Paul Edward Huston, better known by his stage name Prince Paul, is an American record producer, disc jockey and recording artist from Amityville, New York. Paul began his career as a DJ for Stetsasonic. Since then he has worked on albums by Boogie Down Productions, Gravediggaz, MC Lyte, Big Daddy Kane and 3rd Bass, among others. Major recognition for Prince Paul came when he produced De La Soul's debut album 3 Feet High and Rising (1989), in which he pioneered new approaches to hip hop production, mixing and sampling, notably by including comedy sketches.
De La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres. The members are Posdnuos, Trugoy, and Maseo. The three formed the group in high school and caught the attention of producer Prince Paul with a demo tape of the song "Plug Tunin'". With its playful wordplay, innovative sampling, and witty skits, the band's debut album, 3 Feet High and Rising, has been called "a hip hop masterpiece."
Liquid Swords is the second solo studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member GZA, released on November 7, 1995, by Geffen Records. Recording sessions for the album began midway through 1995 at producer RZA's basement studio in the New York City borough of Staten Island. The album heavily samples dialogue from the martial arts film Shogun Assassin and maintains a dark atmosphere throughout, incorporating lyrical references to chess, crime and philosophy. Liquid Swords features numerous guest appearances from the entire nine piece Wu-Tang Clan, and also Wu-Tang affiliate Killah Priest.
Life After Death is the second and final studio album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released on March 25, 1997, on Bad Boy Records and Arista Records. A double album, it was released sixteen days after his murder. It features collaborations with guest artists such as 112, Jay-Z, Lil' Kim, Mase, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Too $hort, Angela Winbush, D.M.C. of Run-D.M.C., R. Kelly, The Lox, and Puff Daddy. Life After Death exhibits The Notorious B.I.G. further delving into the mafioso rap subgenre. The album is a sequel to his first album, Ready to Die, and picks up where the last song, "Suicidal Thoughts", ends.
Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star is the debut studio album by Black Star, a hip hop duo consisting of emcees Talib Kweli and Mos Def. The album was released on September 29, 1998, to critical acclaim. The title is a reference to the Black Star Line, a shipping line founded by Pan-Africanist Marcus Garvey. The album deals with modern-day issues, philosophical ideas, and life in Brooklyn, New York City as the two artists know it.
Criminal Minded is the debut studio album by hip hop music group Boogie Down Productions, released on March 3, 1987 by B-Boy Records. It is considered a highly influential hip hop album and one of the first in the gangsta rap genre.
6 Feet Deep is the debut album of the American hip hop supergroup Gravediggaz. Formed by former Tommy Boy Records artists Prince Paul, RZA, Frukwan and Poetic, the group utilized horror-themed imagery and lyrics combined with black comedy and satire to vent their frustrations with the hip hop record industry. The album's concept satirizes the hardcore hip hop and gangsta rap of the early 1990s. Released on August 9, 1994 by Gee Street Records, the album helped usher in horrorcore.
Endtroducing..... is the debut studio album by American music producer DJ Shadow, released on September 16, 1996, by Mo' Wax. It is an instrumental hip hop work composed almost entirely of samples from vinyl records. DJ Shadow produced Endtroducing over two years, using an Akai MPC60 sampler and little other equipment. He edited and layered samples to create new tracks of varying moods and tempos.
Hip hop production is the creation of hip hop music in a recording studio. While the term encompasses all aspects of hip hop music creation, including recording the rapping of an MC, a turntablist or DJ providing a beat, playing samples and "scratching" using record players and the creation of a rhythmic backing track, using a drum machine or sequencer, it is most commonly used to refer to recording the instrumental, non-lyrical and non-vocal aspects of hip hop.
So... How's Your Girl? is the debut studio album by Handsome Boy Modeling School. It was released on Tommy Boy Records on October 19, 1999.
Anthony Ian Berkeley better known as Too Poetic, was a Trinidadian-born American rapper and producer. He was also a founding member of the hip-hop group Gravediggaz, for which he used the alias Grym Reaper. He also used the alias Tony Titanium.
Whitey Ford Sings the Blues is the second solo studio album by American recording artist Everlast, and the first one following his departure from House of Pain. It was released on September 8, 1998, via Tommy Boy Records, a full eight years after his solo debut album Forever Everlasting and after he had a major heart attack. "Whitey Ford" in the album title refers to the New York Yankees pitcher with that name.
Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt. II is the fourth studio album by American hip hop recording artist and Wu-Tang Clan-member Raekwon, released September 8, 2009, on Ice H2O/EMI Records in the United States. The album experienced numerous delays to its release due to Raekwon's approach of continual re-writing, as well as distribution issues with his record labels. Serving as the sequel to his critically acclaimed debut album Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... (1995), Pt. II maintains many of the themes covered on its predecessor, and features guest appearances from several Wu-Tang members, as well as Busta Rhymes, Jadakiss and Beanie Sigel.
The RZA Hits is a compilation produced by The RZA. It contains songs featured on the first Wu-Tang Clan album and its first round of solo albums. All songs, apart from "Brooklyn Zoo", are produced by RZA.
"Planet Rock" is a song by the American hip hop artists Afrika Bambaataa and the Soul Sonic Force. The song was produced by Arthur Baker and released by Tommy Boy Records in 1982. The recording came together after DJ and producer Baker met with Bambaataa and the two bonded over the idea of creating a song about their mutual appreciation for the band Kraftwerk. Baker and Bambaataa had worked together previously on the song "Jazzy Sensation," and decided to compose a more electronic based version of the hip hop song, as opposed to the more disco-oriented work popular at the time. Along with musician John Robie, the group recorded the single at Intergalactic Studios in New York. Robie duplicated the sound on the record and had Bambaataa's rappers in the Soul Sonic Force rap over it. To create the raps, the lyricist of the group, Emcee G.L.O.B.E., had to develop a style he called "mc popping", which involved rapping off time, an unusual style at the time.
"Think " is a funk song recorded by Lyn Collins and released as a single on James Brown's People Records in 1972. The recording was produced by Brown and features instrumental backing from his band The J.B.'s. It was the title track of Collins' 1972 debut album. The song is very popular for its raw drumbeat dressed with tambourine and multiple background vocals, which suggest the song was recorded altogether in one take, with Jabo Starks playing drums. It peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles chart and No. 66 on the Hot 100. Owing to the composition, it became a fan favourite and has been featured on various compilation albums posthumously. In the closing lyrics, Collins sings lines from "Think", which shows that this song was one of the few adaptations of the 5 Royales song that Brown loved to do.
Built from Scratch is the second studio album by New York City DJ group The X-Ecutioners. It was released on February 26, 2002 through Loud Records and Columbia Records. The album was produced by Beat Junkies, Chris Frantz, CJ Moore, Dan the Automator, DJ Apollo, DJ Premier, Kenny Muhammad The Human Orchestra, Knobody, Large Professor, Lo-Fidelity Allstars, Mike Shinoda of American rock band Linkin Park, Sean Cane, The X-Ecutioners, Tina Weymouth, and was executive produced by Peter Kang.
Marc Shemer,, better known by his stage name Scram Jones, is a producer, DJ and rapper from New Rochelle, New York. He has produced music for Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Styles P, Tragedy Khadafi, Jadakiss, Saigon, Dipset and Troy Ave. He has been featured in The Source magazine's "Unsigned Hype" column. Scram Jones is jewish.
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name the RZA, is an American rapper, actor, filmmaker, and record producer. He is the de facto leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having produced most albums for the group and its respective members. He is a cousin of two other original Wu-Tang Clan members: GZA and Ol' Dirty Bastard. He has also released solo albums under the alter-ego Bobby Digital, along with executive producing credits for side projects. After forming the Wu-Tang Clan, RZA was a founding member of the horrorcore group Gravediggaz, where he went by the name The RZArector.
Supreme Clientele is the second studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah, released on February 8, 2000 by Epic Records. The album showcases Ghostface's signature up-tempo, stream-of-consciousness rhyme style, and features guest appearances from Cappadonna, GZA, Masta Killa, Method Man, Raekwon, Redman, RZA, U-God, and others. It features affiliates of what would become members of Theodore Unit and T.M.F. Supreme Clientele contains a large amount of production from group member RZA, who also re-worked and remixed beats from other producers involved, as a means to create a unified and cohesive sound for the album.
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