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William Jonathan Drayton, Jr. (born March 16, 1959), better known by his stage name Flavor Flav, is an American rapper and television personality who rose to prominence as a member of the rap 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, Long Island. His father owned a greasy spoon... MORE

William Jonathan Drayton, Jr. (born March 16, 1959), better known by his stage name Flavor Flav, is an American rapper and television personality who rose to prominence as a member of the rap 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, Long Island. His father owned a greasy spoon called the Soul Diner. Flav began playing the piano at age five; he claims to be 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 and, by the time he dropped out of school in the 11th grade, he had been in and out of jail for robbery and burglary. He attended Adelphi University on Long Island where he met Carlton Ridenhour, who would become known as Chuck D. Flavor Flav took his stage name after his LESS