MC Hammer wsg Coolio and Tone Loc

The three-time Grammy award-winning rapper MC Hammer with special guests Coolio and Tone Loc will perform at DTE Energy Music Theatre on Friday, August 14 at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets at $35.50 pavilion and $10 lawn are on sale now at Palacenet.com, The Palace and DTE Energy Music Theatre Box Offices and all Ticketmaster locations

Tickets may also be charged by phone to American Express, Discover, Visa and MasterCard by calling 1-800-745-3000.

Nicknamed "Hammer" for his resemblance to all-time home run leader “Hammerin’” Hank Aaron, the three-time Grammy award winning rapper MC Hammer has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide.

Hammer’s debut triple-platinum album titled Let’s Get it Started included hit singles “Feel My Power,” “Let’s Get It Started,” “Turn This Mutha Out” and “Pump It Up.” His second album, Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em included the smash singles “U Can’t Touch This,” "Have You Seen Her?” and “Pray,” and went on to become the first hip-hop album to reach diamond status, selling more than 10 million units.

Hammer’s career continued to be successful in the 1990s with album releases including Too Legit to Quit (1991), The Funky Headhunter (1994), Inside Out (1995), and Family Affair (1998). His pop-culture success led to licensed merchandise, a Saturday morning cartoon Hammerman and the iconic “Hammer pants.” In 2001, he released Active Duty in tribute to those lost in the September 11 terrorist attacks, followed by a digital release Look Look Look in 2006.

Hammer is also the star of the new A&E reality series Hammertime that focuses on the Hammer family as they live their not-so-simple lives in Tracy, California. Having a family and re-launching the Hammer empire is not an easy task. While spending the last 17 years readjusting to his middle class lifestyle, Hammer never lost his thirst and desire to regain superstar status, and is now poised to bring his family along with him for the ride.

Coolio was one of the first rappers to balance pop accessibility with gritty, street-level subject matter and language. His debut album, It Takes a Thief (1994) included lead single, “County Line,” but the record really took off when “Fantastic Voyage,” a rap remake of the funk classic by Lakeside, was released as a single. Accompanied by a typically playful video, “Fantastic Voyage” rocketed to number three on the pop charts, pushing It Takes a Thief into the Top 10 and past the platinum sales mark.

Following up his breakthrough success, Coolio released the single “Gangsta’s Paradise” that became a soundtrack to the film Dangerous Minds and became Coolio’s first number one pop single and also the first ghetto-centric rap song to hit number one in the U.K. “Gangsta’s Paradise” chart’s longevity set a new record for most weeks at number one that year and was the number one single of 1995. Featured as the title track on Coolio’s next album, Gangsta’s Paradise (1995), it won a Grammy for Best Solo Rap Performance. The triple-platinum album included other notable singles: “1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin’ New)” and “Too Hot.”

Tone-Loc soared from obscurity into pop stardom in 1989 when his hoarse voice and unmistakable delivery made the song “Wild Thing” (using a sample from Van Halen’s “Jamie's Cryin”) a massive hit. The song was co-written by Marvin Young, better known as Young MC, as was the second single smash, “Funky Cold Medina.” The album Loc-ed After Dark became the second rap release ever to top the pop charts. Tone-Loc expanded his horizons into acting in 1992 and 1993, appearing a few times on the Fox sitcom Roc. He was also in the films Posse and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, and in 1991 returned to recording with Cool Hand Loc.

MC Hammer with special guests Coolio and Tone Loc are part of the Belle Tire Concert Series.