Fatman Scoop cuts a big figure in the hip hop world, both physically and in terms of his reputation. Known as one of the biggest hype men in the game, he is also a hip hop promoter and radio personality. Performing, his rough, raw voice is unmistakable. Recently exiting the UK Celebrity Big Brother House, he has gained even more fame and is more in demand than ever.
The story behind Fatman Scoop’s undeniably original name is an interesting one. Appearing years ago as a cinema worker serving popcorn and ice cream in the legendary hip hop group, The Fugees’ music video for their cover of ‘Killing Me Softly’, he gained his accolade from what Lauryn Hill would shout at him during filming. A big ice cream fan herself, Hill would shout, “Scoop, scoop, fatman scoop” when she wanted another ice cream. Furthermore, Lauryn Hill actually sang a spoof of her own version of the song, with the lyrics, “Filling my belly with popcorn,” which apparently has Fatman Scoop very amused.
Fatman Scoop is a famous performer, and is best known for his 2003 release, ‘Be faithful’, which soared to No. 1 in the UK and Ireland and was also a top 5 hit in Australia. Despite its huge popularity, it actually took a gruelling two years for the samples in the song to be cleared with the original artists, Jay-Z, Black Sheep, Queen Pen, The Beatnuts and Faith Evans.
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His talents not just restricted to music, Fatman Scoop also has his own sex and relationship podcast, available on the Man & Wife channel on internet TV network ONLOQ.com as well as MTV. He also appeared as himself in ‘The Boondock’ series 2 episodes 5 and 15.
Fatman Scoop’s latest big public appearance was of course on UK Celebrity Big Brother. Entering the house on 27th August, his personality proved once again just as big as his imposing figure, sparking a controversy about his use of the “n” word in the house with fellow American, James Hill. Fatman Scoop represented the USA in what was a UK vs. USA theme, but ended up as the third housemate to be evicted on day 20, the 14th September.
Although bringing him inevitably into the public eye once again, Fatman Scoop claims the appearance wasn’t a money grabbing stunt but to bring his big persona to a wider audience. He commented on how his appearance was sure to introduce his persona to a new group of people who wouldn’t have been aware of him before, for example, as he commented, ‘mums’.
The hype man role has always been an important one in the world of hip hop. His or her role is to intersperse the main rapper’s flow with exclamations and to increase audience participation with call and response activity. Some of the most successful hype men have been known to become rappers in their own right, for example, Diddy, Lil Jon, Swizz Beatz and Jermaine Dupri.
The early hype men were Cowby and Creole, who would perform with Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Koll Moe Dee has labelled Creole as “the original hype man”. The quintessential hype man was often claimed to be Flavor Flav, from Public Enemy
Recently Fatman Scoop has branched out with more collaborations; with Disco Fries for the track ‘Volume’, and on a free download with Skrillex and Jauz, where Fatman Scoop adds his typical hype, shouting “squad out!” and “let the f***ing bass drop”. He also appears regularly on the radio show Full Throttle Worldwide.
Fatman Scoop is available for booking through MN2S Agency.
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