George Clinton attended the recently opened Clinton Place Junior High School (off the main Clinton Avenue thoroughfare) in downtown Newark. While still attending school, he proved he could work with people when he made it to foreman during his first holiday job, at the Wham-O hula hoop factory.
College/University
Gallery of George Clinton
Boston, MA 02215, United States
In May 2012, Clinton was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music.
Career
Gallery of George Clinton
1970
London, United Kingdom
Photo of Funkadelic and George Clinton and Parliament. Photo by Max Redfern.
Gallery of George Clinton
1970
United States
Photo of George Clinton around 1970.
Gallery of George Clinton
1971
Liverpool, United Kingdom
Fuzzy Haskins, Tawl Ross, Bernie Worrell, Tiki Fulwood, Grady Thomas, George Clinton, Ray Davis, Calvin Simon and seated Eddie Hazel and Billy "Bass" Nelson of the funk band Parliament-Funkadelic pose for a portrait in May 1971 in Liverpool, England.
Gallery of George Clinton
1976
United States
Musician George Clinton takes a puff of a joint during a portrait session backstage in November 1976.
Gallery of George Clinton
1976
United States
Musician George Clinton during a portrait session backstage in November 1976.
Gallery of George Clinton
1980
United States
George Clinton in Boxing Gloves and Cape. Photo by Lynn Goldsmith.
Gallery of George Clinton
1980
United States
George Clinton in 1980. Photo by Aaron Rapoport.
Gallery of George Clinton
1983
Unitd States
George Clinton and the P-Funk All-Stars on stage. Photo by Lynn Goldsmith.
Gallery of George Clinton
1989
Los Angeles, California, United States
Public Enemy members Chuck D, Flavor Flav, and the one and only George Clinton pose for a portrait in October 1989 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Aaron Rapoport.
Gallery of George Clinton
1989
London, Unitd Kingdom
Photo of George Clinton in London 1989. Photo by Tim Hall.
Gallery of George Clinton
1990
45 Queen Caroline St, Hammersmith, London W6 9QH, United Kingdom
Gary Shider and George Clinton performing at Hammersmith Odeon, London, United Kingdom on 2 February 1990. Photo by David Corio.
Gallery of George Clinton
1990
Hague, Netherlands
George Clinton at the North Sea Jazz Festival in the Hague, the Netherlands on 15 July 1990. Photo by Frans Schellekens.
George Clinton performs at the Paradiso on 1st July 1991 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Photo by Frans Schellekens.
Gallery of George Clinton
1992
50 Central Park S, New York, NY 10019, United States
George Clinton performing at The Ritz, New York, United States on 20 September 1992. Photo by David Corio.
Gallery of George Clinton
1992
4719 S Martin Luther King Dr, Chicago, IL 60615, United States
inger George Clinton of Parliament-Funkadelic performs at the Regal Theater in Chicago, Illinois in October 1992. Photo By Raymond Boyd.
Gallery of George Clinton
1992
50 Central Park S, New York, NY 10019, United States
George Clinton performing at The Ritz, New York, United States on 20 September 1992. Photo by David Corio.
Gallery of George Clinton
1992
4719 S Martin Luther King Dr, Chicago, IL 60615, United States
Singer George Clinton and the late, Gary Shider of Parliament-Funkadelic performs at the Regal Theater in Chicago, Illinois in October 01, 1992. Photo By Raymond Boyd.
Gallery of George Clinton
1993
National Mall, Washington, DC, United States
When Bill Clinton was elected, George Clinton enjoyed the coincidence of having a president with the same last name. When Chelsea Clinton came backstage with a coterie of Secret Service agents, she joked with the funkmaster about having a food fight. He dissuaded her, not wanting to get shot down by an overeager fed. While posing for a photo with Chelsea, George realized at the last moment that he should probably conceal the crack pipe he was holding, so he just made a fist around it: “It was hot as a motherfucker, burning my hand up, but it worked – the picture, without a crack pipe in sight, was in People magazine.”
Gallery of George Clinton
1994
211 Stockwell Rd, Ferndale, London SW9 9SL, United Kingdom
Primal Scream And George Clinton perform on stage at Brixton Academy, Lodnon, 1994. Photo by Martyn Goodacre.
Gallery of George Clinton
1996
5th Ave, New York, NY 10021, United States
American Rock, Funk, and Soul musician and bandleader George Clinton leads his group Parliament-Funkadelic (or P-Funk) at a Fourth of July celebration at Central Park SummerStage, New York, New York, July 4, 1996. Photo by Jack Vartoogian.
Gallery of George Clinton
1996
5th Ave, New York, NY 10021, United States
American Rock, Funk, and Soul musician and bandleader George Clinton (left) leads his group Parliament-Funkadelic (or P-Funk) at a Fourth of July celebration at Central Park SummerStage, New York, New York, July 4, 1996. Photo by Jack Vartoogian.
Gallery of George Clinton
1996
30 Rockefeller Plaza; New York, NY 10112
George Clinton at NBC TV Studios, New York, United States 20 July 1996. Photo by David Corio.
Gallery of George Clinton
1996
30 Rockefeller Plaza; New York, NY 10112
George Clinton performing with Bobby Gillespie of Primal Scream at NBC TV Studios, New York, United States 20 July 1996. Photo by David Corio.
Gallery of George Clinton
1996
5th Ave, New York, NY 10021, United States
George Clinton entering the Mothership at Central Park, New York, United States on 4 July 1996. Photo by David Corio.
Gallery of George Clinton
1996
30 Rockefeller Plaza; New York, NY 10112
George Clinton and Bobby Gillespie of Primal Scream backstage at NBC TV Studios, New York, United States 20 July 1996. Photo by David Corio.
Gallery of George Clinton
1999
Saugerties, New York, United States
George Clinton of Parliament-Funkadelic during Woodstock '99 in Saugerties, New York.
Gallery of George Clinton
2002
2207 Seventh Ave (bet. 130th & 131st Sts) New York, NY, 10027, United States
Justin Guarini and George Clinton during Prince Listening Party for "One Nite Alone...Live" at Jimmy's Uptown in Harlem in New York City, New York, United States.
Gallery of George Clinton
2002
800 W Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92802, United States
George Clinton visiting the 100th NAMM Show in Anaheim. Photo by Jean-Paul Aussenard.
Gallery of George Clinton
2005
1612 Ute Blvd Ste 200 Park City, UT 84098, United States
George Clinton and Doug Wimbish (background) during 2005 Park City - Slamdance Closing Night Ceremony at Club Suede in Park City, Utah, United States. Photo by Victor Spinelli.
Gallery of George Clinton
2005
700 14th St, Denver, CO 80202, United States
George Clinton during NBPA All-Star Ice Gala - February 19, 2005 at Denver Convention Center in Denver, Colorado, United States. Photo by Johnny Nunez.
Gallery of George Clinton
2009
800 W Olympic Blvd a335, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States
Legendary funk masters Sly Stone (L) and George Clinton share a moment before the George Clinton concert at Club Nokia on January 2, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Dr. Billy Ingram.
Gallery of George Clinton
2011
253 W 125th St, New York, NY 10027, United States
George Clinton (left) and Bootsy Collins of Parliament and Funkadelic perform on stage at the Interstellar Tribute To George Clinton, Apollo Theater, Harlem, New York, 25th October 2011. (Photo by Janette Beckman.
Gallery of George Clinton
2014
Revaler Str. 99, 10245 Berlin, Germany
George Clinton performs live on stage during a concert at Astra on July 28, 2014 in Berlin, Germany. Photo by Stefan Hoederath
Gallery of George Clinton
2014
9-17 Highgate Rd, Kentish Town, London NW5 1JY, United Kingdom
George Clinton performs on stage at The Forum on July 26, 2014 in London, United Kingdom. Photo by Christie Goodwin.
Gallery of George Clinton
2015
800 W Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92802, United States
George Clinton performs with his group the Parliment Funkadelic's for the John Lennon Education Tour Bus on the second day of the NAMM Show on January 23, 2015 in Anaheim, California. Photo by Earl Gibson III.
Gallery of George Clinton
2015
800 W Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92802, United States
Musician George Clinton performs at the 2015 National Association of Music Merchants show at the Anaheim Convention Center on January 23, 2015 in Anaheim, California. Photo by Jesse Grant.
Gallery of George Clinton
2015
501 Napoleon Ave, New Orleans, LA 70115, United States
George Clinton performs during his Funky New Year's Masquerade Ball at Tipitina's on December 29, 2015 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Photo by Erika Goldring.
Gallery of George Clinton
2016
1111 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States
George Clinton, Taylor Swift and Pharrell Williams attend The 58th GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on February 15, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Kevin Mazur.
Gallery of George Clinton
2017
New York City, New York, United States
George Clinton and singer-songwriter Charli XCX attend the 2017 SESAC Pop Awards on April 13, 2017 in New York City. Photo by Jason Kempin.
Gallery of George Clinton
2017
New York City, New York, United States
George Clinton attends the 2017 SESAC Pop Awards on April 13, 2017 in New York City. Photo by Shawn Ehlers.
Gallery of George Clinton
2017
New York City, New York, United States
George Clinton attends the 2017 SESAC Pop Awards on April 13, 2017 in New York City. Photo by Shawn Ehlers.
Gallery of George Clinton
2017
9876 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, United States
Musician George Clinton attends Pre-GRAMMY Gala and Salute to Industry Icons Honoring Debra Lee at The Beverly Hilton on February 11, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Kevork Djansezian.
Gallery of George Clinton
2017
Chanhassen, Minnesota, United States
In this handout provided by Paisley Park Studios, George Clinton Parliament Funkadelic performs at Celebration 2017 on April 20, 2017 in Chanhassen, Minnesota.
Gallery of George Clinton
2017
86-90 Park Ln, Mayfair, London W1K 7TN, United Kingdom
Nile Rogers, Laura Mvula and George Clinton attend the Ivor Novello Awards at Grosvenor House on May 18, 2017 in London, England. Photo by Dave J. Hogan.
Gallery of George Clinton
2018
2901 Grand River Ave, Detroit, MI 48201, United States
George Clinton of George Clinton And Parliament Funkadelic performs at The Soundboard, Motor City Casino on March 8, 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. Photo by Scott Legato.
Gallery of George Clinton
2018
Oxford, United Kingdom
George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic perform on stage at Wilderness Festival on August 8, 2015 in Oxford, United Kingdom. Photo by Edu Hawkins.
Gallery of George Clinton
2018
400 Merritts Ave NE, Atlanta, GA 30308, United States
George Clinton performs onstage during 2018 ONE Musicfest at Atlanta Central Park on September 9, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo by Paras Griffin.
Gallery of George Clinton
2019
9876 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, United States
George Clinton attends The Recording Academy And Clive Davis' 2019 Pre-GRAMMY Gala at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 9, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. Photo by Jeff Kravitz.
Gallery of George Clinton
2019
1111 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States
George Clinton attends the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on February 10, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Rich Fury.
Gallery of George Clinton
2019
1111 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States
George Clinton attends the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on February 10, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Rich Fury.
Gallery of George Clinton
2019
1111 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States
George Clinton attends the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on February 10, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Rich Fury.
Fuzzy Haskins, Tawl Ross, Bernie Worrell, Tiki Fulwood, Grady Thomas, George Clinton, Ray Davis, Calvin Simon and seated Eddie Hazel and Billy "Bass" Nelson of the funk band Parliament-Funkadelic pose for a portrait in May 1971 in Liverpool, England.
Public Enemy members Chuck D, Flavor Flav, and the one and only George Clinton pose for a portrait in October 1989 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Aaron Rapoport.
4719 S Martin Luther King Dr, Chicago, IL 60615, United States
Singer George Clinton and the late, Gary Shider of Parliament-Funkadelic performs at the Regal Theater in Chicago, Illinois in October 01, 1992. Photo By Raymond Boyd.
When Bill Clinton was elected, George Clinton enjoyed the coincidence of having a president with the same last name. When Chelsea Clinton came backstage with a coterie of Secret Service agents, she joked with the funkmaster about having a food fight. He dissuaded her, not wanting to get shot down by an overeager fed. While posing for a photo with Chelsea, George realized at the last moment that he should probably conceal the crack pipe he was holding, so he just made a fist around it: “It was hot as a motherfucker, burning my hand up, but it worked – the picture, without a crack pipe in sight, was in People magazine.”
American Rock, Funk, and Soul musician and bandleader George Clinton leads his group Parliament-Funkadelic (or P-Funk) at a Fourth of July celebration at Central Park SummerStage, New York, New York, July 4, 1996. Photo by Jack Vartoogian.
American Rock, Funk, and Soul musician and bandleader George Clinton (left) leads his group Parliament-Funkadelic (or P-Funk) at a Fourth of July celebration at Central Park SummerStage, New York, New York, July 4, 1996. Photo by Jack Vartoogian.
2207 Seventh Ave (bet. 130th & 131st Sts) New York, NY, 10027, United States
Justin Guarini and George Clinton during Prince Listening Party for "One Nite Alone...Live" at Jimmy's Uptown in Harlem in New York City, New York, United States.
1612 Ute Blvd Ste 200 Park City, UT 84098, United States
George Clinton and Doug Wimbish (background) during 2005 Park City - Slamdance Closing Night Ceremony at Club Suede in Park City, Utah, United States. Photo by Victor Spinelli.
George Clinton during NBPA All-Star Ice Gala - February 19, 2005 at Denver Convention Center in Denver, Colorado, United States. Photo by Johnny Nunez.
800 W Olympic Blvd a335, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States
Legendary funk masters Sly Stone (L) and George Clinton share a moment before the George Clinton concert at Club Nokia on January 2, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Dr. Billy Ingram.
George Clinton (left) and Bootsy Collins of Parliament and Funkadelic perform on stage at the Interstellar Tribute To George Clinton, Apollo Theater, Harlem, New York, 25th October 2011. (Photo by Janette Beckman.
800 W Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92802, United States
George Clinton performs with his group the Parliment Funkadelic's for the John Lennon Education Tour Bus on the second day of the NAMM Show on January 23, 2015 in Anaheim, California. Photo by Earl Gibson III.
800 W Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92802, United States
Musician George Clinton performs at the 2015 National Association of Music Merchants show at the Anaheim Convention Center on January 23, 2015 in Anaheim, California. Photo by Jesse Grant.
501 Napoleon Ave, New Orleans, LA 70115, United States
George Clinton performs during his Funky New Year's Masquerade Ball at Tipitina's on December 29, 2015 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Photo by Erika Goldring.
1111 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States
George Clinton, Taylor Swift and Pharrell Williams attend The 58th GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on February 15, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Kevin Mazur.
9876 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, United States
Musician George Clinton attends Pre-GRAMMY Gala and Salute to Industry Icons Honoring Debra Lee at The Beverly Hilton on February 11, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Kevork Djansezian.
In this handout provided by Paisley Park Studios, George Clinton Parliament Funkadelic performs at Celebration 2017 on April 20, 2017 in Chanhassen, Minnesota.
86-90 Park Ln, Mayfair, London W1K 7TN, United Kingdom
Nile Rogers, Laura Mvula and George Clinton attend the Ivor Novello Awards at Grosvenor House on May 18, 2017 in London, England. Photo by Dave J. Hogan.
2901 Grand River Ave, Detroit, MI 48201, United States
George Clinton of George Clinton And Parliament Funkadelic performs at The Soundboard, Motor City Casino on March 8, 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. Photo by Scott Legato.
9876 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, United States
George Clinton attends The Recording Academy And Clive Davis' 2019 Pre-GRAMMY Gala at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 9, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. Photo by Jeff Kravitz.
George Clinton attended the recently opened Clinton Place Junior High School (off the main Clinton Avenue thoroughfare) in downtown Newark. While still attending school, he proved he could work with people when he made it to foreman during his first holiday job, at the Wham-O hula hoop factory.
George Clinton is an American recording artist, musician, and singer-songwriter. He is considered one of the most influential African-American Musicians and sometimes called the Godfather of Funk.
Background
George Clinton was born on July 22, 1941 in Kannapolis, North Carolina, United States to the family of George Clinton Sr. and Julious Keaton. Like many African-American families, the Clinton clan lived in extreme poverty. Clinton found responsibilities thrust upon him at an early age, being the eldest of nine children born to Julia, who tried to support her family through cleaning and baby-sitting work, but times were hard.
George’s first memory of music having any kind of impact on his soul was as a seven year old, hearing his mother and sister playing Louis Jordan and Charlie Brown records when they were getting ready to go out. His father wasn’t around much of the time.
Starting during World War One, large numbers of rural African-American families migrated to cities along the northeastern seaboard, west coast and industrial belt running from New York and Philadelphia through Cleveland to Chicago. Looking for work and a better standard of living, the Clinton family headed north, first taking in Virginia and Washington DC. In 1952, they settled in New Jersey.
Like many, the Clintons gravitated to Newark, New Jersey’s ‘Gateway City’. Newark was in decline by the time George and his family arrived, and was among America’s most impoverished cities.
Clinton’s musical enlightenment was enhanced by his cousin Ruth in Passaic, who gave him popular records of the day. Ruth lived next door to one of the Shirelles, long before the girl group led by Shirley Owens hit big later in the decade with such lustrous outings as ‘Will You Love Me Tomorrow’, ‘Dedicated To The One I Love’ and ‘Soldier Boy’.
Clinton was allowed to watch the Shirelles rehearse and later witnessed them at Harlem’s legendary Apollo Theatre at 253 W 125th Street. It would become a key venue in his musical development. Clinton’s first time at the Apollo with the Shirelles in 1953 turned into something of a doo-wop epiphany as noted vocal group the Spaniels were also on the bill. He noticed the girls screaming and going crazy at the group, which made more of an impression on him than the music at that time.
Education
George Clinton attended the recently opened Clinton Place Junior High School (off the main Clinton Avenue thoroughfare) in downtown Newark. While still attending school, he proved he could work with people when he made it to foreman during his first holiday job, at the Wham-O hula hoop factory.
In May 2012, Clinton was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music.
Basing his group on Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers, Clinton formed The Parliaments in 1955, rehearsing in the back room of a Plainfield barbershop where he straightened hair. The Parliaments released only two singles during the next ten years, but frequent trips to Detroit during the mid-’60s – where Clinton began working as a songwriter and producer – eventually paid off their investment.
The Parliaments finally had a hit with the 1967 single “(I Wanna) Testify” for the Detroit-based Revilot Records, but the label ran into trouble and Clinton refused to record any new material. Instead of waiting for a settlement, Clinton decided to record the same band under a new name: Funkadelic. Founded in 1968, the group began life as a smoke screen, claiming as its only members the Parliaments’ backing but in truth including Clinton and the rest of the former Parliaments lineup. Revilot folded not long after, with the label’s existing contracts sold to Atlantic; Clinton, however, decided to abandon the Parliaments name rather than record for the major label.
By 1970, George Clinton had regained the rights to The Parliaments name: he then signed the entire Funkadelic lineup to Invictus Records as Parliament. The group released one album – 1970’s Osmium – and scored a number 30 hit, “The Breakdown,” on the rhythm and blues charts in 1971. With Funkadelic firing on all cylinders, however, Clinton decided to discontinue Parliament (the name, not the band) for the time being.
Inspired by Motown‘s assembly line of sound, George Clinton gradually put together a collective of over 50 musicians and recorded the ensemble during the ’70s both as Parliament and Funkadelic. While Funkadelic pursued band-format psychedelic rock, Parliament engaged in a funk free-for-all, blending influences from the godfathers (James Brown and Sly Stone) with freaky costumes and themes inspired by ’60s acid culture and science fiction. From its 1970 inception until Clinton’s dissolving of Parliament in 1980, Clinton hit the rhythm and blues Top Ten several times but truly excelled in two other areas: large-selling, effective album statements and the most dazzling, extravagant live show in the business. In an era when Philly soul continued the slick sounds of establishment-approved rhythm and blues, Parliament / Funkadelic scared off more white listeners than it courted. (Ironically, today Clinton’s audiences are a cross-cultural mix of music lovers from 8 to 80.)
1978-79 was the most successful year in Parliament/Funkadelic history: Parliament hit the charts first with “Flash Light,” P-Funk’s first rhythm and blues number one. “Aqua Boogie” would hit number one as well late in the year, but Funkadelic‘s title track to “One Nation Under a Groove” spent six weeks at the top spot on the rhythm and blues charts during the summer. The album, which reflected a growing consistency in styles between Parliament and Funkadelic, became the first Funkadelic LP to reach platinum (the same year that Parliament‘s “Funkentelechy Vs. the Placebo Syndrome” did the same). In 1979, Funkadelic‘s “(Not Just) Knee Deep” hit number one as well, and its album (“Uncle Jam Wants You”) also reached platinum status.
During 1980, Clinton began to be weighed down by legal difficulties arising from PolyGram‘s acquisition of Parliament‘s label, Casablanca. Jettisoning both the Parliament and Funkadelic names (but not the musicians), Clinton began his solo career with 1982’s “Computer Games”. Several months later, Clinton’s “Atomic Dog” hit number one on the rhythm and blues charts; it stayed at the top spot for four weeks, but only managed number 101 on the pop charts. Clinton stayed on Capitol for three more years, releasing three studio albums and frequently charting singles in the R&B Top 40.
Clinton and many former Parliament/Funkadelic members continued to tour and record throughout the ’80s as the P-Funk All Stars, but the decade’s disdain of everything to do with the ’70s – especially the sound of disco – resulted in critical and commercial neglect for the world’s biggest funk band, one which in part had spawned dance music.
During much of the three-year period from 1986 to 1989, Clinton became embroiled in legal difficulties (resulting from the myriad royalty problems latent during the ’70s with recordings of over 40 musicians for four labels under three names). Also problematic during the latter half of the ’80s was Clinton’s disintegrating reputation as a true forefather of rock; by the end of the decade, however, a generation of rappers reared on P-Funk were beginning to name check him.
The early ’90s saw the rise of funk-inspired rap (courtesy of Digital Underground, Dr. Dre, and Warren G.) and funk rock (Primus and Red Hot Chili Peppers) that re-established the status of Clinton & co. as one of the most important forces in the recent history of black music. Clinton’s music became the soundtrack for the rap movement, as artists from MC Hammer, to LL Cool J to Snoop Doggy Dogg depended heavily on the infectious groove of Clinton productions as the foundation of their recordings.
Along with the renewed notoriety and respect, Clinton’s visibility and presence became familiar to a wider audience thanks to appearances in movies “The Night Before”, “House Party”, “PCU”, and “Good Burger”, hosting the HBO original series “Cosmic Slop”, and doing commercials for Apple computers, Nike, and Rio Mp3 players. Clinton also composed the theme songs for popular TV programs “The Tracey Ullman Show” and “The PJs”.
The release of a new Parliament album, Medicaid Fraud Dogg, was announced in March 2018. It was released May 22. In April 2018, Clinton announced that he would retire from touring in May 2019. Billboard reported that Clinton had recently undergone pacemaker surgery, but he said that was not a factor in his decision. He indicated that he expected Parliament-Funkadelic would continue to tour without him, saying "Truth be told, it's never really been about me. It's always been about the music and the band. That's the real P-Funk legacy. They'll still be funkin' long after I stop." Earlier in 2018, he told Rolling Stone that he had made a hologram, suggesting that the band could "have it start performing in Vegas". Clinton collaborated with Flying Lotus on his new album Flamagra released on May 24, 2019. The track "Burning Down the House" was co-written by Clinton.
George Clinton is Christian, though he still sometimes expresses criticism of the organized religion stating that even over religion making money is still the strongest urge. In 2014 he took par in the conference “Afrofuturism in Black Theology: Race, Gender, Sexuality and the State of Black Religion in the Black Metropolis” at the Vanderbilt Divinity School.
Politics
George Clinton supported Hillary Clinton during 2016 United States presidential election and is strong in his opposition to Trump. George Clinton decided to voice his support for Hillary Clinton and his opposition to Trump after the tape from a 2005 Access Hollywood broadcast became public where Trump lewdly referenced grabbing women by their private parts.
George Clinton has never met either Trump or Hillary Clinton, but he did play the Youth Ball at the first Bill Clinton inauguration.
Views
Clinton plans to have those other members carry on the legacy without him when this farewell tour is over. For him it's pretty clear that they could bring these songs to very funky life in Clinton's absence.
Quotations:
"What is soul? I don't know! Soul is a hamhock in your cornflakes... Soul is a joint rolled in toilet paper."
"Vote Hillary because Trump is not funky."
"Funk is gonna always survive. It’s about doing the best you can, and if you do the best that you can do, you just leave it alone and let the funk take over."
"Any time you go pop or cross over, you already begin to lose the audience that you started out with. It just so happened that the black music became the pop music of the next generation. What’s really black for ten years becomes really pop the next ten years. With rock ‘n’ roll, a lot of black people think it’s white music totally. They don’t know about Little Richard and Chuck Berry. The only thing they know is that Jimi Hendrix played some psychedelic. So yeah, you lose your audience if you go from one audience to the next. Most of the black music you get today - hip-hop - it’s totally pop."
Personality
While Clinton was leading a doo-wop group called the Parliaments (“vocal groups were, for the most part, named after birds, cars and cigarettes,” he observes) and driving to Detroit to audition for Motown (they liked him, but turned him down), he made his living where he could, assembling hula hoops or working as a hairdresser. He ended up with his own hair salon, which he called the Silk Palace. One day, Clinton says, two nervous kids walked in with a box full of counterfeit money: about $1.2 million in fake 20-dollar bills. Clinton bought it from them for $2,000 and used the money to refurnish the Silk Palace and to pay for recording studio time: “I told the musicians it was counterfeit but instead of $200 I would pay them $1,000. They didn’t seem to mind. Belief in the federal green is strong, even when it’s not real.”
When Bill Clinton was elected, George Clinton enjoyed the coincidence of having a president with the same last name. When Chelsea Clinton came backstage with a coterie of Secret Service agents, she joked with the funkmaster about having a food fight. He dissuaded her, not wanting to get shot down by an overeager fed. While posing for a photo with Chelsea, George realized at the last moment that he should probably conceal the crack pipe he was holding, so he just made a fist around it: “It was hot as a motherfucker, burning my hand up, but it worked – the picture, without a crack pipe in sight, was in People magazine.”
Physical Characteristics:
George Clinton often wears outlandish, multi-colored clothes in concerts, frequently accompanied by platform shoes and rainbow streamers in his long hair. He is 5' 9" or 1,75 meters high.
Interests
fishing, feeding birds
Politicians
Hillary Clinton
Writers
Ishmael Reeds, Hunter S. Thompson, Julia Phillips
Artists
Overton Loyd
Sport & Clubs
baseball
Music & Bands
Sly And The Family Stone, The Beatles, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Cream
Connections
George Clinton married Stephanie Lynn in 1990. In February 2013, after 22 years of marriage they divorced.
Clinton later married Carlon Thompson, his manager of over 10 years. He had a son George Clinton Jr. who died in 2010. In one of his interviews Clinton mentioned having grandchildren.