The Ultramagnetic MCs is an American hip hop group based in The Bronx, New York City. Founded by Kool Keith, the group also includes Ced Gee, TR Love, and Moe Love. Tim Dog became an unofficial member in 1989. In 1990, DJ Jaycee was added as a road manager and backup DJ. Big.D was put down with the crew by Kool Keith in 1989. A former member, Rooney Roon, was fired following an assault arrest. Beat-boxer Rahzel was also involved with the group early in its career. The group's work was associated with unorthodox sampling, polysyllabic rhymes, and bizarre lyrical imagery. History The Ultramagnetic MCs formed in 1984. Their first single was "To Give You Love" (1985) on the Diamond International label. The group released "Ego Trippin'", its first 12-inch single on Next Plateau Records in 1986. It was the first hip hop song to feature the "Synthetic Substitution" drum break sample, composed by Melvin Bliss and one of the most sampled songs of all time. The group's next single was "Travelling at the Speed of Thought (Original)"/"M.C.'s Ultra (Part Two)" followed by "Funky"/"Mentally Mad," one of their most sought-after 12-inch singles. "Travelling" used extensive sampling from "Louie Louie" by the Kingsmen while "Funky" was based on a Joe Cocker piano sample later used as the basis for 2Pac's "California Love". The single was released in 1987, and led to the release of the group's first album. The Ultramagnetic MCs released a new school classic in 1988, Critical Beatdown, introducing many new sampling techniques. Many believe that without the group's primary producer, Ced Gee, the golden era of sampling may have looked very different. Ced, while uncredited, also produced the majority of Boogie Down Productions' seminal Criminal Minded. These albums are among the first to use "chopped" samples, rearranged and edited to change context. Both albums also feature many James Brown samples, which became prominent in hip hop in ensuing years. KRS-One has been quoted as saying that he was close to joining Ultramagnetic MCs early on. Paul C. was also a major contributor to Critical Beatdown, producing "Give The Drummer Some," and engineering most of the album. Paul C. also produced the Hip-House mix of "Traveling At The Speed Of Thought", which was used as the group's first music video, and was their sole release in 1989. The single's b-side, "A Chorus Line", became one of Ultramagnetic's most popular