Audio By Carbonatix
Miami in the ’80s was coked up, flashy, and fueled by freestyle.
To this day, that period is considered the greatest decade by some longtime Miamians, especially the type of folks who made a killing laundering Colombian booger-sugar money while avoiding serious jail time by ratting on their friends. For them, life was a never-ending swinger-friendly freak fest. And a night out meant doing massive lines of blow with soft-swap friends and dancing erratically to the sounds of Steven Bernard Hill, the freestyle legend known simply as Stevie B.
Born in Fort Lauderdale in the late ’50s, Stevie finally landed a hit at the ripe age of 29 after working several odd jobs around town to support himself. In 1988, “Party Your Body” skyrocketed to the 78th spot on the Billboard Hot 200, and his debut LP went gold. Not bad for a guy who used to work in fast food.
But unlike some artists, Stevie B never let his popularity go to his head. And after 25 years in the game, he’s still humble and incredibly hungry. “I look at it like this: If the people want to crown me [the king of freestyle], I’ll accept it,” he has said. “There are a lot of artists out there who have better voices, better songs, but the public makes a decision on what they want. I’ll accept whatever they decide.”
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