Monday, May 14, 2012

Nas


    Nas(born Nasir Bin Olu Dara Jones September 14, 1973) is an American Rapper. He is the son of Olu Dara a jazz musician. Nas came of age in the Notoriously rough Queensbridge Projects. With lyrics and beats virtually built into Queensbridge’s concrete walls, Nas had soaked up his talents from suck influences before he was ond enough to put pen o paper. So it was only a matter of time before this young boy would attempt to wow the crowds on his own. Nas first went by the nickname Kid Wave before adopting his more commonly known alias of Nasty Nas. In the late 1980s, he met up with the producer "Large Professor" and went to the studio where Rakim and Kool G Rap were recording their albums. When they were not in the studio, Nas would go into the booth and record his own material. However, none of it was released. In mid-1992, Nas was approached by MC Serch of 3rd Bass, who became his manager and secured Nas a record deal with Columbia Records the same year. Nas made his solo debut under the name of "Nasty Nas" on the single "Halftime" from Serch's soundtrack for the film Zebrahead. his rhyming skills attracted a significant amount of attention within the hip-hop community.

    In 1994, Nas Released his first album “Illmatic”. Album was awarded Five Mics from The Source. It attracted attention for its depiction of ghetto life and Nas' refusal to include the violence evident in some hip-hop. the album, which featured production by DJ Premier, Large Professor, Pete Rock, and Q-Tip, and a relatively unknown emcee named AZ, was lauded as a masterpiece. It spawned several singles, including "The World Is Yours", "It Ain't Hard to Tell", and "One Love".  With such a good start, he continued making music and dropped another effort "It Was Written" two years later. With this record, he soared higher on the U.S. albums chart, peaking at the No. 1 position. Beside becoming his first chart topper, this album was also his platform to showcase his rap supergroup which was signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath label and consisted of AZ, Foxy Brown and Cormega(The Firm).
 
    Signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment label, The Firm began working on their debut album. Halfway through the production of the album, Cormega was fired from the group by Steve Stoute, who had unsuccessfully attempted to force Cormega to sign a deal with his management company. Nature replaced Cormega as the fourth member of The Firm. The Album was finally released in 1997 to mixed reviews. The album failed to live up to its expected sales, despite being certified platinum, and the members of the group disbanded to go their separate ways. During this period, Nas was one of four rappers (the others being B-Real, KRS-One and RBX) in the hip hop super-group Group Therapy, who appeared on the song "East Coast/West Coast Killas" from Dr. Dre Presents the Aftermath.
   
    April 1999 was the time when Nas came out with his third album "I Am...". Already embraced by Hip-Hop community due to his talent, he had an access to acclaimed musicians and used the advantage to hire some of them for his collaborators. The result was he had  P. Diddy, DMX, Aaliyah and Scarface on the hook. Like its predecessor, this album ruled Hot 200. Due to its huge success, he planned a re-release of "I Am..." materials under the new title "Nastradamus" but after a while he scrapped the plan and decided to fill the effort with all new tracks. The album was rushed to meet a November release date. Only seven months in the making apparently was not enough to make a hit and it proved as the effort could only peak at No. 7 on albums chart.  Nas's fifth studio album, “Stillmatic”, released in December 2001.  Stillmatic debuted at number five on the Billboard album charts and featured the singles "Got Ur Self A..." and "One Mic". 

    In December 2002, Nas released the "God's Son" album including its lead single, "Made You Look". The album peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts despite widespread internet bootlegging. Time Magazine named his album best hip-hop album of the year. Vibe gave it four stars and The Source gave it four mics. "I Can", which reworked elements from Beethoven's "Für Elise", became Nas's biggest hit to date during the spring and summer of 2003. Nas apparently took the criticism of "God's Son" seriously as he returned to his roots in his next album "Street's Disciple". Nas did not slow down as he returned to studio soon after "Street's Disciple". He dropped "Hip Hop Is Dead" in 2005 and it became his first project which had his then-foe Jay-Z. Additionally, will.i.am, Kelis, Kanye West, Chrisette Michele, Snoop Dogg and The Game were listed on it. The album ruled Hot 200, becoming his first taste on the top spot after 1999 "I Am...". The critics described it as a collection of songs which "is impossible not to admire, but hard to love."

    In 2008, Nas released his 2nd Def Jam album, “Untitled”. A year later at the 2009 Grammy Awards, he announced plan to release a collaborative album with reggae musician Damian Marley. 


Discography:
  • Illmatic (1994)
  • It Was Written (1996)
  • I Am... (1999)
  • Nastradamus (1999)
  • Stillmatic (2001)
  • God's Son (2002)
  • Street's Disciple (2004)
  • Hip Hop Is Dead (2006)
  • Untitled (2008)

Monday, May 7, 2012

Mobb Deep


    Mobb Deep is an American Hip-Hop Group from Queens NY.The group consisted of  Havoc (born Kejuan Muchita, May 21, 1974) and Prodigy (born Albert Johnson, November 2, 1974). Prodigy and Havoc met one another while attending the prestigious High School of Art & Design in Manhattan. Coming from similar backgrounds, the duo broke into the rap game in 1992. They released their first album, “Juvenille Hell”, in 1993. At a time when East Coast hip hop was dominated by the jazziness of A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul, and the Afro-centric stylings of Brand Nubian and Public Enemy, their style of music eschewed the popular conscious hip hop of the time, and reflected the harsh climate of New York City in the late-1980s and early-1990s. Because both Prodigy and Havoc were still in their teens at the time of their debut, many were surprised by the violent nature of the album.

    The group released their second album in 1995 it was called “The Infamous”. The Infamous became perhaps one of the most influential hip hop albums of the East Coast hardcore rap genre. Still at a young age, the duo powered themselves to the top of the hardcore rap scene through their straight forward narration of street life. The hit “Shook Ones Pt2” received acclaim as one of the greatest rap songs ever. Mobb Deep's third album, “Hell on Earth” was released in 1996. Method Man and Raekwon of the Wu Tang Clan appear on “Hell on Earth”.

    In 1999, the duo released album “Murda Musik”. he album debuted at number three on Billboard and quickly went platinum. Mobb Deep released “Infamy”  in 2001. Prodigy also released a successful solo album, "H.N.I.C." On the song "You Can Never Feel My Pain" from his solo album "H.N.I.C.", Prodigy raps about his experiences with Sickle Cell, both in his childhood and adult life. In the spring of 2005, it was announced that the duo signed with G-Unit Records. This came as a surprise to many, as 50 Cent aimed a sly diss at them on the “Piggy Bank” track. The duo made it known that this was not the case as Havoc stated in an interview, “Mobb Deep isn’t gonna change and when we first got here 50 was like, Listen, I want y’all to keep doing what you been doing”.  They currently have recorded their album, titled "Blood Money" which was released on May 2, 2006. It features G-Unit members 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo, and Young Buck. On April 4, 2011 a possible new Mobb Deep single leaked on the internet named "Dog Shit", this song features rapper Nas as its collaborator.




Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Cypress Hill


   Cypress Hill is Hip-Hop group from California U.S.. Cypress Hill is undeniably one of the most influential names in the world of hip-hop. Group consists of B-Real(born Louis Freese June 2, 1970), DJ Muggs(born Lawrence Muggerud January 28, 1968), Sen Dog(born Senen Reyes November 20, 1965), Eric Bobo(born Eric Correa, August 27), 1968). The group's name comes from Cypress Avenue, a street that runs through the South Central L.A. hood where the group came together.

    Their debut album was released in August 1991 titled “Cypress Hill”, album gave them a meteoric fame as the album sold million copies in the U.S. alone and was certified a double Platinum. Their second album "Black Sunday" released in 1993, it surpassed the success of its predecessor. It debuted at No. 1 on Billboard Hot 200. The selling number hit more than 3 millions mark, earning them a triple Platinum. Album’s hit was "Insane In The Brain".

    Cypress Hill released the group's third, “III Temples of Boom”,(1995) and third-consecutive platinum album release. selling 1.5 million copies and reaching number 3 on the Billboard 200 on the strength of the hit single Throw Your Set in the Air. one of their members Sen Dog took a timeout to form a side project called SX-10. Every member of group focused on their solo careers in 1997. 

    The group reunioned in 1998 when they released "IV" which went gold in the U.S. this album couldn't achieve the success of their previous albums, becoming their first effort to fail charting on the Top 10 of Hot 200. This failure pushed group to come with something different and in 2000 Cypress Hill released their 6th album with a two-disc "Skull & Bones". The first disc "Skull" features rap tracks, while the second one "Bones" explores rock songs. This led them return to the Top 10 of the U.S. albums chart, peaking at number three. Cypress Hill released "Stoned Raiders" and "Till Death Do Us Part" in 2001 and 2004. Both efforts consist of more than 14 songs but failed to climb to the The Top 10 of Hot 200. The first could only peak at No. 16, and the latter made its highest position at number 21.

    Discography:
  • Cypress Hill (1991)
  • Black Sunday (1993)
  • III: Temples of Boom (1995)
  • Unreleased and Revamped (1996)
  • IV (1998)
  • Skull & Bones (2000)
  • Stoned Raiders (2001)
  • Till Death Do Us Part (2004)
  • Rise Up (2010)


   

Monday, April 30, 2012

M.O.P.


  
   M.O.P. (Mash Out Posse) is a Hardcore Hip-Hop duo from Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York. M.O.P was formed in 1992 by Lil Fame (Jamal Grinnage) and Billy Danze (Eric Murray), they were grew up in the neighborhood of Brownsville, Brooklyn NY, from begining Lil Fame was DJ but than he started writing rhymes.

     M.O.P. Released first single in 1993 "How About Some Hardcore?" wich was th soundtrack of film “House Party”. Their debut album was released in 1994 and was called “To the Death”.
   
    In 1996, M.O.P. released their second album, “Firing Squad”. After this duo have changed label and signed new contract with Relativity Records. In 1998 M.O.P. released the “Handle Ur Bizness”, which was soon followed by the album “First Family 4 Life”. “Warriorz” followed two years later. The success of “Warriorz” helped raise M.O.P's profile and garnered some mainstream radio attention. After this in 2002 they were picked up by Jay-Z’s Roc-A-Fella Records and appeared on Jay-Z's The Blueprint. Rock-a-Fella did not release a full-length album from M.O.P and the band parted-ways with Rock-a-Fella in 2005. They then signed with G-Unit Records.

Discography:
  • To the Death(1994)
  • Firing Squad(1996)
  • First Family 4 Life(1998)
  • Warriorz (2000)
  • Mash Out Posse (2004)
  • St. Marxmen (2005)
  • Ghetto Warfare (2006)
  • Foundation (2009)


Lost Boyz


   The Lost Boyz are a Hip-Hop group from New York(South Jamaica, Queens). Group members were Mr.Cheeks (MC), Freaky Tah (backup MC), Spigg Nice(DJ) and Pretty Lou. Lost Boyz’s first single was "Lifestyles of the Rich and Shameless" wich charted on the Billboard Hot 100. The Single earned them record deal with Uptown Records. Later in 1995 group released their second single "Jeeps, Lex Coups, Bimaz & Benz”. 

    After two singles lost boyz made their 3rd single “Renee” wich was soundtrack for film “Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood”. “Renee” became major hit for group breaking into the Top 40 on the Hot 100 chart. The single also reached Gold status in 1996. In 1996 group released their first album “Legal Drug Money”. The work was highly acclaimed, and the album featured five Billboard Hot 100 hits, including their past singles "Lifestyles Of The Rich & Shameless", "Renee", as well as "Music Makes Me High", "Jeeps, Lex Coups, Bimaz & Benz" and "Get Up". The album was certified Gold by the RIAA in late 1996.

    Their second album, "Love, Peace & Nappiness", was released on June 17, 1997. The album wasn't as acclaimed as their debut, but fared well commercially, reaching Gold status in late 1997. Freaky Tah was murdered on March 28, 1999 at the birthday party for Mr. Cheeks, he was shot in the head. Three remaining group members finished their 3rd album “LB IV Life” released in September 1999. Album failed to reach god status. After this the group split up, Mr.Cheeks Began solo career and released  album “John P. Kelly” in 2001. Mr.Cheeks released another album in 2003, titled “Back Again!”, then followed in 2004 with “Ladies & Ghettomen”. 






Sunday, April 29, 2012

Big L




   Big L (Real name Lamont Coleman), was an American rapper. Big L was Born in Harlem NY, (May 30, 1974 – February 15, 1999) where he founded group Children of the Corn also at that time he was member of the Diggin' in the Crates Crew, after this he started solo career. Big L's debut solo album “Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous” was released in March 1995. MVP" and "Put It On" were two hits from this album. both reached Billboard's top twenty-five HotRap Tracks, album itself also reached the Billboard Top 200. 

    In 1997, Big L started working on his second studio album, "The Big Picture”. In February 15, 1999 Big L was shot and killed in Harlem, a week before releasing of his second album “The Big Picture”. Album was released in 2000 by Rich King who was Big L’s manager. murder case still remains unsolved.

Discography:
  • Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous
  • The Big Picture










Saturday, April 28, 2012

Naughty By Nature


   Naughty By Nature are hip-hop's finest group and unquestionably one of its most beloved.
The group Was formed in 1989 by Treach, Vin Rock, and the DJ Kay (all members of group are from East Orange, New Jersey).  Group’s First hit was track called “O.P.P.” which sampled the Jackson 5's hit "ABC" and was released in 1991 on their self-titled album Naughty by Nature. The song peaked at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it one of the most successful crossover songs in rap history. O.P.P. also being named one of the top 100 rap singles of all time in 1998 by The Source magazine.

    Treach began a secondary acting career in 1992, appearing in Juice; he would go on to supporting roles in The Meteor Man, Who's the Man?, and Jason's Lyric, among others. Naughty by Nature repeated their success with their second album “19 Naughty III” released in 1993, album went  platinum. 

    1995's Poverty's Paradise was the group's final album for Tommy Boy; though it didn't spawn any major hits, it went on to win a Grammy for Best Rap Album becoming the first album to win this award. It also spawned a hit song in "Feel Me Flow" which peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100. in 1997, both Treach and Vinnie were arrested in Harlem for illegal weapons possession, and, in 1999, Treach married Pepa, of Salt-N-Pepa (a union that would dissolve two years later). Also in 1999, Naughty by Nature finally returned with a new album titled “Nineteen Naughty Nine: Nature's Fury”.

     DJ Kay Gee decided to leave Naughty by Nature in late 2000. Treach and Vinnie struck a deal with TVT, and the first Naughty by Nature album as a duo, “IIcons”, was released in early 2002. In 2011 the group worked on their long-delayed seventh group album, and it finally saw release. Titled “Anthem Inc.”, it came out December 13, 2011.