Anthony Ray (born August 12, 1963), better known by his stage name
Sir Mix-a-Lot, is an
emcee and
producer based in
Seattle, Washington. The founder of the Nastymix record label, he debuted in 1988 with
Swass. In 1992, he debuted on a major label with his album
Mack Daddy, whose single "
Baby Got Back" reached the top of the
American singles chart and won a
Grammy Award.
Career
In 1986, Sir Mix-a-Lot and his DJ Nasty Nes founded the Nastymix record label. His first hit, released in 1987, was the single "
Posse on Broadway," whose title referred to a street in Seattle's
Capitol Hill district.
The Godzilla remix of "Posse on Broadway" contained a sample from
David Bowie's 1975 hit "
Fame," but neither the album version nor the original seven-inch edit version (which was used for the video) used the Bowie sample.
Swass, his debut album, was released in 1988, with two other singles: "Square-Dance Rap" and a hip hop cover of the
Black Sabbath song "
Iron Man" backed by the band
Metal Church.
In 1990, the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified
Swass platinum for selling a million copies.
Sir Mix-A-Lot debuted on the
Def American label, which also bought the rights of his first two albums, with
Mack Daddy in 1992. Its single "
Baby Got Back" was a number-one hit that went double platinum
[ and won the 1993 Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance.]
