William Jonathan Drayton Jr. (born March 16, 1959), better known by his stage name Flavor Flav, is a rapper, actor, and television personality who is best known as the hype man for the rap group Public Enemy; he is also known for shouting the phrase, “Yeah boyeee “and shouting his name Flavor Flav.” Flavor was his graffiti tag; soon, people started calling him that, and it stuck. As a child, Flav was a music prodigy. He taught himself to play the guitar and piano. He met his bandmate Chuck D, collaborated on Chuck’s radio show, and began rapping together. At first, producers didn’t understand Flav’s role in the group, but after a show, they got it and were signed to Def Jam. Flav was known for wearing big hats and a large clock around his neck. Flav has rapped solo on some tracks. In 2006, he released his first solo album. He was on hiatus from the music scene for several years but reemerged with his reality show, Flavor of Love, on VH1 and The Surreal Life. In 2013, Flav and the other members of Public Enemy were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Flav is more than a hype man because he brings humorous, thought-provoking lyrics to hip-hop and plays an integral role in the genre.
