Editing Freestyle music (section)

==History==
===1982–1987: Origin===
Freestyle music developed in the early 1980s, primarily simultaneously in the Hispanic (mainly [[Puerto Ricans|Puerto Rican]]/[[Latin Americans|Latin]]) communities of [[Upper Manhattan]] and [[The Bronx]] and in the [[Italian-American]] communities in [[Brooklyn]], the Bronx, other [[boroughs of New York City]], [[New Jersey]], [[Westchester County]] and [[Long Island]]. It initially was a fusion of synthetic instrumentation and [[syncopation|syncopated]] [[percussion]] of 1980s [[Electro (music)|electro]], as favored by fans of [[breakdance|breakdancing]]. [[Sampling (music)|Sampling]], as found in [[synth-pop]] music and [[Hip hop music|hip-hop]], was incorporated. Key influences include [[Afrika Bambaataa]] & [[Soul Sonic Force]]'s "[[Planet Rock (song)|Planet Rock]]" (1982) and [[Shannon (American singer)|Shannon]]'s "[[Let the Music Play (song)|Let the Music Play]]" (1983), the latter was a top-ten [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] hit.<ref>{{cite web|title=Hot 100|url=http://www.billboard.com/charts/1984-02-25/hot-100|work=Billboard.com|publisher=Rovi Corporation|access-date=May 31, 2012|date=February 25, 1984}}</ref> 

In 1984, a Latin presence was established when the first song recorded in the genre by a [[Latin American]] artist, "[[Please Don't Go (Nayobe song)|Please Don't Go]]", by newcomer [[Nayobe]] (a singer from Brooklyn and of Cuban descent) was recorded and released.<ref>{{cite web|title=All Music - Please Don't Go - Nayobe|website=[[AllMusic]]|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/please-dont-go-mw0000049035}}</ref> The song became a success, reaching No. 23 on the ''Billboard'' [[Hot Dance Music/Club Play]] chart. In 1985, a Spanish version of the song was released with the title "No Te Vayas". By 1987, freestyle began getting more airplay on American pop radio stations. Songs such as "[[Come Go with Me (Exposé song)|Come Go with Me]]" by [[Exposé (group)|Exposé]], "[[Show Me (The Cover Girls song)|Show Me]]" by [[the Cover Girls]], "[[Fascinated (Company B song)|Fascinated]]" by [[Company B (band)|Company B]], "[[Silent Morning]]" by [[Noel Pagan|Noel]], and "[[Catch Me (I'm Falling)]]" by [[Pretty Poison (group)|Pretty Poison]], brought freestyle into the mainstream. [[House music]], based partly on [[disco]] rhythms, was by 1992 challenging the relatively upbeat, syncopated freestyle sound.<ref name="Gardner">{{cite web|title=History of Freestyle Music|url=http://music.hyperreal.org/library/history_of_freestyle.html|work=hyperreal.org|access-date=May 31, 2012|first=Joey|last=Gardner|archive-date=June 10, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120610054831/http://music.hyperreal.org/library/history_of_freestyle.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] considers the Miami Mix of [[ABC (band)|ABC]]'s single "[[When Smokey Sings]]" to be proto-freestyle, despite that version being released in 1987.<ref>http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/11712 {{Dead link|date=January 2022}}</ref> 

Many early or popular freestyle artists and DJs were of Hispanic or [[Italians|Italian]] descent, including [[John Benitez|Jellybean]], Tony Torres, Raul Soto, Roman Ricardo, [[Mickey Garcia]] (who is of both Italian and Puerto Rican descent), [[Lil Suzy]], and [[Nocera (singer)|Nocera]], which was one reason for the style's popularity among [[Hispanic Americans]] and [[Italian Americans]] in the [[New York City]] area and [[Philadelphia]].

===1988: Pop crossover===
Freestyle's Top 40 Radio airplay started to really take off by 1987, and it began to disappear from the airwaves in the early 1990s<ref name="Gardner"/> as radio stations moved to Top 40-only formats. Artists such as [[George Lamond]], [[Exposé (group)|Exposé]], [[Sweet Sensation (trio)|Sweet Sensation]], and [[Stevie B]] were still heard on mainstream radio, but other notable freestyle artists did not fare as well. Carlos Berrios and Platinum producer [[Frankie Cutlass]] used a freestyle production on "[[Temptation (Corina song)|Temptation]]" by [[Corina (American singer)|Corina]] and "[[Together Forever (Lisette Melendez song)|Together Forever]]" by [[Lisette Melendez]]. The songs were released in 1991, almost simultaneously, and caused a resurgence in the style when they were embraced by Top 40 radio. "Temptation" reached the number 6 spot on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' Hot 100 Chart. These hits were followed by the success of [[Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam]], who had been one of the earliest freestyle acts. Their records were produced by [[Full Force]], who had also worked with [[UTFO]] and [[James Brown (musician)|James Brown]].

Several primarily freestyle artists released [[Sentimental ballad|ballads]] during the 1980s and early 1990s that crossed over to the pop charts and charted higher than their previous work. These include "[[Seasons Change (song)|Seasons Change]]" by Exposé, "[[Thinking of You (Sa-Fire song)|Thinking of You]]" by [[Sa-Fire]], "[[One More Try (Timmy T. song)|One More Try]]" by [[Timmy T]], "[[Because I Love You (The Postman Song)]]" by Stevie B, and "[[If Wishes Came True]]" by Sweet Sensation. Brenda K. Starr reached the Hot 100 with her ballad "[[I Still Believe (Brenda K. Starr song)|I Still Believe]]". Freestyle shortly thereafter gave way to mainstream pop artists such as [[MC Hammer]], [[Paula Abdul]], [[Bobby Brown]], [[New Kids on the Block]], and [[Milli Vanilli]] (with some artists utilizing elements of freestyle beginning in the 1980s) using hip hop beats and electro samples in a mainstream form with slicker production and [[MTV]]-friendly videos. These artists were successful on crossover stations as well as R&B stations, and freestyle was replaced as an underground genre by newer styles such as [[new jack swing]], [[Trance music|trance]] and [[Eurodance]]. Despite this, some freestyle acts managed to garner hits well into the 1990s, with acts such as [[Cynthia (singer)|Cynthia]] and [[Rockell]] scoring minor hits on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' Hot 100 as late as 1998. As this new music style took over many big cities in America, the labels that signed these artists such as [[Columbia Records|Columbia]], [[Warner Bros.|Warner Bros]], and other labels did not know how to market these artists originally.<ref name="Test">{{Cite web |last=Test |first=Irene |date=2014-03-31 |title=On the Cusp of a Comeback: A Return for Freestyle Music |url=https://crossfadr.com/2014/03/31/cusp-comeback-return-freestyle-music/ |access-date=2024-03-15 |website=Crossfadr |language=en-US}}</ref> Instead of pushing this style of music as a solidified sound, the labels separated the cities. This caused the Miami sound of freestyle music to be more popularized through the radio compared to NYC's sound at the time. The labels who pushed out low quality tracks ended up hurting themselves, instead of making the track a quality piece of music.<ref name="Test"/>

===Post-freestyle era===

Freestyle remained a largely [[underground music|underground]] genre with a sizable following in New York, but has recently seen a comeback in the cities where the music originally experienced its greatest success.  New York City impresario Steve Sylvester and producer [[Sal Abbatiello]] of Fever Records launched Stevie Sly's Freestyle Party show at the [[Manhattan]] live music venue, Coda on April 1, 2004. The show featured Judy Torres, Cynthia, and the Cover Girls and was attended by several celebrity guests. The Coda show was successful, and was followed by a summer 2006 [[Madison Square Garden]] concert that showcased freestyle's most successful performers. New freestyle releases are popular with enthusiasts and newcomers alike. Miami rapper [[Pitbull (entertainer)|Pitbull]] collaborated with Miami freestyle artist Stevie B to create an updated version of Stevie B's hit, "Spring Love".

Currently,{{when|date=May 2025}} freestyle music continues to have a thriving fanbase in certain parts of the country, with New York City Italian-American DJs such as [[Bad Boy Joe]] and [[Louie DeVito]] helping to maintain an active freestyle scene in the NYC metro area.<ref>{{Cite web|title = On the Cusp of a Comeback: A Return for Freestyle Music|date = March 31, 2014|url = http://www.crossfadr.com/2014/03/31/cusp-comeback-return-freestyle-music/|access-date = October 30, 2015}}</ref>