Which Zapp frontman was known for using the talk box in funk recordings?

Roger Troutman was the Zapp frontman known for using the talk box in funk recordings.

Troutman founded and led Zapp, the Dayton, Ohio, band that helped define electro-funk in the late 1970s and 1980s. His talk-box performances made the human voice sound as though it were being produced by a synthesizer, creating one of the most recognizable textures in funk. Zapp’s “More Bounce to the Ounce” became an early showcase for that sound.

Troutman used a custom Electro-Harmonix Golden Throat talk box with instruments including the Moog Minimoog and, later, a Yamaha DX100 synthesizer. His singing, guitar playing, production, and vocal effects made him the group’s central musical figure, while his brothers Larry, Lester, and Terry were also important members of Zapp.

Listeners sometimes confuse a talk box with a vocoder. Both alter vocal sound, but a talk box sends an instrument’s sound through a tube into the performer’s mouth, which shapes the tone acoustically. Troutman later brought the technique to a new generation through his work on 2Pac’s “California Love.”