SugarHill Gang keeps party vibe

The SugarHill Gang may not want credit for inventing hip-hop, but there’s no doubt its 1979 unexpected hit “Rapper’s Delight” pushed the underground scene into mainstream music.

No one could have anticipated the single would change the face of music or last through generations of listeners.

“No one could foresee that,” said Henry Williams (aka Hen Dogg) who joined the group 17 years ago to replace Big Bank Hank after he died.

Wonder Mike and Master Gee still make up the rest of the trio, which is set to stop at the Electric Company Saturday.

“Even everybody in the group thought it would just be a New York thing; it would be a hit up here,” Williams said. “We had no idea it would spread worldwide.”

But it did, and the world has yet to let the gang — specifically its delightful rap — fall into obscurity.

The “hip hop the hippie the hippie to the hip hip hop” frequently shows up in movies (remember the little old lady in “The Wedding Singer”?).

And the trio continues to tour throughout the United States and has a strong following in Europe.

The gang’s fans span generations – from teenagers to Baby Boomers, who can perfectly spit back the lyrics of “Rapper’s Delight” that propelled the group into stardom.

“It’s amazing after so many years people still request the song, people still want to hear it,” Williams said. “Because it’s about having a good time, it doesn’t promote violence, it doesn’t promote anything negative.”

Williams expresses disappointment with the negative lyrics saturating hip-hop music today, but remains optimistic the music will return to its positive roots.

“We don’t always stay on the straight and the right paths,” he said of people in general.

Now that the SugarHill Gang has broken from its label SugarHill Records, Williams believes their own future in hip-hop music is steadfast.

Their upcoming album will include guest spots from guest artists such as Kid Rock and Dizzee Rascal and producers who have worked with Snoop Dogg and Young Jeezy.

“We’ve put all our worldly experiences in our music,” he said. “Hip-hop, old-school, rock. It has different flavors, different sounds — down-South flavor, crunk sound, something on the pop side. We’ve been able to broaden our perspective, and still keep it on the party vibe.”

And a party is what the SugarHill Gang is ready to give its audiences, Williams said.

“You better have your popcorn ready, because it’s going to be a show,” he said. “Once we give them what we got, they’re totally blown away, because of the simple reason we still got it after all this time.”