Chicago's DJ Funk pioneered the ghetto house subgenre, influencing numerous dance producers and DJs around the world. His music was fast, raw, and minimal, generally focusing on banging four-to-the-floor drum machine rhythms and sexually explicit lyrics, usually in the form of brief, repeated samples rather than full verses. Throughout the 1990s, he released dozens of records on labels like Dance Mania and his own Funk Records, containing DJ staples like "Pump It" and "Work Dat Body" (to name some of his cleaner track titles). He also issued several mixtapes and CDs, with 1999's Booty House Anthems receiving wider distribution and becoming a classic of its style. DJ Funk's tracks have been sampled and remixed countless times, and he's been acknowledged as an influence by French house acts Daft Punk and Justice, among many others. He stuck to his guns and remained true to his signature sound for his entire career, until his death in 2025. Born Charles Chambers, DJ Funk began to spin records in the late '80s, and he released his first records on Chicago's legendary Dance Mania in the early '90s. While records like 1993's House the Groove were relatively tame, he became known for tracks with faster tempos and raunchy vocal samples, and he's credited with naming the sound ghetto house. He became a staple of the Midwest rave scene, and techno DJs such as Jeff Mills regularly included his tracks in their sets. Daft Punk namechecked DJ Funk on their debut album, in the song "Teachers." Funk released the mix Booty House Anthems in 1999, mainly consisting of his own tracks as well as a few by DJ Deeon, Jammin Gerald, and Gant-Man. It was later given a more widespread release by Warlock Records, and came to define the style. After taking over Dance Mania, Funk released Booty House Anthems 2 in 2006, followed by a third volume in 2013. His sound was introduced to new audiences when he remixed Justice's "Let There Be Light" in 2006, and he was later featured on tracks by producers like Chocolate Puma, Tommie Sunshine, and Deekline, often based on his earlier material. Funk continued to digitally reissue his back catalog along with previously unreleased tracks. He died of cancer on March 5, 2025, at the age of 54. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi

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