Technotronic was a project of Belgian producer Jo Bogaert at the beginning of the nineties, comparable in fame & status to the acts such as C+C Music Factory, Snap, S'Express and Soul 2 Soul.
In 1983-84, he was the keyboardplayer for the band WhiteLight (intimistic, sober Velvet-Underground-ish songs). After the demise of this, he turned into a solo-"do-it-yourselfer" in his attic in Aalst . At the time of the eruption of New Beat , he operated under a number of pseudonyms ( Nux Nemo , Acts of Madmen ...).
Unlike most of the other producers however, Bogaert didn't stop at this point, but went on to develop a sound of his own - based on New Beat and house - and to hire a bunch of singers to perform his songs.
The result : " Pump up the jam ", the first of a series of hits by Technotronic. The song was performed on stage by blue-lipped Felly , but was rapped in the studio by Zaïrean Manuela Kamosi (Ya Kid K). It did well in almost every single country in the world and went to number 1 in the hitparades in a lot of them (sadly enough, it peaked at n° 2 in the Bilboard U.S. chart, meaning that "Dominique" by the Singing Nun remains our biggest hit there). In total and worldwide more than 3.5 million copies were sold of single "Pump up the jam".
Other faces & voices for the project came from MC Eric (a dutch rapper) on "This Beat is Technotronic" and Ya Kid K (who finally did get her place in the spotlight. She would later have another hit, with Hi Tec 3 "Spin that wheel", and was guest-rapping in 2001 on a DAAU -album). These successors to "pump up the jam" all sold very well, but lacked the surprise effect of the first single. But although the successor "Get up" didn't get past the 1,9 million copies, it clearly showed that Technotronic wasn't a "one-hit-wonder". For the 1991 album "Body to body" he teamed up with Reggie , one of the two cheerful ladies who we know from their period with Indeep (remember "Last night a DeeJay save my life"?). This record didn't get half the sales success of the first one, although the single " Move that body " went to number 5 in the Billboard-charts in the USA (thanks to its use in a Revlon television commercial). In the meantime, another Belgian duo of producers had surpassed Bogaert with Two Unlimited . In 1996, Technotronic teamed up with CBMilton and Phil Wilde from that group for "Move it to the rhythm".
Jo Bogaert also released a record under his own name in 1993 (Different voices), with a more experimental approach to electronic music. In 1996 he did a project called Millenium : " Millennium is a project of Belgium producer Jo Bogaert (of Technotronic fame), drawing from an extremely varied number of sources: an unusual mix of electronic beats, acoustic textures and song structures. Aided by the guitar of Michael Brook or the occasional violin of Chikako Sato, and serving up the exquisite voices of singing legend Robert Wyatt and the not so famous Blissphemy, Bogaert comes up with a highly convincing hybrid. Not soundscapes per se, nor songs per se, but something in between. This music would have been impossible five years go, but sounds well at ease in the mid '90s ."
Technotronic - The beat and the look that conquered virtually every HIT-LIST throughout the world, and shook the international dance community to its foundations. Technotronic was the restless offspring of innovative Belgian producer Jo Bogaert (a.k.a. Thomas De Quincy ). He expertly devised the now all too familiar sound of Technotronic in his humble attic studio about 20 miles north west of Brussels . He had already made his mark on the "Eurobeat" with various high-profile dance concepts such as "Nux Nemo" and "Acts of mad-men" .
As the first devastating bars of "Pump Up The Jam" permeated through the air-waves and night-clubs, lesser mortals instantly realised - here was something new, exciting and floating high above competitors.
Technotronic had arrived, and pretty soon, they would have a domino effect on the worlds charts as their assault gathered momentum.
The first public face of Technotronic was a "blue lipped" pouting temptress known as Felly , a renowned fashion-model. It wasn't until the second earth shattering single "Get up" that the public saw and heard Manuela Kamosi , or Ya Kid K , for the first time. She had already performed the original vocal on "Pump up the Jam" and now finally the world could bear witness to her struttning amblent deliverance of "Get Up" .
After the monumental success of "Pump up the Jam" the path was now clear and "Get up" achieved all expectation. Technotronic 's debute had netted over 3,5 million in world sales, the follow up grossed another 1,9 million de finite proof that Technotronic were not "one of wonders". Their sound was and still is a force to be reckoned with. The stage was not firmly set for their first album release "Pump up the Jam" . Pretty soon the album had notched up over 4 million world sales.
By the end of 1990 "Pump Up The Jam" had reached pole position in the "Billboard 12" singels dance chart. The last significant chart success was in 1992 when "Move That Body" peaked at No:5 in the U.S. Billboard charts. Up until now Technotronic have retailed more than 14 million albums.
Then, Technotronic was back in a new style. Producers Jo Bogaert ( Thomas De Quincey ) and Patrick De Meyer teamed up with Phil Wilde and Peter Bauwens . These two producers are worldfamous for their huge success with CB Milton and 2 Unlimited (sold more than 10 million copies worldwide). The result of this combination is unbelievable,
"Move It To The Rhythm" .
After a long silence Technotronic returned in 1997 with the release of a single called "Get Up'97" .
Which was a remix of their previous hit with the same name.
Also released in 1997 was the track "Crazy" featuring Black Diamond .
So In 1998 Technotronic was back as a feature artist on D.O.N.S. remix of "Pump Up The Jam" .
They also released a '98 version of "Get Up" in the fall of 1998.
Technotronic released an album in November 1998 called "Pump Up The Hits" .
In the year of 2000 Technotronic released:
* Like This/Get Up Da 2000 Sequel
* The G-Train (featuring Monday Midnite )
* Like This (featuring Monday Midnite )
Technotronic released the single called "The Mariachi" feat. Ya Kid K in Belgium on June 26th 2000.
Technotronic released a new single in May 2001 called "Runaway Blues" .
In 2002 Technotronic released a single called "The Circle Unbroken".
