CONTEST OVER Win tickets NOW to see rapper Blowfly at the Grey Eagle Thursday, 10 p.m.

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Rap in Asheville? Yep. Presented by Orbit DVD in West Asheville, outrageous old-school rapper Blowfly (“the father of nasty rap”) plays the Greagle with opening acts Kreamy ‘Lectric Santa and Dr. Filth.

Win a pair of tix: Just be the first one to comment below tell us Blowfly’s real name. You MUST be 18 to win. Please include your real first and last name in your comment so we can give your name to the Grey Eagle.

10pm. $12 advance / $15 day of show.

Standing room only.

THIS IS AN “ADULT” SHOW. NO ONE UNDER 18 WILL BE ADMITTED.

Before there was Kool Keith, Old Dirty Bastard or 2 Live Crew – before there was hip hop, for that matter – there was Blowfly, performing X-rated songs with a funky groove. Born 73 years ago in Vienna, Georgia, Miami-born Blowfly has recorded more than 40 albums during his illustrious career.

Many people cite Blowfly as being the first rapper with his 1965 self-pressed “Rap Dirty” record, which was re-recorded for disco giants T.K. Records after the smash success of Sugar Hill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight.” Blowfly himself credits the “soul talking” Southern radio DJs of the ’50s and ’60s as the pioneers of rap, but he is without dispute the first rapper to have a song banned, after an Pineville, Louisiana record store was busted for peddling “Blowfly’s Party” in 1981. Blowfly was also sued by the President of ASCAP for his “What a Difference a Lay Makes.” (The music publishing honcho also happened to be the composer of the popular “What a Difference a Day Makes.”)

Blowfly’s sounds are a staple of modern-day hip hop. His music has been sampled by many rappers, including Beyonce (“Upgrade You”), The Game feat/ Drake (Good Girls Go Bad), The Jurassic 5,( “Quality Control”) Ice Cube (What Can I do), DMX (We In Here), Method Man & Redman (Cereal Killers) Puff Daddy, and dozens more.

In 1991, Blowfly hooked up with Fishbone and Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist/wild man Flea to record, “The Twisted World of Blowfly”. The resulting relationship led to a series of shows with Flea and Fishbone at Club Lingerie in Hollywood, Ca and multiple “Nuttstalk” tours with Fishbone over the next decade.