Technotronic - Pump Up the Jam (1989)
* (of four)
Technotronic was a three-hit wonder, with "Pump Up the Jam" giving way to soundalikes "Get Up (Before the Night Is Over)" and "Move This (Shake That Body, Shake That Body For Me, People Don't You Know, Don't You Know It's About Time, Can You Hear the Jam is Pumpin', While You Taste a Piece of Mine)." Technotronic was also the musical guest on an early 1990 episode of "Saturday Night Live" hosted by "Wonder Years" star Fred Savage.
Let's see, what other useless trivia can I spout about Technotronic? How about I paraphrase the techno/dance/R+B act's autobiography from Billboard.com? Okay, here goes - Technotronic was the Belgian brainchild of American philosophy teacher Jo Bogaert. The raps were performed by a female rapper (I seriously thought it was a dude this entire time until just now) named Ya Kid K but lip synched here by African model Felly*, who didn't speak a word of English. Not "jam," not "pump," not a single word.
The video is blue-screen mayhem straight out of the instant music videos you could make with a friend in the Six Flags lip synch booth and take home a VHS souvenir for twenty bucks. Felly - looking a bit drag queenish considering the masculine-sounding vocals - dances and pumps her fists in a variety of outfits while the camera jerk-zooms and cuts in generic, mesmerizing patterns for the blue screen. There's strobe, there's lyrics flashed on the screen, there's a spandex jogging outfit complete with fanny pack. Belgium really needs to stick to chocolate.
* = Felly sounds like the name of a Muppet character on "Sesame Street," if you ask me. ("Today's show is brought to you by the letter T. T for Technotronic, T for Trite and Terrible, T for Try Another Channel...")
Technotronic was a three-hit wonder, with "Pump Up the Jam" giving way to soundalikes "Get Up (Before the Night Is Over)" and "Move This (Shake That Body, Shake That Body For Me, People Don't You Know, Don't You Know It's About Time, Can You Hear the Jam is Pumpin', While You Taste a Piece of Mine)." Technotronic was also the musical guest on an early 1990 episode of "Saturday Night Live" hosted by "Wonder Years" star Fred Savage.
Let's see, what other useless trivia can I spout about Technotronic? How about I paraphrase the techno/dance/R+B act's autobiography from Billboard.com? Okay, here goes - Technotronic was the Belgian brainchild of American philosophy teacher Jo Bogaert. The raps were performed by a female rapper (I seriously thought it was a dude this entire time until just now) named Ya Kid K but lip synched here by African model Felly*, who didn't speak a word of English. Not "jam," not "pump," not a single word.
The video is blue-screen mayhem straight out of the instant music videos you could make with a friend in the Six Flags lip synch booth and take home a VHS souvenir for twenty bucks. Felly - looking a bit drag queenish considering the masculine-sounding vocals - dances and pumps her fists in a variety of outfits while the camera jerk-zooms and cuts in generic, mesmerizing patterns for the blue screen. There's strobe, there's lyrics flashed on the screen, there's a spandex jogging outfit complete with fanny pack. Belgium really needs to stick to chocolate.
* = Felly sounds like the name of a Muppet character on "Sesame Street," if you ask me. ("Today's show is brought to you by the letter T. T for Technotronic, T for Trite and Terrible, T for Try Another Channel...")
posted by daytime at 5:31 AM
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