Rapper's Delight
by The Sugarhill Gang

Album: Best Of Sugarhill Gang (1979)
Charted: 3 36
  • Now, what you hear is not a test I'm rappin' to the beat,
    And me, the groove, and my friends are gonna try to move your feet
    See, I am Wonder Mike, and I'd like to say hello,
    To the black, to the white, the red and the brown,
    The purple and yellow. But first, I gotta

    Bang bang, the boogie to the boogie,
    Say up jump the boogie to the bang bang boogie,
    Let's rock, you don't stop,
    Rock the rhythm that'll make your body rock
    Well so far you've heard my voice but I brought two friends along,
    And the next on the mic is my man Hank,
    C'mon, Hank, sing that song!

    Check it out, I'm the C-A-S-A, the N-O-V-A,
    And the rest is F-L-Y,
    You see I go by the code of the doctor of the mix,
    And these reasons I'll tell you why.
    You see, I'm six foot one, and I'm tons of fun
    When I dress to a T,
    You see, I got more clothes than Muhammad Ali
    And I dress so viciously.
    I got bodyguards, I got two big cars
    That definitely ain't the wack,
    I got a Lincoln Continental and a sunroof Cadillac.
    So after school I take a dip in the pool,
    Which is really on the wall,
    I got a colour TV, so I can see
    The Knicks play basketball. Hear me talk about
    Checkbooks, credit cards, mo' money
    Than a sucker could ever spend,
    But I wouldn't give a sucker or a bum from the Rucker
    Not a dime 'til I made it again. Everybody go
    Ho-tel, Mo-tel, Whatcha gonna do today? (Say what?)
    'Cause I'm a get a fly girl,
    Gonna get some spank n' drive off in a def OJ. Everybody go
    Ho-tel, Mo-tel, Holiday Inn,
    Say if your girl starts actin' up, then you take her friend.
    Master Gee! My mellow!
    It's on you, so whatcha gonna do?

    Well, it's on'n'n'on'n'on on'n'on,
    The beat don't stop until the break of dawn.
    I said M-A-S, T-E-R, a G with a double E,
    I said I go by the unforgettable name
    Of the man they call the Master Gee.
    Well, my name is known all over the world
    By all the foxy ladies and the pretty girls.
    I'm goin' down in history
    As the baddest rapper there ever could be.
    Now I'm feelin' the highs and you're feelin' the lows,
    The beat starts gettin' into your toes
    You start poppin' your fingers and stompin' your feet
    And movin' your body while while you're sitting in your seat
    And then damn! Ya start doin' the freak, I said
    Damn! Right outta your seat
    Then you throw your hands high in the air,
    Ya rockin' to the rhythm, shake your derriere
    Ya rockin' to the beat without a care,
    With the sureshot MCs for the affair.
    Now, I'm not as tall as the rest of the gang
    But I rap to the beat just the same.
    I got a little face, and a pair of brown eyes
    All I'm here to do, ladies, is hypnotize
    Singin' on'n'n'on'n'on on'n'on,
    The beat don't stop until the break of dawn
    Singin' on'n'n'on'n'on on'n'on,
    Like a hot buttered pop da pop da pop dibbie dibbie
    Pop da pop pop, don't you dare stop
    Come alive y'all, gimme whatcha got
    I guess by now you can take a hunch
    And find that I am the baby of the bunch
    But that's okay, I still keep in stride,
    'Cause all I'm here to do is just wiggle your behind
    Singin' on'n'n'on'n'on on'n'on,
    The beat don't stop until the break of dawn.
    Singin' on'n'n'on'n'on on'n'on,
    Rock rock, y'all, throw it on the floor
    I'm gonna freak you here, I'm gona freak you there,
    I'm gonna move you outta this atmosphere.
    'Cause I'm one of a kind and I'll shock your mind
    I put the dick, dick, dick in your behind. I said
    One, two, three, four, come on, girls, get on the floor
    A-come alive, y'all, a-gimme whatcha got
    'Cause I'm guaranteed to make you rock
    I said one, two, three, four, tell me, Wonder Mike
    What are you waiting for?

    I said a hip hop,
    The hippie to the hippie
    The hip hip a hop, and you don't stop, a rock it
    To the bang bang boogie, say up jump the boogie,
    To the rhythm of the boogie, the beat.
    A Skiddleebebop, we rock, scooby doo,
    And guess what, America, we love you
    'Cause you rocked and a rolled with so much soul,
    You could rock 'til a hundred and one years old.
    I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast,
    But we like hot butter on our breakfast toast
    Rock it up, Baby Bubba!
    Baby Bubba to the boogie da bang bang da boogie
    To the beat, beat, it's so unique
    Come on everybody and dance to the beat!

    Ever went over a friends house to eat
    And the food just ain't no good?
    I mean the macaroni's soggy, the peas are mushed,
    And the chicken tastes like wood
    So you try to play it off like you think you can
    By saying that you're full
    And then your friend says, "Mama, he's just being polite
    He ain't finished, uh-uh, that's bull!"

    So your heart starts pumpin' and you think of a lie
    And you say that you already ate
    And your friend says "Man, there's plenty of food"
    So you pile some more on your plate
    While the stinky food's steamin', your mind starts to dreamin'
    Of the moment that it's time to leave
    And then you look at your plate and your chicken's slowly rottin'
    Into something that looks like cheese

    Oh so you say "That's it, I gotta leave this place
    I don't care what these people think,
    I'm just sittin' here makin' myself nauseous
    With this ugly food that stinks"
    So you bust out the door while it's still closed
    Still sick from the food you ate
    And then you run to the store for quick relief
    From a bottle of Kaopectate
    And then you call your friend two weeks later
    To see how he has been
    And he says, "I understand about the food,
    Baby Bubba, but we're still friends"
    With a hip hop the hippie to the hippie
    The hip hip a hop, a you don't stop the rockin'
    To the bang bang boogie
    Say up jump the boogie to the rhythm of the boogie the beat Writer/s: NILE RODGERS, BERNARD EDWARDS
    Publisher: Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc., Songtrust Ave, Royalty Network
    Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 26

  • Markantney from BiloxeMar 2017,

    Paul, they're similar because it's the same producers.
  • Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn September 5th 1981, the Sugarhill Gang performed "Rapper's Delight" on the ABC-TV program 'American Bandstand'...
    Twenty-three months earlier on November 4th, 1979 it entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #84; and on January 6th, 1980 it peaked at #36 {for 1 week} and spent 12 weeks on the Top 100...
    It reached #4 on Billboard's R&B Singles chart...
    On the same 'Bandstand' show the trio also performed "8th Wonder"; it stayed on the Top 100 for 9 weeks, peaking at #82...
    They had one other record make the Top 100 chart, "Apache", it reached #53 and spent 11 weeks on the chart.
  • John from London, United Kingdomcheck the great live version of this song over at BBC 6 Music - http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/live/artists/sugarhillgang/
  • Chris from Vancouver, BcThe 2nd rap single ever released, after King Tim 3rd (Personality Jock) by Fatback Band. "Real" rappers love to criticize Sugar Hill Gang, but they don't mind making money because of what these pioneers began.
  • Paul from Oceanside, NyTo Answer Tushan, the sample at the beginning was from the '79 dance hit "Here Comes That Sound Again" by Love De-Luxe
  • Alf from Kingston, CanadaI have a copy of this on 7 inch 45. The label is stamped 1979. It was entered in Billboard Top 100 charts on November 10, 1979. Side 1 has a short version 5:02 & Side 2 has a long version 6:30. Recorded on Quality Records Q2357X. Clean copy anyone wanna buy it?
  • Bob from Oakland, CaThe "pool which really is on the wall" is a shower.
  • John from Nashville, TnAlthough "Rapper's Delight" was the first successful rap song, it was not the first rap record. That honor goes to "King Tim III (Personality Jock)" by the Fatback Band, which was released two months before "Rapper's Delight". "King Tim" was featured on the Fatback Band's "XII" album, and it was on the b-side of the first single from the album ("You're My Candy Sweet").
  • Tushan from London, United KingdomSugarhill Gang used 2 copies of the instrumental of Good Times to rap over, essentially a sample. Afrika Bambaataa played the melody from Trans Europe Express, not a sample. I would really like to know what track they sampled right at the beginning of Rapper's Delight, the bass, piano and cowbell lick?
  • Age from C-ville, PaI'm an absolute 'hater' of rap, especially what it has become today. But, I think the fact that this song is so radical and genuine is respectable. It's simply a cool beat for a couple guys to just rhyme to and thats cool. It's not, yoyoyoyoyo boobs, money, guns, drugs. It actually has a demeanor and it deserves much credibility, besides being the song that paved the way for the rap genre in whole.
  • Mjn Seifer from Not Listed For Personal Reason, EnglandBy the way. there is a slight error. This song is actually a 70s song, not an 80s song - It came out right at the end of 1979, so is often thought of as an 80s but is still technically 70s.
  • Mjn Seifer from Not Listed For Personal Reason, EnglandI see
  • Luke from Manchester, EnglandThe Chic song is called 'Le Freak' but they're not referring to that, they're referring to the dance called the Freak.
  • Mjn Seifer from Not Listed For Personal Reason, EnglandIt's interesting to note that aswell as sampling a song from Chic ("Goodtimes") They also mention a song from Chic ("The Freak").
  • Mjn Seifer from Not Listed For Personal Reason, England"Rap was considered a fad at the time, and many people thought it would soon go away."

    I laughed so hard when I first saw that Songfact! - I have nothing against rap but I know a lot of peLooks like they were wrong as rap is EVERYWHERE know ople wish it WOULD go away!!
  • Pete from Nowra, Australiadon't think this would be a fave at a Karaoke night ....you'd be there all night doin the song
  • Dennis from Anchorage, AkThe first rap song, and as far as I can tell the only remotely good one to gain any popularity. Rap may not be a passing fad, but I often wish it were. There's no particular reason that a rap song can't be good, but it sure does seem like none of them are. So I don't hate rap, but I hate very nearly every rap song I've ever heard except this one. Well, Ton Loc was at least kind of funny. Most rappers are appallingly witless for guys who are working in a style that's supposed to be about being clever. But This one is fun. I was actually in a really bad band in high school that did this song - the two gutiarists were white, the drummer was Japanese, and we had a black guy on keyboards and his sister on bass as well as a black sax player and a couple of white horn players. Very odd racial mix, but we had a good time. I didn't rap; I just played the guitar lick. We actually started off by playing Good Times, which I sang (in a totally different, very white style) and then we segued into the rap. It was a lot of fun, even if it was about the only good thing we did. But I digress...
  • Obzcure from Auckland, New Zealandkid rocks not sampling it as in using the beat but quoting it. "bawitda de bang de bang diggy diggy diggy said the boogie said up jump the boogie." as wonder mike says in each of his verses
  • Ben from Nyc, MsThe begining of the end.
  • Howard from St. Louis Park, MnThis was the song that put rap on the map. The elderly woman who sang that song in The Wedding Singer was Ellen Albertini Dow.
  • Paul from Knoxville, TnHas anyone else noticed the similarity between the 'Good Times' beat that plays on RD, and the bass line in Sister Sledge's 'We Are Family?'
  • Joey from Boston, MaKid Rock didn't sample this song on ''Bawitdaba''. He just repeated the phrase ''Bawitdaba, da-rang-a-dang, diggy-diggy'' and used it as the title. And even if he has sampled it, he'd actually be sampling ''good times''.
  • Paul from London, EnglandThis song seemed to be used by EVERYONE, from Cassidy to Kid Rock to a 2002 honda advert. next time you listen to any song, chances are you'll find something taken from this rap masterpiece
  • Dawson from Draper, UtI love this song. I love the bang boogie part. Classic song. It is too bad bad this is their only good song. My friend's dad knew the guy who wrote this song. :)
  • James from Bransgore, EnglandOkay, well I'm not into rap (random songfact), but I'm did something about it in Music Tech. They take the break of a song, not the bridge, and loop it over and over by dragging the record back to the beggining of the break. Hence the term breakdancing. Just a quick history lesson on rap for all those interested.
  • Sylvan from Berkeley, CaTechnically, this was not a "sample". The Sugarhill Records house band recreated the bridge of "Good Times" by Chic, and extended it. This song was made before sampling was even possible. If you compare the two songs, the bridge from "Good Times" (the bass and guitar lick) is tighter than "Rapper's Delight". Afrika Bambaataa & Soul Sonic Force's "Planet Rock" is the first sample from Kraftwerks's "Transit Express".
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