Huey Morgan

Huey Morgan is an American musician best known as the frontman of rock/hip hop band Fun Lovin' Criminals.[1] Morgan performs both vocals and guitar and combines rock, hip hop, jazz, reggae, and funk influences in his music. He is also a music presenter for BBC Radio and has made film and TV appearances.

Huey Morgan
Morgan with the Fun Lovin' Criminals
at Tilburg, Netherlands, June 2011
Background information
Birth nameHugh Thomas Diaz Morgan
Also known asPapa Large, Huey, Dangerous Huey Morgan
Born (1968-08-07) 7 August 1968
New York City, New York, United States
GenresAlternative rock, hip-hop, jazz, reggae, funk
Occupation(s)Musician, songwriter, writer, television personality, radio DJ
InstrumentsVocals, guitar
Years active1993–present
Associated actsFun Lovin' Criminals, Huey and the New Yorkers
Websitehttp://www.hueymorgan.com

Early life

Morgan is an American, born to Puerto Rican-American and Irish-American parents. In his youth he committed petty crimes and dealt cocaine, and was arrested for doing so, whilst driving a stolen car.[2]

Music career

In 1993, Morgan formed Fun Lovin' Criminals with Brian Leiser and Steve Borgovini. They have released six studio albums, three of which made the top ten in the UK Albums Chart, and have scored eight top 40 hits in the UK Singles Chart. In 2010, Morgan made a guest appearance in the music video of Plan B's single "Prayin'", and in 2012, collaborated with JetTricks on the track "See Us Through" from their Better Than Real Life album. Also in 2012, Morgan released his début solo album Say It to My Face credited to Huey and the New Yorkers.

Appearances in other media

Writing

Morgan had a short-lived, ghost-written wine column for the British magazine Mondo from 2000 to 2001.[3]

In June 2015, Huey Morgan released his first book, Rebel Heroes: The Renegades of Music & Why We Still Need Them.

Television

In television, Morgan has appeared on the UK comedy music quiz show Never Mind the Buzzcocks, three times as a guest panelist and once as a guest host. In his most famous appearance, Morgan smashed a mug after becoming upset when needing to repeat lyrics from his songs in the next line round.[4] Morgan also participated in the BBC's The Underdog Show, where eight celebrities trained and rehabilitated rescued dogs.[5] He is also a frequent guest panelist on the UK Channel 5 morning show The Wright Stuff. Morgan also made a guest appearance in an episode of Skins as Toxic Bob, the owner of a metal record shop. In 2010, Morgan co-hosted Liza & Huey's Pet Nation on Sky One with Liza Tarbuck. Morgan also hosted Slips on the British music channel Viva.[6] More recent work includes narration for National Geographic's epic series Drugs Inc, now in its third series, voice overs for TV ads such as Blink Box and more. In 2015, Morgan began work on the Sky Arts show Guitar Stars, working with fellow DJ Edith Bowman, but left after the first series. On 3 November 2016, he appeared as a panelist on the BBC Television political debate programme Question Time. In April 2018, Morgan appeared on Million Pound Holiday Club on Channel 4 with stunt driver Ben Collins racing cars in the countryside. In July 2020, Huey hosted a 3 part series for BBC Four called "Huey Morgan's Latin Music Adventure", which saw Huey travel to Brazil, Cuba and Puerto Rico, meeting famous musicians who shaped and inspired the sounds of Latin music.

Film

Morgan starred in Clubbing to Death with Craig Charles, Nick Moran, Dave Courtney, and Deepak Verma.[7] He also played record shop proprietor Dee Dee in Soulboy, a dramatisation of the 1970s Northern Soul scene starring Martin Compston, Felicity Jones and Alfie Allen. He starred in the 2000 film Once in the Life with Laurence Fishburne, playing the character Carlos as well as character called "The Yank" in the 2003 film, Headrush.

Voice-over

Morgan did a voice-over for the video game Scarface: The World Is Yours.[8] He is the voice of National Geographic TV shows Drugs Inc and Underworld Inc as well as narrating the two-part BBC television documentary Blues America in 2013, which can be seen on YouTube. In 2016, he voiced a global advertising campaign for Lynx (Axe) deodorant and in 2020, he voiced an advertisement for Wagamama.

Radio

On 5 October 2008, Morgan began hosting his own radio show, "The Huey Show" on BBC Radio 6 Music.[9] The show won a Bronze Award at the 2009 Sony Radio Academy Awards. The show currently broadcasts between 10am and 1pm on Saturdays. Features include the 'Player's Ball', championing long-standing session musicians and accompanists. The Block Party Mix features a selection of tracks mixed by a special guest, or by Morgan himself, to champion an artist or producer he deems worthy. Since April 2011, Morgan has hosted an array of shows on BBC Radio 2, beginning with the Saturday 12am-3am slot, replacing the show's previous host Mark Lamarr. He currently presents between 4am and 6am on Saturdays. Regular features include 'Getting the Led Out', a weekly selection of a Led Zeppelin track, and 'Vibin The Times', where the majority of the second hour of the show is dedicated to tracks from a particular year. Both shows are characterised by an eclectic choice of music, often featuring lesser known or long forgotten artists alongside better known tracks. Both shows are known as 'The Huey Show', with Morgan using his tagline 'It's your life, I just play the music'.

Other business ventures

Morgan previously co-owned The Voodoo Lounge, The Dice Bar and DiFontaine's Pizza Place in Dublin. Huey also opened Notting Hill Tattoo Studio, Love Hate Social Club with New York Tattoo Artist Ami James in November 2012.

Personal life

Morgan has previously lived in New York City, Dublin, Hawaii, London,[10]Frome in Somerset,[11] and now lives in Bath. He married his wife Rebecca, an agent,in 2007. They have a son named Beaumont.

References
  1. "BBC Cambridgeshire - Interview". Bbc.co.uk. 29 November 2005. Retrieved 10 September 2009.
  2. "Classic Album: Fun Lovin Criminals on 'Come Find Yourself'". musicradar.com. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  3. "Huey Morgan's Wine Column". Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  4. Plunkett, John (26 May 2015). "Never Mind the Buzzcocks: top five moments". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
  5. "The Underdog Show - Contestants - Hugh 'Huey' Morgan". BBC. Retrieved 10 September 2009.
  6. "uk.viva.tv".
  7. Film, British Council. "British Council Film: Clubbing to Death". film.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
  8. "Gamasutra - Audio Postmortem: Scarface: The World is Yours".
  9. On Air Now: 19:00 - 21:00. "6 Music - Shows - The Huey Show". BBC. Retrieved 10 September 2009.
  10. "Huey and the New Yorkers Biography". Archived from the original on 7 March 2013. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
  11. "Huey Morgan Full Interview". Bristol Live Magazine. 2 March 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
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