More is considered a legendary Hip-Hop group emerging out of the South Bronx, forming at the end of the disco era in 1978. Funky 4+1 More was one of the first battle groups, the first rap group to have a female MC, the first rap group to be signed by a major record label, and the first rap group to perform live on national television. The group performed ‘That’s the Joint’ on Saturday Night Live, February 1981. Their debut single was the 15-min track ‘Rappin and Rocking the House’ released in 1979, which was the same year they signed with Enjoy Records for three months then signed with Sugar Hill Records where they released ‘That’s the Joint’ in 1980. In 1979 Rahiem left the group to join Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, then in 1981 Lil Rodney C and KK Rockwell left to form a duo called Double Trouble. In 1983, Sha-Rock formed US Girls with Debbie D and Lisa Lee.

Black and white flyer in black ink listing performers, location and details of event.

Buddy Esquire (Lemoin Thompson, b.1958 – 2014) is a graphic designer from the Bronx. Producing 300 graphic materials in the form of flyers, Buddy Esquire was the most well-known show flyer artist in the Bronx in the early days of Hip-Hop, from 1978 to 1982. Grandmaster Flash, Afrika Bambaataa, Kool Herc, the Funky 4 Plus 1, and the Cold Crush Brothers were among the Hip-Hop legends whose early performances were advertised on his flyers. He was self-taught and learned drawing and typography principles from books at his local library. Graffiti, Japanese anime, superhero comics, and Art Deco architecture were among his influences. Buddy Esquire's visual styles helped to set the tone for Hip-Hop, where his work used jukeboxes and historic theater marquees as inspiration.

CopyrightThis work is issued under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) License. For more information, go to https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
On View
Not on view
The Brothers Disco: DJ Breakout, DJ Baron, the Funky 4 MCs, at Bronx H.S. of Science, Bronx, New York, NY, February 23, 1979
Brothers Disco
Date: 1979
Medium: ink; paper (fiber product)
Object number: 1999.123.24
The Brothers Disco: DJ Breakout, DJ Baron, The Funky Four Plus 1, at the P.A.L., Bronx, New York, NY, December 8, 1979
Brothers Disco
Date: 1979
Medium: ink; paper (fiber product)
Object number: 1999.123.29
A  Record Release Party for:  Devastating Mc's, Master Don, DJ Dr Fast, at Yerwood Center, Stanford, CT, April 6, 1985.
Devastating Mc's
Date: 1985
Medium: ink; paper (fiber product)
Object number: 1999.733.67
TICKETS