William Jonathan Drayton, Jr. (born March 16, 1959), better known by his stage name Flavor Flav, is an American musician and television personality who rose to prominence as a member of the hip-hop group Public Enemy. He is also known for popularizing the role of the hype man and for yelling “Yeah boy!” and “Flavor Flav!” during performances.
After falling out of the public eye for a number of years, he reappeared as the star of several VH1 reality series, including The Surreal Life, Strange Love, and Flavor of Love.
Drayton grew up in Freeport, New York. Flav began playing the piano at age five; and is self-taught. A musical prodigy, he sang in the youth choir at his church and mastered the piano, drums, and guitar at an early age. He eventually became proficient in 15 instruments. He set a house on fire as a small child while playing with a lighter; by the time he dropped out of school in the 11th grade, he had been in and out of jail for robbery and burglary. Flav graduated from culinary school in 1978, and has cooked in several restaurants. He attended Adelphi University on Long Island where he met Carlton Ridenhour, who would become known as Chuck D.
, better known by his stage name Flavor Flav, is an American musician and television personality who rose to prominence as a member of the hip-hop group Public Enemy.){kind=link}