…the odds were against it.” – Ice-T Born in Newark, New Jersey, in 1958, Ice-T lost his parents at a young age. After moving to south central Los Angeles to…
…mainstream narrative with “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQQekvHLSpY Public Enemy was like the song “The Message”, but on steroids. They had songs that challenged the…
…a rapper. At age 16, in 2003, he circulated a mixtape called Youngest Head N**** in Charge, which drew a lot of interest in his native Southern California and beyond….
…to become both the “realest” artist, in a genre obsessed with authenticity, and larger than life. His songs preached activism and nihilism, expressed rage and love, raised questions without answers….
…Slick Rick. Photo by Def Jam Wearing fashionable suits, Bally shoes and his trademark Ray Ban sunglasses, Ricky became an overnight sensation. Onstage at legendary clubs like Harlem World and…
…live instrumentation and incorporating more elements, especially on “Just About Over” – some tracks had to grow on people, but their message of straightening up the hood and keeping Black…
…said, how has not only the industry itself, but even more-so you, either changed and/or evolved since your whole inception into music? We are in the information age now. Technology…
…she would appear throughout her career. Natural Resource dissolved in 1998, after which Ibrahim changed her stage name from What? What? to Jean Grae, a reference to the X-Men character…
…Rage, MayLAy, Big Mike, The Outlawz, Bumpy Knuckles (AKA Freddie Foxxx) and Compton’s Most Wanted. The union of these two legends will be released conjunctly by Eiht’s Blue Stamp label…
…and masculine rhyme. For his age and lack of experience, his ability seemed supernatural at the time, but youthful stamina wasn’t the reason for his success. Snoop understood the power…
…with her debut album Lyte As A Rock. At the tender age of 17 she began schooling other MCs in the art of rhyme, and since that time she has…
Brad Terrence Jordan, better known by his stage name Scarface, is a rapper and producer from Houston, Texas. Born on November 9, 1970, Scarface grew up in South Acres, a…