Whodini

Whodini came out of Brooklyn in the early 1980s as a trio: Jalil Hutchins (Ecstacy), John Fletcher (Grandmaster Dee), and William Douglas (Grandmaster Dew). They were part of that first wave of hip-hop acts that moved beyond party records, though they still had plenty of those.

Their debut album, 'Back in Black,' included that track and another one that became a staple, 'Five Minutes of Funk.' They followed it with albums like 'Escape' and 'Open Sesame,' which tried different things, bringing in some jazz and R&B touches. Songs like 'Friends' and 'Freaks Come Out At Night' showed their range, from social commentary to straight-up club tracks.

Grandmaster Dee's work on the turntables and Ecstacy's vocal delivery gave them a sound that was cleaner and more produced than some of their peers, which helped them cross over. They weren't the hardest or the most political group of that era, but they had a knack for catchy, well-made records that captured a specific moment in hip-hop's expansion.