Session Jams

“More Bounce to the Ounce” is the opening track and first single of Zapp’s debut album. Its title is based on a 1950s Pepsi campaign.

It was commercially successful, reaching #2 on the R&B Chart and #86 on the pop chart in late 1980.

The song’s legacy is massive. It’s been used in several films (Boyz n the Hood, Any Given Sunday, Pixels), its music had been sampled many times (Snoop, Ice Cube, EPMD), and the old cola slogan not only found new life in the 80s but continues to be referenced for new generations to discover by artists like LL Cool J, A Tribe Called Quest and Megan Thee Stallion.

Fun Fact: This is one of the first songs Roger used voice box on.^[[1] https://genius.com/Zapp-more-bounce-to-the-ounce-lyrics]

Interview: Roger Troutman on The Talkbox [Video Soul - 1987] | 03:33 | https://youtu.be/L_CBZkd2tGE

Roger Troutman (November 29, 1951 -- April 25, 1999) was the lead singer of the band Zapp who helped spearhead the Funk movement and heavily influenced West Coast hip hop due to the scene's heavy sampling of his music over the years. Troutman was well known for his use of the talkbox, a device that is connected to an instrument (frequently a keyboard) to create different vocal effects. Roger used a custom-made talkbox—the Electro Harmonix "Golden Throat," as well as a Yamaha DX100 FM synthesizer. As both lead singer of Zapp and in his subsequent solo releases, he scored a bevy of funk and R&B hits throughout the 1980s.