Original P

The Original P is an American funk band formed in 1998 by four founding members of Parliament-Funkadelic, Fuzzy Haskins, Calvin Simon, Grady Thomas and Ray Davis. All four have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Members

Current members

• Grady Thomas - vocals, conga, percussion, (1981–present)
• Ben Powers, Jr. - drums, bass, percussion, (1981–present)
• John "Fly" Wiley - keyboards, (1981–present)
• Derrick Davis - bass, vocals (1991–present)
• Gene Thomas - lead and rhythm guitar, vocals (1991–present)
• Patrice "Emerald" Llewellen, vocals (1991–present)
• Sonja Holmes, vocals (1991–present)
• Kevin "K-Star" Shider - lead and rhythm guitar, vocals (2005–present)
• Sharla L. Patrick - keyboards, vocals (2005–present)
• Scott "Skyntyte" Free - guitar/vocals, (2007–present)
• Theophilis "Chip" Glass - vocals, percussion (2014–present)
• Michael "Mike P." Patterson - guitar/vocals (2013–present)
• Kenyan Ross (aka Defiance Douglass) - keyboards/vocals (2014–present)

Past members

• William "Billy" Mims - guitar (1981-2007)
• Douglas Smith - keyboards, vocals (2005-2007)
• "Peter Keys" Pisarczyk - keyboards (2005-2007)
• Ann Love - vocals (2003-2005)
• George "Paisley" Gordon - guitar (1998-2003)
• Rose Offord - vocals (2007-2009)

Discography

• Connections & Disconnections released under the name Funkadelic (LAX Records, 1980)
• What Dat Shakin (Westbound Records, 1998)
• Hyped Up Westbound Soljaz (Westbound Records, 2001)
• "Funk Force Trauma" (Independent, 2016)

Further reading

• Kent Kimes (May 21, 1999), Original P Keeps Funky Beat Going, The Augusta Chronicle.
• Jon Pareles (April 9, 1999) Pop and Jazz Guide, The New York Times.
• Steven Uhles (September 14, 2001), Parliament in Session, The Augusta Chronicle.