Afrika Bambaataa

American DJ and pioneering hip hop artist most famous for fronting [a2532], born April 17, 1957 in the Bronx, NY, USA, died April 9, 2026, in Pennsylvania, USA.

He adopted the stage name Afrika Bambaataa Aasim, after a nineteenth century Zulu chief. He is of West Indian descent and cousin of [a=Edward Rudolph] AKA [a=Kool Rock Steady].

He grew up in New York’s South Bronx, his musical eclecticism matched by his vision of African American social and racial unity. In the mid-1970's he was one of the pioneers of New York’s emergent Hip-Hop culture of Rapping, DJ Mixing/Scratching, Graffiti and Breakdancing. Along with two other Bronx DJs, [a=Grandmaster Flash] and [a=DJ Kool Herc] (both also of West Indian origin), he began playing small percussive sections from obscure and unexpected rock, funk and electro-pop records as a rhythm track for rappers, interspersing the beats with extracts from cartoon melodies and film themes.

Inspired by the British film 'Zulu', Bambaataa had founded a loosely convened organization of hip-hop's cultural luminaries, called the 'Universal Zulu Nation'. Described as both a fan and a master of records, Bambaataa achieved one of his lifetime ambitions in 1984 by recording "Unity", a duet with [a=James Brown].

Founder of the label [l=Mellowvibes Records] with German sprayer [a=Zulu Ben].