LL Cool J which stands for Ladies Love Cool James (just in case you wanted to know!) was discovered by the Beastie Boys in 1984 when he was just 15 years old. Influenced by RUN D.M.C, LL created his own identity with the beat box and street style raps. Adding a sexy element to rap, was the first ever rap ballad and gave LL his first European top 10 hit. LL later earned his heavyweight title as raps longest lasting superstars, continuously updating his rap style, he still maintains his original appeal.
Rapper KRS-1 meet DJ Scott La Rock at a shelter for the homeless in the Bronx. Working under the name BDP the two recorded the contraversial album "Criminal Minded" which centred around gun culture. It sold over 1 million copies and it was instrumental in starting the gangster rap movement. During a street dispute which didn't even involve him, DJ Scott La Rock was shot dead. KRS-1 went solo releasing "My Philosphy" as a retaliation to end the violence. To this day KRS-1 continues to campaign raising money and creating an awareness of the plight of America's inner city ghetto's and violence in the community.
Eric B and Rakim were responsible for a more refined and relaxed style of rap. "Follow the Leader" at the time was musically totally orginial. With its grumbling bass, flutes and strings its influence can still be heard today. On the opposite end of the scale their debuting single used heavy sampling, infact over 30 remixes, resulting in James Brown and Boby Byrd taking legal action for using their material without payment or permission. As a result, organisations have been set up to pay the orginial musicians for their material. Now, the average rap album costs an extra $30,000 just to pay for the samples.
With a hardcore controversial stance and sociopolitical edge, Public Enemy caused a sensation with their revolutionary and politically charged style of rap. Up until this point in hip-hop's short life-span, it had been centrally a party-based style of music, Public Enemy changed that forever. Taping into the real life hardships and frustrations of America's black community, their continous themes of black rage and alienation caused a wave of media criticism. was Public Enemies response to the media's negative portrayal of the groups supposedly violent, anti-semitic and sexist image. Taking only 30 days to complete, Public Enemy released their second album "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back" which went Platium.
Unlike Public Enemy, EPMD never felt the need to provide political rap and believed music was strictly business. It took just 6 weeks for their album "Stirctly Business" to hit number 1 in the US. They built a small rap empire on the strength of 3 gold albums and a serious approach to music.
NWA comprising of Dr Dre, DJ Yella, MC Ren, Eazy E and founding member Ice Cube based their lyrics on violence, drugs and guns receiving instant media coverage. They gave voice to urban alienation and black rage. Giving a grim account of the rising death toll amoung young blacks as a result of feuding gangs and crack dealers, NWA bought America's inner city ghetto's to the attention of the American people. Singles like aggrivated the FBI accusing the group of encouraging violence and hatred towards the police but NWA claimed to be "reporters" on what was really happening on the streets of Los Angeles. Radio and television stations kept playing their music and "Straight Outta Compton" went gold after just 6 weeks. Their reputation as the worlds best known gangsta rappers still continues after the group spilt up to pursue solo projects.
Backed by DJ Spinderella rap duo Salt-N-Pepa, released which started out on the B-side of the single "Tramp". DJ's started playing "Push It" instead of "Tramp" and it had an immediate impact on the New York rap scene. Their debut album "Hot, Cool and Vicious" stayed in the American charts for over a year, and the single sold over 1 million copies confirming Salt-N-Pepa as the first female rappers to do so. A year later the Grammies created a new category in their awards - Best Rap Act. Salt-N-pepa were nominated but refused to attend the ceremony when they discovered that this particular award would not be televised. The Ladies took this stance to show solidarity with hip-hop's growing status. In 1991 Salt-N-Pepa released successfully turning around the tables on men treating them like sex objects. This single went gold making Salt-N-Pepa the most commerically successfull rap duo of all time.
Rapping since he was twelve years old, Wil Smith met Jeff Townes at a party. They soon began performing together as DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. They spun a new brand of hip-hop, devoid of politics or exclusionary rhetoric. They provided more playful lyrics and a different form of scratching called "transforming" on their debut album "Rock The House". DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince were awarded the first ever "Best Rap Performance" Grammy for. Subsequently in 1989, they where nominated for "I think I can Beat Mike Tyson", from the album "And in This Corner". In 1991 they won yet another Grammy and in 1992, they were honored by the NAACp Image Awards for Outstanding Rap Artists.
Public Enemy began to base their style on the Afro-American organisation - The Black Panthers. Complete with berets, camouflage fatigues and and on stage military manoeuvres this added to the negative media hysteria. was one of Public Enemies many rap anthems which lead to an FBI report examing its effects on national security.
Marvin Young, better known as Young MC was born in London, raised in New York and educated at the University of California. He became known as the maestro of "articulate" rap. was a top ten smash and later his debut album "Brainstorm" earned him a grammy for best rap record. He later collaborated with LA based rapper Ton Loc on. The video cost $500 which was a satire of Robert Palmers "Addicted to Love". It sold over 2 million.
Queen Latifah stands for delicate and sensitive in Arabic which contradicts her lyrical style. Opening doors for other female rappers and leading the way for them to respond to their sexist counterparts she broke through a male dominated rap scene to become known as "Raps First Lady". She won a Grammy for Best Solo Rap preformance in 1994. Tracks like "Dance for me" promote themes of unity rather than competition amongst black women.
Ice Cube lauched his solo career and joined forces with Chuck D of Public Enemy. The result was the album "Amerikkka's Most Wanted" which went gold in ten days and sold over 1 million copies. Ice cubes outspoken attacks on white America upset many extreme right wing organisations who trageted him on an assassination list which was discovered by the police in 1993.
Ice-T took his name from Iceberg Slim, a pimp who wrote novels and poetry. He would memorize lines and recite them for friends and classmates. He recorded several undistinguished 12-inch singles and appeared in low-budget hip-hop films Rappin', Breakin', and Breakin' II: Electric Boogaloo while he was trying to establish a career. It wasn't until the release of he achieved considerable commerical success. Viewed by many as the orginial gangsta rapper, Ice-T based his lyrics on real life experiences on the streets of LA. Rapping about prositutes, drugs and violence angered many offical organisations in America and as a result records were censored and Parental Advisory stickers were introduced.
Born and raised in South Central LA, Yo-Yo was the first female rapper to break through the west coast. A mutual friend introduced her to Ice Cube who was about to leave NWA to go solo and immediatly they developed a business relationship. Yo-Yo's lyric's were often promoting ideals of independency, confidence and self-respecting black women,
"Making the way for the Motherload" sold 400,000 copies and had frequent injections from Ice Cube's Lench Mob Posse. She went on to set up "Intelligent Black Women's Coalition" a support group which organises meetings and benefit concerts.
Tupac Amaru Shakur was born and raised in the Bronx, New York before moving to California where he continued to write and record. His Debut Album "2Pacalypse Now" introduced him as a significant explosive new voice on the scene. The Album went gold and his single "Trapped" reached number 3 in the US charts. 2 years later he released his second album "Strictly 4 my N.I.G.G.A.Z" which took him to the top of the ranks of rap, selling over a million copies world wide.
Dr Dre's debut album "The Chronic" set the agenda for today's west coast gangsta rap, like many of his predecessors Dre's music heavily sampled the 70's sounds of George Clinton and Funkadelic, but his lyrics bought a new subject to rap - marijuana. Encouraging the use of marijuana sparred off a whole new trend in hip-hop.
Cypress Hill, like Dr Dre advocated the use of marijuana as a cultural replacement for alcohol. They even went as far as campaigning for 'NORMAL' - The National Organisation For The Reform Of Marijuana Laws. Cypress Hill's music mixed gangsta lyrics about dope and guns with a blend of funky R&B samples and mixes. Comprising of DJ Muggs, B-Real (Mexican descent) and Sen Dogg (Cuban descent), Cypress Hill reflected the successful integration of Latin American artists into rap music. The west coast became a breeding ground of yet another variety of rap - Latino hip-hop. The integration of Spanish and English style of rapping gave rise to artists such as Mello Man Ace (brother of Sen Dogg) and Kid Frost.
Hardcore Irish American rappers House of Pain from LA scored a top 10 with "Jump Around" which soon became a club athem. In 1994, Group member Everlast, was arrest in an airport for the illegal possession of a hand gun. As a result he was put under house arrest for 3 months.
The Roots began their musical career jammin' in the streets of Philladelephia. They paid tribute to old school hip-hop culture by enlisting well known DJ's, rappers and graffiti artists to preform with them on stage while preforming cover versions of RUN D.M.C and Eric B and Rakim's hits. The Roots have a unique and innovative style by recording live with musicians and real musical instruments. They avoided sterotypical macho style of rapping describing their music as "the thinking man's rap music". Their influence is present among many current hip-hop artists.
An alternative to gangsta rap, 4 member LA Crew Pharacyde, released their debut album "Bizarre Ride II Pharacyde". One Nut Magazine said "They paved the way for an LA hip hop renaissance that helped hoist the city out of its bullets and bitches pigeon hole". Well known for their fast thinking and witty lyrics, they sampled Beastie Boys and featured Mike D in their video , a single from their second album "Labcabincalifornia" which took 2 years to produce.
Rapping since the young age of 12, MC Lyte released "Ruffneck" as a response to fellow rapper Apache's "Gangsta Bitch" which was a chauvanistic attack on women. She accused male rappers of having out of control ego's and the single went gold within a few weeks.
In an industry that was dominated by gangsta rap came the Wu-Tang Clan. Wu Tang Clan is a Chinese martial art which means "sword family" - it is also a team of nine New York MC's. The group drew heavily on marital arts for their music and their image often sampling Kung-Fu movies. Their album "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)" was a reference to 36 points, 10 degree apart on the human body according to maritial arts theory are the most vunerable to attack. With their combat like style of rapping, their debut album sold over 4 million copies. RZA the groups mastermind and producer encouraged Wu-Tang members Methodman and Ghostface Killah to release solo projects. Meanwhile Wu-Tang Clan's Ol' Dirty Bastard worked with other artists such as Busta Rhymes and Mariah Carey.
Snoop began his rap career at a young age collaborating with Dr Dre. debuted in the top 20 on the UK and eventually reached gold status. Produced by Dr Dre, "DoggyStyle" reached number 1 in the US album charts and was the first rap album to top the charts within its first week of release. After presenting an award to En Vogue at the 1993 MTV music awards, Snoop voluntarily surrended himself to police custody on murder charges. He was later acquitted and his alleged involvement in a drive-by shooting help boost his popularity. Doggystyle sold over 4 million copies worldwide increasing gangsta raps appeal into the mainstream.
Nas (aka Nassir Jones) reached gold sales with his first album "Illmatic" but it was with the voice of Lauryn Hill that pushed him into the world of mainstream hip-hop. Nas showed a skill for rapping about violence without glorifying it and literally crossed the divide between fueding east and west coast rivals by moving from New York to LA where Dr Dre helped produce his second album "It Was Written".
Warren Griffen half brother of Dr Dre prefected a calmer story telling style of rap that encouraged younger people to stay away from drugs and guns. He grew up in Long Beach listening to his parents' extensive collection of jazz, soul, and funk records. appeared on the Above the Rim soundtrack and was released as a single. It quickly became a massive hit, number 2 on the charts and pushing the album up to the same position. "Regulate - G-Funk Era" sold over 4 million copies world wide and established him as a major figure in the rap industry. Motivated by black on black violence Warren G used his status as a respected musician to negotiate a truce betwen rival groups in an LA neighbourhood.
Jeru the Damja asked old school DJ Premier to produce his album "Wrath of the Math". Much like his contempories, Jeru's main aim was to bring back the old school style of rhyming and avoid glamorising guns and drugs. He defends hip-hop from greedy materialists and attacks artists such as Junior M.A.F.I.A by praising the virtues of honesty and clean living. spoke out against macho and agressive lyrics. He was also fascinated by eastern philosophy and was an avid lover of Kung-Fu movies so Kong Kong became the back drop to many of his video's.
Notorious B.I.G first review was a brief mention in THE SOURCE, a column that highlights MC's, or group's that are yet to sign a record contract. "... this shit in The Source called Unsigned Hype. I said, Fuck it, send it in. And [former Source editor] Matty C loved it. He played it for Puffy". Like many rappers Christopher Wallace made a transition from a life of crime to writing rhymes. His debut album "Ready To Die" was inspired by his early childhood selling drugs to make a living hence the title of his second album "Life After Death". "One More Chance" went straight to number 1 in the US and the album went multi-platinum.
Lil' Kim was discovered by Notorious B.I.G doing freestyles. At just 17 years of age she had a massive hit with . Her style was deliberately raunchy and lyrics provocative, so much so she was critised by conservative memebers of the hip-hop scene for being too dirty. She refused to be repressed by negative comments and feminists.
"I'm the Big Momma. I represent all the females and keep all the boys in check! We are all from the street and have all been through the struggle. I want all the ladies to relate to what I'm talking about" (hmmm).
The Fugees's comprises of University graduate Wyclef, his cousin, Pras and high school friend, Lauryn Hill. Their songs often deal with issues such as America's negative perception of Haitian immigrants and their own experience's growing up in New York, hence "fugee" which comes from the term refugee.
Being of mixed race, their lyrics promote positive non violent ideals fusing hip-hop with soul, raggae and jazz. They developed a clever style of word play, adding a rap which gave an anti-drugs message to Roberta Flack's old hit was the biggest hit single of the year selling over 9 million copies.
The score won a Grammy for Best Rap Album in 1997 and is the biggest selling rap album of all time.
Busta Rhymes earned his name from his individual and unique style rapping. He began his career in the group Leaders of the New School who were noted for their old school vibe. After the group spilt up he was approached by Chuck D of Public Enemy who produced his debut album "The Coming". Noted for his vertigo style clips and and his stratchy charcoal voice Busta Rhymes has become one of the heavy weights in hip-hop. Unlike other rappers who replicate the same lyrical flow, Busta Rhymes switches his rhyme style and mimics a transform scratch with his voice. "That's just growth, the nature of life. Life never stays at one level. There's no limit to things. I like to go where I haven't gone before. It's the best way to manifest my growth, to manifest it through music".
2pac and Notorious B.I.G became embroiled in a feuding war between east and west coast rappers. While the east was "keeping it real" and in the west "it's all good" both their lives ended tragically. 2pac was shot in a drive-by shooting only to die a week later. 6 months later, leaving the Soul Train Awards, Notorious B.I.G was shot in a similar drive-by incident. Ironically both artists records sales have since doubled overnight. The deaths are unrelated and remain unsolved.
While violent feuds esculated between east and west coast rappers leading to the deaths of Tupac and Biggie, Wu-Tang Clan acrossed the divide when they played in LA.
Interscope Records, parent company of Death Row Records, after months of rumours confirms severing ties with Death Row. Dr Dre, founder, president and producer left months before the announcement. Suge Knight, producer, is in jail for nine years, which under Californian law prohibits him from day-to-day company operations.
It was the lawsuit of Tupac's mother, Afeni Shakur, accusing the company for cheating her son out of millions of dollars which opened the eyes of other Death Row members.
All artists are seeking release from their contacts and demanding unpaid royalties.
Daz Dillinger (Da Dogg Pound) is the only member who wants to stay. Danny Boy is rumoured to be back in Chicago, while Lady of Rage, frustrated because she couldn't get answers to her questions - or even an appointment to ask them - has been barred from Death Row headquarters. Kurupt has filled for bankruptcy and Nate Dogg, who has started his own label, the Dogg Foundation, is trying to get ownership of the album he recored for Death Row, which has been sitting on the shelf for three years. Snoop Doggy Dogg who is still under legal contract to release six albums, is renouncing his for-life allegiance to the label with uncharacteristic public tirades. "I'm going to a place where it's all business and no violence, where it's all about creativity instead of head games. To tell you the truth, I fear for my life on Death Row Records".
