Street Dance
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Break Machine was the name of a 1980s rap act fronted by Keith Rodgers and produced by Jacques Morali and Henri Belolo, the team behind the Village People.
Rodgers was a musician and presenter of a rap radio show on the New York station WHBI 105.9. In 1981, he recorded a single, "Searching Rap" under the name Bon Rock. This brought him to the attention of Morali and Belolo, the French producers who had been successful in the late 70s with the Village People, and who were looking for new styles after the decline of disco. In 1982, together with the musician Fred Zarr, they released the single "Street Dance", which was an international hit and one of the earliest mainstream breakthroughs for hip hop, although its style is considered more of a pop interpretation of that genre rather than an accurate reflection of the underground music of the time.
Today, Keith Rodgers is still a musician, working under the name SugaBear.
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Chart performance
"Street Dance" peaked at #3 on the UK singles charts in March 1984<ref>Chart Stats - Break Machine</ref> and was the 42nd best-selling single of that year.<ref>Top 100 Songs of 1984</ref> It hit #1 in Sweden and Norway.<ref>swedishcharts.com - Break Machine - Street Dance</ref> In Germany, it was the 78th best-selling single of 1984.<ref>Top 100 Single Charts 1984</ref>
"Street Dance"'s strongest chart performance was in France, where it was #1 for two weeks, selling over a million copies and becoming the 86th best-selling single of all time according to a list released in 2004 by the Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique<ref>France's best sellers of all time! [Archive] - Moopy</ref>
Subsequent singles "Break Dance Party" and "Are You Ready" both reached the British charts, peaking at number 9 and number 27 respectively. The LP Break Machine reached number 17.
Discography
Bon Rock
- Searching Rap (w. Rhythm Rebellion) (Reelin & Rockin Records produced by ED Pavia)
- Junior Wants to Play (w. Cotton Candy) (Tommy Boy Records produced by ED Pavia)
- B-Boy (Oh-La-Oh) (In The Mix Records produced by ED Pavia)
- Dancing In The Streets (Earthtone Records produced by ED Pavia)
Break Machine
- Street Dance (Warner Brothers produced by Jacques Morali & Henri Belolo)
- Are You Ready (Scorpio Music produced by Jacques Morali & Henri Belolo)
- Break Dance Party (Scorpio Music produced by Jacques Morali & Henri Belolo)
Keith Rodgers
- Tomorrow (Easy Street produced by Keith Rodgers & Ken Alper)
- All Or Nothing (E Legal Records produced by Keith Rodgers & Felix Ortiz)
- Young Love (DJ International produced by Keith Rodgers & Paul Cichocky)
SugaBear
- I Want To Thank You (Throwback Musiq produced by Keith Rodgers & JR. Wilson)
Soul Patrol
Now I Want You Back (Ghetto Trax produced by Keith Rodgers & The Russ Family)
