Crooklyn Dodgers | |
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Genres | Hip hop |
Years active | 1994–1995, 2007 |
Labels | |
Past members | Buckshot Chubb Rock Jean Grae Jeru the Damaja Masta Ace Memphis Bleek Mos Def O.C. Special Ed |
The Crooklyn Dodgers were a hip-hop supergroup based in Brooklyn, New York City, consisting of rotating members. [1]
They appeared in three separate incarnations in 1994, 1995, and 2007. The first two incarnations recorded for the soundtracks for Spike Lee films, Crooklyn and Clockers , respectively. The theme connecting The Crooklyn Dodgers songs, aside from the Spike Lee films for which they were made, is their topical concerns, which comment on the state of affairs in and around urban New York City, as well as other issues affecting everyday life.
"Crooklyn" | |
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Single by Crooklyn Dodgers (Buckshot, Masta Ace & Special Ed) | |
from the album Crooklyn, Volume 1: Music from the Motion Picture | |
Released | January 1994 |
Recorded | 1993 |
Genre | Hip hop |
Length | 4:34 |
Label | MCA Records |
Songwriter(s) | Kenyatta Blake, Duval Clear, Edward Archer, Jonathan Davis, Ali Shaheed Muhammad |
Producer(s) | A Tribe Called Quest |
"Return of the Crooklyn Dodgers" | |
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Single by Crooklyn Dodgers '95 (Chubb Rock, Jeru the Damaja & O.C.) | |
from the album Clockers soundtrack | |
Released | April 1995 |
Recorded | 1994 |
Genre | Hip hop |
Length | 5:04 |
Label | 40 Acres and a Mule/MCA Records |
Songwriter(s) | Richard Simpson, Kendrick Davis, Omar Credle, Christopher Martin |
Producer(s) | DJ Premier |
The first group was composed of Buckshot, Masta Ace and Special Ed. Their first and only record was "Crooklyn", produced by Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest, [2] and was featured in the 1994 film Crooklyn . The music video featured appearances by Brooklyn-born athletes Michael Jordan and Mike Tyson.
The second group was composed of Chubb Rock, Jeru the Damaja and O.C. Their first and only record was "Return of the Crooklyn Dodgers", produced by DJ Premier, and was featured in the 1995 film Clockers .
The third group consisted of Jean Grae, Mos Def and Memphis Bleek. North Carolina producer 9th Wonder resurrected the group concept in 2007 for a track on his album The Dream Merchant Vol. 2 , titled "Brooklyn in My Mind".
Duval Clear, known better by his stage name Masta Ace, is an American rapper and record producer from New York City. He appeared on the classic 1988 Juice Crew posse cut "The Symphony". He is noted for his distinct voice and rapping proficiency, and has influenced several MCs.
Crooklyn is a 1994 American semi-autobiographical film produced and directed by Spike Lee and co-written with his sister Joie and brother Cinqué. Occurring in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, during the summer of 1973, the film primarily centers on a young girl named Troy Carmichael, and her family. Throughout the film, Troy learns life lessons through her rowdy brothers Clinton, Wendell, Nate, and Joseph; her loving but strict mother Carolyn, and her naive, struggling father Woody.
Omar Gerryl Credle, better known by his stage name, O.C., is an American rapper and member of the group D.I.T.C. He has been involved with several underground hip hop groups, namely Crooklyn Dodgers '95, Luv NY, and Perestroika.
Edward K. Archer, known professionally as Special Ed, is an American rapper and producer. Ed is perhaps best known for the songs "I Got It Made", "Think About It" and "I'm the Magnificent" from his debut album Youngest in Charge, released in 1989 when he was 17 years old.
Clockers is a 1995 American crime drama film directed by Spike Lee. It is an adaptation of the 1992 novel of the same name by Richard Price, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Lee. The film stars Harvey Keitel, John Turturro, Delroy Lindo, and Mekhi Phifer in his debut film role. Set in New York City, Clockers tells the story of Strike (Phifer), a street-level drug dealer who becomes entangled in a murder investigation.
Kenyatta Blake, known professionally as Buckshot, is an American rapper from New York, best known as a frontman of hip hop groups Black Moon and Boot Camp Clik. He is a founder of Duck Down Music record label with Drew "Dru-Ha" Friedman. He has released one solo studio album – three with producer 9th Wonder, one with KRS-One, four albums with Black Moon and four albums with the Boot Camp Clik.
Sittin' on Chrome is the second and final studio album by American hip hop group Masta Ace Incorporated and the third album by Brooklyn-based rapper Masta Ace. It was released on May 2, 1995, through Delicious Vinyl. Recording sessions took place at Firehouse Studios in Brooklyn. Production was handled by Masta Ace under his producer moniker 'Ase One', as well as the Bluez Brothas, Louie "Phat Kat" Vega and Uneek, with Orlando Aguillen serving as executive producer. It peaked at number 69 on the Billboard 200 and number 19 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums in the United States.
Edward Anderson is a hip-hop artist from Boston, Massachusetts, better known by his stage name Edo G. Edo is the seniormost hip-hop artist from Boston, in the sense that he was the first to gain recognition in New York City and in the wider United States of America, and remains one of the best-known Boston rap artist internationally, having collaborated with large numbers of independent rap artists all over the globe. He is additionally known by the name Ed O.G., which was initially a misspelling by a record label but has endured.
eMC is a hip hop crew composed of rappers Masta Ace, Wordsworth and Stricklin. Punchline was also a member, but he left the group in October, 2014.
Crooklyn is the title of the soundtrack to the 1994 Spike Lee film of the same name. The soundtrack was released in two parts. Volume 1 was released May 10, 1994 just prior to the film's release and Volume II was released in 1995, both on MCA Records. The soundtrack albums feature music that was popular during the 1970s, two exceptions being "Crooklyn" by The Crooklyn Dodgers and "People Make the World Go Round" by Marc Dorsey, both of which were recorded specifically for the film. The two albums comprise 28 songs from the film, though some tracks, such as "Hey Joe" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience are omitted from both releases.
The Dream Merchant Vol. 2 is the second compilation album from producer 9th Wonder, formerly of Little Brother. It was released on October 9, 2007 through Sixhole Records. The album has guest appearances by his former group, Little Brother, his fellow Justus League members, Sean Price, Big Dho, L.E.G.A.C.Y., Chaundon, Skyzoo, Keisha Shontelle, Big Treal, The A.L.L.I.E.S., Jozeemo, Tyler Woods, Joe Scudda, Buckshot, Sean Boog, D.O.X., O-Dash, Buddy Klein & Median, also outside performers including Torae, Mos Def, Memphis Bleek, Jean Grae, Royce Da 5'9, Vandalyzm, Naledge, Saigon, Camp Lo, Ness, Strange Fruit Project & Natural Born Spittas. The album also marks the debut of then-unknown MC, Rapsody.
Marc Dorsey is an American R&B singer. He received a nomination for Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration at 46th Annual Grammy Awards for the song "Luv U Better" with LL Cool J.
Glenn K. Bolton, widely known as Daddy-O, is an American rapper and record producer. He began his career by founding the hip-hop group Stetsasonic. He is known as an early advocate of sampling in music.
Damon Smith, known by his stage name Smoothe Da Hustler, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He released his debut LP Once Upon a Time in America on Profile Records in 1996. He runs an entertainment company, SMG Entertainment, which includes the record label SMG Records.
The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival (BHF) is an annual celebration of Hip-Hop music and culture. It is produced The Bodega Agency a wholly owned subsidiary of Brooklyn Bodega, Inc.
Drew "Dru Ha" Friedman is an American music and marketing executive based in New York City. Friedman is Co-Founder and CEO of Duck Down Music Inc., 3D Consulting & Distribution, General Manager for Cinematic Music Group, and former Director of Urban Music at Cornerstone Promotion. Born and raised in White Plains, New York, he is a graduate of Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications where he studied advertising.
Double Barrel is an album made in collaboration between American rapper Torae and Canadian hip hop producer Marco Polo. The album was released on June 2, 2009 by Duck Down Music Inc. It was preceded by Marco Polo's critically well-received debut album Port Authority (2007), and Torae's inaugural release Daily Conversation (2008) on which Polo has produced three tracks.
"People Make the World Go Round" is a song written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed, originally recorded by The Stylistics and released in 1972 through Avco Records as the final single from their self-titled debut studio album, The Stylistics (1971). It reached #25 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, #25 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and #6 on the Soul Singles chart in the United States.
"Bra" is a song by British funk band Cymande from their self-titled debut studio album Cymande. Written by the group's members Patrick Patterson and Steve Scipio, it was recorded at De Lane Lea Studios in London, produced by John Schroeder, and released as a 7-inch single first in 1972 and then through Janus Records in 1973. Released as the second single from the album, the song peaked at No. 51 on the Soul Singles Billboard chart in the United States.