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.
