Throwback: Happy 68th Birthday, Grandmaster Flash!

It’s 2026 y’all. May it be a kinder, better year for all of us. January is a busy month for music birthdays.

• Gang of Four co-founder and guitarist Andy Gill was born on this day 70 years ago

The pioneering and legendary Grandmaster Flash celebrates his 68th birthday today. Grandmaster Flash is especially important because his Quick Mix Theory, which saw him elongating drum breaks through the use of duplicate copies of albums. That technique eventually gave birth to cutting and scratching, an important part of hip-hop. 

I saw Grandmaster Flash play at Northside Festival back in 2016 and I can tell you that the man plays one of the most entertaining live sets I’ve ever seen — and it was a primer on pop, soul, dance and funk going back to like 1950. 

Happy birthday, brother! May there be many, many more!

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