An Early Timeline of Cold Chillin' Records

1983-1984 - Mr. Magic Rap Attack radio show

1985 - Roxanne's Revenge is released on Pop Art Records

January 1, 1987 - Cold Chillin' Records is born, original 4 artists are: Roxanne Shante, MC Shan, Kool G Rap, and Marley Marl

1988 - deal made with Warner Brothers, and by this time all artists were signed to Cold Chillin', and included Masta Ace, Craig G, Tragedy, Wu Tang Clan, etc.

From the source - Tyrone Williams

I called up Tyrone Williams, the founder of Cold Chillin' and spoke to him a little on the label.  We're going to meet in a couple weeks so he can give me more insight, but I thought I'd share a little snippet of what I learned:

At the time that he got involved in the business, hip hop music was primarily a New York thing - some states had it, but "the" scene was in NY.  Tyrone, along with Marley Marl and Mr. Magic, started the first rap radio show on WBLS, called the Mr. Magic Rap Attack - Tyrone was the producer, Mr. Magic hosted and Marley Marl was the DJ.  Kids would bring songs that they made and they would play it on the air.  The three of them saw this as an "exclusive" on unreleased music, so they would air the song, record it, and then they would send the artist to Tyrone's roommate, Russell, who would manage them.  As time went on, the age of the artists dropped, and parents wanted Tyrone as their child's manager.  So that's how Tyrone transitioned into artist management.  Len Fichtelberg had his own label, Prism Records, but when Tyrone started signing artists including Roxanne Shante, Big Daddy Kane, and MC Shan, he realized that it was more beneficial to have his own label - and Cold Chillin' was born. 

Biz Markie

Biz Markie has been called "hardworking," "fun-loving," "the star of the show" and "Mr. Dynamite."  He is all of this and more.  Biz Markie is hot!  His vocal delivery is different and ususual.  His lyrics are enjoyable, funny, and occasionally outrageous.  He loves an audience and will do anything to please them.  This shows in his lyrics, "When it comes to partying, I'm a nymphomaniac."  Known as the "Inhuman Orchestra," Markie is an expert human beat box virtuoso, literally making the music with his mouth.  He has been using his body as an instrument since he was a kid.

Born Marcel Hall in Harlem, April 8, 1964, Biz Markie seems to be the creation of a mad B-movie scientist.  Biz worked the rap circuit for a couple of years, playing the Roxy, the Fun House, and other venues.  But his big break came when he ran into producer Marley Marl in a hallway in the Queensbridge project in 1985.

According to Biz, "Marley and I met up and went into the studio and did some stuff."  This stuff included some of the hippest, freshest rap records to come out in a long time.  With Marley Marl at the production helm, Biz Markie signed with Len Fichtelberg's Prism Records and brought out a number of wonderful recordings that have further established him as something of a cult hero among the hip-hop hardcore.  The success of tunes like "Make the Music With Your Mouth, Biz," "Nobody Beats the Biz,"and "Pickin' Boogers" prompted Fichtelberg to go into partnership with Biz's manager, Tyrone Williams, and launch Cold Chillin' Records as an exclusive rap label with Marley Marl as producer.  Future product by Biz Markie on Cold Chillin' promises to build on his reputation as one of the newest and most innovative rap artists on the scene today. 

Roxanne Shante

The metamorphia of LolitaGooden into rap phenomenon Roxanne Shante began, unbeknowst to her, in December 198 when Steve Salem, manager of the group UTFC brought a new record to WHBI-FM in Manhattan for DJ Mr. Magic to break on his very popular and highly influential "Rap Attack" program.  Salem was hyping the A-side,"Hanging Out," but Magic and his hanging buddies, Tyrone Williams and producer Marlon "Marley Marl" Williams, dug the B-side, "Roxanne, Roxanne."  They played this cut and the response was immediately overwhelmingly overwhelming!  Pretty soon other stations picked up on the record and UTFO found themselves with a smash hit.

In the meantime, a teenage neighbor of Marley Marl's in the Queensbridge housing project in Queens, New York, Lolita Gooden gets pissed offat the way the girls are downed in the song and and bugs Marley until he takes her into his home studio to cut a tape dising "Roxanne, Roxanne."  To "dis" means to Disrespect someone, to insult with total Disregard for the person's Disposition.  Her spontaneous "answer" set off an explosion, a rap phenomenon that we can now call the "Perils of Roxanne."  There was an on-slaught of Roxannes, dozens of records and a fair amount of legal entanglements.  But when the smoke cleared, there was one obvious victor: Lolita Gooden, now known to the world as Roxanne Shante, the "First Lady of Rap."

With Tyrone Williams as her manager, she has built a solid career from what she calls "a stroke of luck."  "But," she adds, "then it became a stroke of skill.  If it wasn't for me being able to rap the way I do, I would not be able to catch peoples' eye.  And mostly I think it's my voice.

These days, Shante splits her time between school and work in the studio with Marley Marl, readying for her Cold Chillin' debut.  She says that the album is going to be filled with more than a few surprises and a whole lot of good music.  Some may be shocked, but none will be unmoved, she boasts.