1990 in hip-hop

This article summarizes the events, album releases, and album release dates in hip-hop for the year 1990.

Eric B. & Rakim's Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em earned praise within hip-hop circles and marked the group's third consecutive gold album.

Released albums

Release Date [1]	Artist	Album
February 6	Lord Finesse & DJ Mike Smooth	Funky Technician
	Mantronix	This Should Move Ya
February 12	Bobby Jimmy and the Critters	Hip-Hop Prankster
	MC Hammer	Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em
February 20	Above The Law	Livin' Like Hustlers
	Doug Lazy	Doug Lazy Gettin' Crazy
	MC 900 Ft. Jesus	Hell with the Lid Off
February 22	Rodney-O & Joe Cooley	Three the Hard Way
March	O.G. Style	I Know How to Play 'Em
March 19	Salt-n-Pepa	Blacks' Magic
March 20	Digital Underground	Sex Packets
	Mark Dee	All In A Day's Work
March 27	Everlast	Forever Everlasting
March 28	The Dogs	The Dogs
April 1	Three Times Dope	Live from Acknickulous Land
April 3	Various Artists	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
April 10	A Tribe Called Quest	People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
	Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E.	New Funky Nation
	Public Enemy	Fear of a Black Planet
	YZ	Sons of the Father
April 11	MC Shan	Play It Again, Shan
April 17	Audio Two	I Don't Care: The Album
April 24	X Clan	To the East, Blackwards
May 1	Kwamé	A Day in the Life: A Pokadelick Adventure
May 18	Ice Cube	AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted
May 22	K-Solo	Tell the World My Name
May 29	Poor Righteous Teachers	Holy Intellect
May 30	Antoinette	Burnin' at 20 Below
June 12	MC Trouble	Gotta Get a Grip
June 15	King Sun	Righteous but Ruthless
June 19	Compton's Most Wanted	It's a Compton Thang
	Eric B. & Rakim	Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em
June 28	Kyper	Tic-Tac-Toe
July 2	Kid Sensation	Rollin' with Number One
July 3	Whodini	Greatest Hits
July 10	Kid Frost	Hispanic Causing Panic
	Tragedy Khadafi	Intelligent Hoodlum
July 11	Choice	The Big Payback
July 13	Luke	The Luke LP
July 16	The Jaz	To Your Soul
July 17	Boogie Down Productions	Edutainment
July 24	D-Nice	Call Me D-Nice
	Masta Ace	Take a Look Around
July 31	Special Ed	Legal
August 1	DJ Kool	The Music Ain't Loud Enuff
August 7	CPO	To Hell and Black
August 14	Kool G Rap & DJ Polo	Wanted: Dead or Alive
	N.W.A	100 Miles and Runnin' (EP)
	The Afros	Kickin' Afrolistics
August 20	Poison Clan	2 Low Life Muthas
August 30	Cool C	Life in the Ghetto
September 10	Vanilla Ice	To the Extreme
September 11	Too Short	Short Dog's in the House
September 14	LL Cool J	Mama Said Knock You Out
	Isis	Rebel Soul
September 21	Geto Boys	The Geto Boys
September 24	King T	At Your Own Risk
October 1	Kings Of Swing	Strategy
October 2	Candyman	Ain't No Shame in My Game
	H.W.A.	Livin' in a Hoe House
	Shazzy	Attitude: A Hip Hop Rapsody
October 5	Ex Movement	Ex Movement
October 9	Paris	The Devil Made Me Do It
October 15	Chubb Rock	Treat 'Em Right (EP)
	Father MC	Father's Day
	Lakim Shabazz	The Lost Tribe of Shabazz
October 16	Grand Daddy I.U.	Smooth Assassin
	Run-D.M.C.	Back from Hell
October 23	Joeski Love	Joe Cool
October 30	Monie Love	Down to Earth
	Big Daddy Kane	Taste of Chocolate
	Lighter Shade of Brown	Brown & Proud
November	D-Boy Rodriguez	Lyrical Strength of One Street Poet
	Salt-N-Pepa	A Blitz of Salt-N-Pepa Hits
November 6	Barsha	Barsha's Explicit Lyrics
November 9	2 in a Room	Wiggle It
November 22	Malcolm McLaren and The World's Famous Supreme Team	Round the Outside!, Round the Outside!
November 27	Kid Rock	Grits Sandwiches for Breakfast
December 4	Brand Nubian	One for All
December 7	J.J. Fad	Not Just a Fad
December 18	EPMD	Business as Usual
	Ice Cube	Kill at Will (EP)
Unknown	I.M.P.	I.M.P. Dogs (EP)
Unknown	Lil Mac	Lyrical Midget
Unknown	Professor X the Overseer	Years Of The 9, On The Blackhand Side
Unknown	Outlaw Posse	My Afro's On Fire!
Unknown	Michael Peace	Loud-N-Clear
Unknown	P.K.O.	Armed and Dangerous
Unknown	She Rockers	Rockers from London...
Unknown	Pooh-Man	Life of a Criminal
Unknown	Whistle	Always and Forever
Unknown	MC Shy D	Don't Sweat Me
Unknown	415	41Fivin
Unknown	Criminal Nation	Release the Pressure
Unknown	I.A.P.	Shock The World
Unknown	Kilo	America has a Problem

Highest-charting singles

Hip hop singles from any year which charted in the 1990 Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 ^[2]

Song	Artist	Project	Peak position
"Ice Ice Baby"	Vanilla Ice	To the Extreme	1
"Pray"	MC Hammer	Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em	2
"Have You Seen Her"	MC Hammer	Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em	4
"U Can't Touch This"	MC Hammer	Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em	8
"Just a Friend"	Biz Markie	The Biz Never Sleeps	9
"Turtle Power!"	Partners in Kryme	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack	13

See also

• Last article: 1989 in hip hop music
• Next article: 1991 in hip hop music

References

1. "The Top 50 Hip-Hop Albums of 1990".
2. "The Hot 100 Chart". Billboard .