01/27/2026
The Kings of Pressure:
Back in the day (sometime around 1985/1986), a crew called Spectrum City had a battle at their headquarters at 510 South Franklin Street in Hempstead, NY (a space they shared with EJ The DJ aka Everett Nehemiah James.) They were looking for rappers and DJs to create a crew that they would produce and then get signed.
Downstairs from Spectrum was Eric Sadler and his rehearsal studio Cassad Studios. Somehow, word got to his friend DJ Higg. Higg was my DJ partner. He told his younger brother Bryan about the battle. Bryan (rap name KBMC) and another rapper Trevor (rap name Chill O Ski), and me had a group called the Bum Rush Crew (a rap group originating from a B-boy crew started by my homie Miguel Vallejo). Bryan called me and told me about the battle. His mom gave us a ride to 510 for the battle. Trevor was visiting family in Brooklyn so he didn't go. Another friend Daquan ended up coming with us.
We got to 510 and stood on a very long line in preparation for the battle. Ends up, we didn't battle as a crew. We battled individually. Rappers were recorded on tape to a beat made by Spectrum and DJs rocked on their equipment to 2 copies of Funky President.
The winners became The Kings of Pressure. Me, Double D, Cracker Jay, E.Z. Breeze, and King A. We recorded our single Give Me The Mike/You Know How To Reach Us as well as Armed & Dangerous for Red Alert's Red Alert Goes Berzerk Album on Next Plateau Records.
Side note: my rappers from the BumRush Crew - Bryan and Trevor, eventually got put on. Chuck D changed their rap names to Charlie Brown and Busta Rhymes and they formed Leaders of the New School.
