Franklyn Leon Smith (January 29, 1940^[1] – March 8, 2019^[2]) was an American funk musician and R&B/soul songwriter. He was best known for his 1981 hit single "Double Dutch Bus".

Career

Smith went to college in Tennessee for elementary education with a minor in music. He became a writer for funk and soul artists such as the O'Jays and The Spinners. In 1972 he would record for Paramount, releasing a single called "Double Dutch" under the name Franklin Franklin, but it failed to become a hit.^[3] He was also influential in the careers of the rappers Tone Loc, Ice Cube and Snoop Dogg.

With his 1981 single "Double Dutch Bus", released by WMOT Records,^[4] Smith popularized a nonsensical form of slang (from his song "Slang thang", 1981 WMOT, Records), in which "iz" is placed in the middle of a word (for example, the word "place" becomes "plizace"), or the last letters of a word are replaced with "-izzle" ("sure" becomes shizzle). A type of infix, it found greater popularity later on in hip hop and rap with its usage by Snoop Dogg.^[5]

Death

Smith died in Philadelphia on March 8, 2019.

Discography

Albums

• 1981: Children of Tomorrow
• 2006: Frankie Smith and His World Wide Party Crew

Singles

• 1980: "Double Dutch Bus" (#30, US)
• 1980: "Double Dutch"
• 1981: "The Auction"
• 1981: "Teeny-Bopper Lady"
• 1982: "Double Dutch Bus II"
• 1982: "Yo-Yo Champ (From Mississippi)"
• 1985: "Slapp Ya Thigh"
• 1985: "Congratulations for Graduating"