Henry Lee Jackson (January 11, 1956 – November 11, 2014), known by his stage name Big Bank Hank, was an American old school

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

and manager. Also known as Imp the Dimp, he was a member of the trio

The Sugarhill Gang The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop trio. Their 1979 hit "Rapper's Delight" was the first rap single to become a top 40 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100; reaching a peak position of number 36 on January 12, 1980. This was the trio's onl ...

, the first hip hop act to have a hit with the cross-over single "

Rapper's Delight "Rapper's Delight" is a 1979 hip-hop track by the Sugarhill Gang, produced by Sylvia Robinson. Although it was shortly preceded by the Fatback Band's "King Tim III (Personality Jock)", "Rapper's Delight" is credited for introducing hip-hop mus ...

" in the pop charts in 1979. He contributed to many documentaries based on the rap music industry. Lyrics to his verse from "Rapper's Delight" were plagiarized from rhymes written by Grandmaster Caz.

Biography

Hank was born as Henry Lee Jackson on January 11, 1956. He grew up in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, near

DJ Kool Herc Clive Campbell (born April 16, 1955), better known by his stage name DJ Kool Herc, is a Jamaican-American DJ who is credited with contributing to the development of hip hop music in the Bronx, New York City, in the 1970s through his "Back to ...

and

Coke La Rock Coke La Rock (aka Coco La Rock; born April 24, 1955) is an old-school rapper from New York City who is sometimes credited as being the first MC in the history of hip-hop. In November 2010, Coke La Rock was inducted into the High Times Count ...

, as well as other rap performers. He won several championships in

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

at Bronx Community College, where he graduated with an A.S. degree in oceanography. But unable to attain a position in oceanography, he worked the doors of a Bronx nightclub called The Sparkle, where he became a music manager for Grandmaster Caz and his group The Mighty Force MC's. While working at a

pizzeria A pizzeria is a restaurant focusing on pizza. As well as pizza, dishes at pizzerias can include kebab, salads and pasta. Many pizzerias offer take-away, where the customer orders their food either in advance or at the restaurant and then t ...

, Jackson did his job so well that when the owner of the shop expanded his business to Englewood,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, he brought Jackson over to head the Crispy Crust store. While managing for a local hip hop group,

the Cold Crush Brothers The Cold Crush Brothers are an American hip hop group that formed in 1978 in the Bronx, New York City., ''Vibe Magazine'', December 1994 - January 1995, Vol. 2, No. 10, p.68 They were especially known for their memorable routines which included ...

(including Grandmaster Caz), Jackson was discovered by Sylvia Robinson. She was out trying to find an act for the new hip-hop trend she had discovered through her son and she heard Jackson rapping some of the Cold Crush Brothers's rhymes by chance when she visited Crispy Crust Pizza in Englewood. According to a 2014 ''New York Post'' article, when Robinson asked him to join the group she was forming, Jackson went to Grandmaster Caz of the Cold Crush Brothers for rhymes, and Caz gladly gave him his notebook, hoping to eventually get something in return. However, in a 2014 interview, Caz disputes this story, saying that Jackson did not ask Caz for permission to use his rhymes until after the record had been made. Jackson, now called "Big Bank Hank," was 24 years old at the time

the Sugarhill Gang The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop trio. Their 1979 hit "Rapper's Delight" was the first rap single to become a top 40 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100; reaching a peak position of number 36 on January 12, 1980. This was the trio's onl ...

's self-titled album was released. In his ''New York Times'' obituary of Hank,

Jon Caramanica Jon Caramanica (born 1975) is an American journalist and pop music critic who writes for ''The New York Times''. He is also known for writing about hip hop music. Biography Born in Brooklyn, New York, Caramanica received his bachelor's degree ...

quotes Wonder Mike: “He was boisterous — he filled the room.

Ralph Kramden ''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom which originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It fo ...

-type stuff.”

Death

A resident of

Tenafly, New Jersey Tenafly () is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the borough had a population of 15,409,Englewood Hospital and Medical Center Englewood Health is an acute care 289-bed teaching hospital in Englewood, New Jersey. In 2021 it was given a grade A by the Leapfrog patient safety organization. History It was incorporated in 1888 as a "non-profit, non-sectarian voluntary healt ...

in nearby Englewood on November 11, 2014, from cancer.Petrick, John; and Levin, Jay
"Rapper Big Bank Hank of Englewood-based Sugar Hill Gang dies at age 57"
, ''

The Record (Bergen County) ''The Record'' (also called ''The North Jersey Record'', ''The Bergen Record'', ''The Sunday Record'' (Sunday edition) and formerly ''The Bergen Evening Record'') is a newspaper in New Jersey, United States. Serving Bergen, Essex, Hudson and ...

'', November 11, 2015; accessed November 12, 2015.
"Trail-blazing rapper Big Bank Hank, whose 1979 hit “Rappers Delight” with the Englewood-based group the Sugar Hill Gang was considered the first commercially viable rap single to shoot up the charts, died Tuesday morning at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center. He was 57 and lived in Tenafly."

References

1956 births 2014 deaths Deaths from cancer in New Jersey People from Tenafly, New Jersey Rappers from the Bronx The Sugarhill Gang members Bronx Community College alumni {{hip-hop-bio-stub