Marcel Theo Hall (April 8, 1964 – July 16, 2021), better known by his stage name Biz Markie, was an American rapper, beatboxer, DJ, comedian, singer, reality television personality, and commercial spokesperson. He was best known for his hit single “Just a Friend” and has been called “the Clown Prince of Hip Hop.”

Markie found a love of music through his father, a multi-instrumentalist who played in local Long Island clubs when Markie was a child. Later, Markie performed at house parties on Long Island until he felt confident enough to go to Manhattan and pursue a career in music. He began waiting outside on the stoop of producer Marley Marl’s house daily until Marley took notice of him. Marley assembled a group of rappers including Markie with Big Daddy Kane, Kool G Rap, Masta Ace, Roxanne Shante, and others and called them The Juice Crew. Markie was especially known for his beatboxing, something he’d been doing since he was seven years old.

Markie’s first release, a 1986 EP titled “Make The Music With Your Mouth, Biz”, was put out under the name Biz Markie “The Inhuman Orchestra”. Its title track became a minor R&B Chart hit. Two years later, “Vapors”, a single from his debut album Goin' Off, gave him his second appearance on the R&B Chart. Years later, Snoop Dogg’s 1997 cover of the song would take “Vapors” into the top 40 on the UK, Scotland and New Zealand pop charts.

“Just A Friend”, a song that borrows heavily from the 1968 Freddie Scott song “(You) Got What I Need”, was released September 1989, two months in advance of his sophomore album. With the help of a comical music video, it became a top 5 hit on the newly-created US Rap Songs Chart late that year. Soon after, “Just A Friend” crossed over onto the US Pop Chart and peaked at #9 in March 1990. It was eventually certified Platinum and its album The Biz Never Sleeps, released under the name The Diabolical Biz Markie, was certified Gold. A follow-up single “Spring Again” did not chart.

In 1991, he dropped his third album I Need a Haircut, simply as Biz Markie (no preceding adjective). Its lead single “What Comes Around Goes Around” reached #4 on the US Rap Chart, but did not cross over into pop success. The follow-up single “Toilet Stool Rap” did not chart, and its music video was entered into MuchMusic’s Hall Of Shame. However, it was the track “Alone Again” that put the album in the spotlight…

At the time, several rap acts were being sued for using uncleared (and unpaid) samples of other artists' work. “Alone Again” heavily borrows from the 1971 Gilbert O'Sullivan chart-topper “Alone Again (Naturally)”. O'Sullivan had originally rejected Markie’s record label’s request to interpolate his song, but they released it anyway. O'Sullivan then sued the label, and the judge ordered them to pay $250K in damages and stop selling the single (and its album). It is considered the landmark case that set the precedent of using uncleared samples being considered a form of ‘theft’. Reissues of the album do not include the track “Alone Again”.

In response to the lawsuit, Markie’s next album All Samples Cleared, released in 1993 under the name The Honorable Biz Markie, features him on the cover as a judge in a courtroom who is scowling at (presumably) a rapper dressed in a stereotypical prisoner’s suit. Its singles “Let Me Turn You On” and “Young Girl Bluez” both reached the top 10 on the US Rap Chart but neither crossed over into pop success, leading Warner to drop Markie. Over the next ten years, he DJ'ed and made several guest appearances (most notably on three consecutive Beastie Boys albums).

After appearing in the blockbuster film Men In Black 2 with Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, Markie released his fifth album Weekend Warrior in 2003, reusing the name The Diabolical Biz Markie. Its five singles did not chart. Two years later, he appeared in the VH1 reality show Celebrity Fit Club where he lost 40 lbs. Years later, he lost an additional 100 lbs after being told he had type 2 diabetes. He began eating organic and doing cardio during the latter half of his eight years as a recurring character on the popular award-winning children’s show Yo Gabba Gabba where he would rap and beatbox.

Markie continued to make appearances on television shows – as a commentator on VH1’s 100 Greatest Artists of All Time (2010), as Kenny The Cat on Spongebob Squarepants (2014), and as himself on episodes of Empire and Black-ish where he performed his signature song “Just A Friend”. On July 16th, 2021, Markie passed away at the age of 57.