Alphonso Castro K. Bondzie (1 February 1975 – 27 February 2022), better known as MC Skibadee, was a British recording artist and drum and bass MC.
MC Skibadee | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Alphonso Bondzie |
| Also known as | Skibs, Skiba |
| Born | 1 February 1975 Waterloo, London, England |
| Died | 27 February 2022 (aged 47) |
| Genres | Drum and bass, jungle, hip hop, breakbeat |
| Years active | 1993–2022 |
Career
editBondzie started on City Sound Radio in 1993 featuring on the Live and Direct show, with DJs Pro-D and Cyrus, and by early 1995 he regularly featured at jungle music events such as Thunder & Joy and Spirit of the Jungle, as well as his regular spot on radio. By the end of 1995, he was resident for the London pirate radio station Kool FM,[1] and regularly featured at events such as Jungle Fever, New Jack City, and Innersense. Along with MC Det of Kool FM, he launched a new project called 2Xfreestyle in late 1997, which involved putting a drum and bass tempo over a hip-hop beat, therefore creating a "double time" effect. He would often perform this style with its innovator Stevie Hyper D.[2][3]
The single and subsequent video "Inside Me" was a success and after being accepted on MTV and The Box. In 1999, he received the first of three the Knowledge Awards for best MC, and three Accelerated Culture Awards.[4] Since 2000, he began collaborating with MC Shabba D (also known as Shabba) which became the partnership commonly known as "S.A.S." and became synonymous with the raves Telepathy and One Nation. In 2003, he provided the vocals for Dillinja's UK chart-breaking "Twist Em Out".[5]
In 2006 he won the 1Xtra Award for best MC and in 2007 he won best MC southwest Drum n Bass award.[6] In 2008 and 2009, Skibadee won best Lyrical MC and best Hype MC in the national Drum and bass awards and 2010 is the third year in a row as the best Crowd Hyper MC as well as the Stevie Hyper D Lifetime Achievement Award.[7] In 2010, he won best MC at the Drum & Bass Arena Awards.[8]
Personal life and death
editBondzie was born in Waterloo, London on 1 February 1975.[9] In 2019, he auctioned two outfits to raise money for The Sickle Cell Society.[10] He died on 27 February 2022, at the age of 47.[11][12]
References
edit- ^ "UMC drum'n'bass artist Mc Skibadee". Umcmanagement.co.uk. Archived from the original on 5 April 2008.
- ^ "Skibadee Has Died - news - Clash Magazine". Clash Magazine. 27 February 2022.
- ^ Joe Muggs (28 February 2022). "Skibadee changed the very nature of what it meant to be an MC in the UK". The Guardian.
- ^ "Jungle Drum and Bass - Hardcore - Oldskool". Jungletechno.co.uk. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
- ^ Ewen Cook (28 February 2022). "RIP MC Skibadee: The Iconic Voice of Drum 'N' Bass who Inspired Successive Generations". MixMag.
- ^ "BBC - 1Xtra - XtraBass Awards 2007". BBC. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
- ^ "Drum&Bass Awards". Drumandbassawards.co.uk.
- ^ "HISTORY - Drum&BassArena Awards 2016". Awards.breakbeat.co.uk. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
- ^ "Alphonso Bondzie". Companies House. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
- ^ "Skibadee's Sickle Cell Auction". Sickle Cell Society. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
- ^ Niamh Ingram (27 February 2022). "MC Skibadee has died". MixMag.
- ^ Mark Savage (28 February 2022). "Skibadee: Influential drum and bass MC dies at 47". BBC News. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
External links
edit- Archived website at Internet Archive
- Skibadee discography at Discogs