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Def P

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Def P's real name is Pascal Griffioen. He was born in Amsterdam in 1969 and grew up in Osdorp. At sixteen he took the name Def P and began writing rap lyrics. During a holiday in the United States in 1988 he played people some hip hop from the Netherlands and was laughed at because the Dutch were imitating Americans. That spurred him on to rap in Dutch.

Music and breakthrough

In 1989, together with his cousin DJ IJsblok and his friends Seda and King Arthur, he founded the Osdorp Posse. A year later the song Moordenaar appeared. Seda made the beats with converted game consoles. In 1992 the group signed to Djax, the Eindhoven label of Saskia Slegers. The Osdorp Posse rapped in broad Amsterdam dialect about life as it was, raw and without any concern for polite language. In doing so the group laid the foundations of Dutch hip hop (nederhop). In 1998 the group started its own label, RAMP, and in 2009 the Osdorp Posse came to an end, after a farewell concert at the Melkweg.

Influence

Alongside the group Def P made solo albums, such as Cryptokilostijl and Pascal-rascal, and records with the Beatbusters. For years he presented a radio programme on Kink FM, made radio plays and theatre, wrote columns and drew a graphic novel. Increasingly he is turning to painting. He shows that rap in Dutch does not have to be an imitation of American rap.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to a track by the Osdorp Posse, such as Moordenaar. Notice the language: Def P raps in broad Amsterdam dialect, hard and direct, over a bare, heavy beat.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

Categories: Artists