Marky Mark
Unless you were deprived of the glory that was Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch (and if you were, our hearts go out to you), you immediately started singing the words to Good Vibrations when you spotted this guy’s name. The beloved American hip-hop group, born in 1989, consisted of a group of aliases that could have only existed in the 1990s: Marky Mark, Scottie Gee, Hector the Booty Inspector, DJ-T, and Ashey Ace. They released their first album, Music for the People, in 1991, and it was a massive success– it made it up to number one on the Top Heatseekers Albums Chart and up to number twenty-one on the Billboard 200. The album owes its success, of course, to twin hit singles Good Vibrations and Wildside. It was certified platinum in 1992, and though they released a follow-up album, it never took off. The group broke up quietly in 1993, but Marky Mark continued making music in collaboration with Prince Ital Joe until 1998.
Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch were also known for releasing probably the worst video game in history, a PC game titled Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch: Make my Video. In the game, players are put in control of editing music videos for three of the group’s most famous songs: Good Vibrations (duh), You Gotta Believe, and I Need Money. If it’s any consolation, Marky Mark, your video game was no more of a hysterical failure than Kriss Kross’s.
Marky Mark has grown up to be probably one of the most famous surviving stars of the 1990s. Today, we know him as Mark Wahlberg, actor and producer. After starting off with movies like Boogie Nights and Three Kings, he earned himself an Academy Award nomination for his role in The Departed. Today, we know him for his role in films such as Ted, Transformers: Age of Extinction, Lone Survivor, and The Other Guys. The ex-rapper has also served as an executive producer for some of our favorite shows: How to Make it in America, Entourage, and even Boardwalk Empire. Suffice it to say the man hasn’t done badly for himself.
Here’s a little Wahlburg weirdness you may not be aware of: in addition to his legion of acting and production titles, Marky Mark has grown up to be the co-owner of a chain restaurant, Wahlburgers, which now has a reality TV series on A&E. The show, which is perfect for any Wahlburg junkie, even received an Emmy nomination.
