William Jonathan Drayton Jr. Known for his catchphrase " Yeah, boyeeeeee! Drayton was born in Roosevelt, New York , and grew up in nearby Freeport , two communities within the Town of Hempstead. He began teaching himself piano at the age of five, [ 12 ] and mastered piano, drums and guitar at an early age, while also singing in the youth choir at his church.
By the time he dropped out of Freeport High School in the 11th grade, he had been in and out of jail for robbery and burglary. Drayton attended culinary school in Flavor Flav often referred to as "Flav" came to prominence as a founding member and hype man of the rap group Public Enemy , which he co-founded in with Chuck D.
Rubin initially did not understand Flav's role in the act and wanted to sign Chuck D as a solo act; however, Chuck D insisted that Flav be signed with them and the two were signed to Def Jam. The group's first album Yo! Bum Rush the Show was released in Flav served as the comic foil to Chuck D's serious, politically charged style. The group gained much wider fame with their following release, 's It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back , which went double platinum.
By the time the political single " Fight the Power " was released in , the group had become mainstream superstars. Along with Chuck D, the showman of the group and its promotional voice, Flav stood out among the members of Public Enemy as he often got the fans excited, appearing on stage and in public wearing big hats and glasses, and a large clock dangling from his neck. The first released track on which Flav rapped solo was "Life of a Nigerian" on Goat Ju JU , [ citation needed ] although the first hit on which he rapped solo would not come until the single " Is a Joke ".
During Public Enemy's first years of existence, Flav experienced tensions with group-mate Professor Griff , who never liked Flav's flamboyant stance in what Griff felt should be a serious, politically-challenging group. Rhymes Galore ". The single stayed for 17 weeks in the top ten of the German charts. In , Flav put out his first solo album, titled Hollywood. It was released during the second season of the reality TV dating show Flavor of Love.
