John "Mr. Magic" Rivas, (March 15, 1956 – October 2, 2009) was a Puerto Rican

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

radio Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...

DJ.

Career

Mr. Magic debuted in 1979 on WHBI in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

with “Disco Showcase” on the pay-for-time FM station. It was a far cry from the prime time in New York; what he didn’t realize was he was starting the very first rap radio show. A few short years would go by and

Frankie Crocker Frankie "Hollywood" Crocker (December 18, 1937 – October 21, 2000) was an American disc jockey, VH-1 VJ, TV host and actor. Crocker helped grow WBLS, the urban adult contemporary and black music radio station, into the #1 station in New York ...

, program manager for

Inner City Broadcasting The Inner City Broadcasting Corporation ("ICBC") was an American media company based in New York City. It was one of the first broadcasting companies wholly owned by African-Americans. History Inner City was founded in 1970 by a group of prominen ...

, took his rising star to commercial powerhouse

WBLS WBLS (107.5 MHz) is an urban adult contemporary radio format, formatted FM broadcasting, FM radio station, city of license, licensed to New York, New York. It is currently owned and operated by Mediaco Holding, along with sister station WQHT (97 ...

with the first exclusive rap radio show to be aired on a major station. ''Rap Attack'', Magic's show featured

Marley Marl Marlon Lu'Ree Williams (born September 30, 1962), better known by his stage name Marley Marl, is an American DJ, record producer, rapper and record label founder, primarily operating in hip hop music. Marlon grew up in Queensbridge Houses, Queen ...

as the DJ and Tyrone "Fly Ty" Williams as the show's co-producer. Magic moved full-time to WBLS in July 1982. His reign on the New York City airwaves lasted six years and was instrumental in broadening the scope and validity of hip-hop music. Mr. Magic recorded one 12" single as an artist "Magic's Message (There's A Better Way)", produced by Spyder D for Posse Records in 1984. He is also interviewed in the 1986 cult documentary '' Big Fun In The Big Town''. During the mid-80s there was a rivalry between Mr. Magic and Kool DJ Red Alert, who hosted a weekly show on WRKS-FM. The feud also played out between proxy rap groups, the

Juice Crew The Juice Crew was an American hip hop collective made up largely of Queensbridge, New York–based artists in the mid-to-late 1980s. Founded by radio DJ Mr. Magic, and housed by Tyrone Williams' record label Cold Chillin' Records, the Juice C ...

and

Boogie Down Productions Boogie Down Productions (BDP) was an American hip-hop group formed in the Bronx, New York City, in 1986. It originally consisted of KRS-One, D-Nice, and DJ Scott La Rock. DJ Scott La Rock was murdered on August 27, 1987, five months after the ...

(see

The Bridge Wars The Bridge Wars was a hip-hop music rivalry during the mid-to-late 1980s and early 1990s, that arose from a dispute over the true birthplace of hip-hop music and retaliation over the rejecting of a record for airplay.

). The Juice Crew – headed by Mr. Magic's on-air assistant, DJ

– was named after one of Magic's aliases, "Sir Juice." In 2002 Magic lent his voice to '' Grand Theft Auto: Vice City'', as himself, a DJ on one of the in-game radio stations. Magic died of a heart attack on October 2, 2009, at the age of 53.

References

External links

Excerpt about Mr. Magic from "The Big Payback: The History of the Business of Hip-Hop," (New American Library/Penguin, 2010
* Biography on Allmusicbr>''Vice City'' biography
on

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magic, Mr. 1956 births 2009 deaths American hip-hop DJs Musicians from the Bronx History of hip-hop Profile Records artists Juice Crew members