Jive Records was an American independent record label formed in 1981 and was owned by Sony Music Entertainment since 2003. Formerly headquartered in New York City, Jive was best known for its string of successes with hip hop artists in the 1980s and 1990s, and also in teen pop and boy bands during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Since 2011, the label has been in hibernation with its previous operations having been absorbed by RCA Records.
UGK was an American hip hop duo from Port Arthur, Texas, formed in 1987, by Chad "Pimp C" Butler and Bernard "Bun B" Freeman. They released their first major-label album, Too Hard to Swallow, in 1992, followed by several other albums charting on the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts, including the self-titled Underground Kingz album, which contained their single "International Players Anthem " and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, in August 2007. The duo has also been featured on hit singles by several other artists, such as "Big Pimpin'" by Jay-Z and "Sippin' on Some Syrup" by Three 6 Mafia. Pimp C founded UGK Records in late 2005. On December 4, 2007, Pimp C died in his West Hollywood, California hotel room.
Fettes Brot is a German hip hop group that formed in 1992.
Mohandas Dewese, better known by his stage name Kool Moe Dee, is an American rapper, writer and actor. Considered one of the forerunners of the new jack swing sound in hip hop, he gained fame in the 1980s as a member of one of the pioneering groups in hip hop music, the Treacherous Three, and for his later solo career. During his career he released a total of seven studio albums, with 1994's Interlude being the last to date.
Chad Lamont Butler, better known by his stage name Pimp C, was an American rapper and record producer. He was best known for his work with Bun B as a founding member of the Underground Kingz (UGK).
Joseph Lewis Thomas, known mononymously as Joe, is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. Raised in Columbus, Georgia, he later relocated to New Jersey and he signed a record deal with Polygram Records in 1992. He rose to prominence after releasing his debut album Everything the following year. He followed it with a series of successful albums under Jive Records, including All That I Am (1997), the international bestseller My Name Is Joe (2000) as well as the multi-certified albums Better Days (2001) and And Then... (2003). Several songs from these albums became hit singles on the pop and R&B record charts, including the number-one hit "Stutter", the top ten entries "All the Things ", "Don't Wanna Be a Player", and "I Wanna Know" as well as his collaborations "Faded Pictures", "Thank God I Found You" and "Still Not a Player".
Clipse is an American hip hop duo, formed by brothers Gene "No Malice" Thornton and Terrence "Pusha T" Thornton in Virginia Beach, Virginia in 1992. The group was affiliated with the production team The Neptunes, and in 2001 signed to their imprint Star Trak Entertainment. The duo achieved favorable commercial success, while receiving greater critical acclaim during the 2000s. They are considered to be one of the pioneers of the coke rap subgenre.
Whodini is an American hip hop group that was formed in 1982. The Brooklyn, New York-based trio consisted of vocalist and main lyricist Jalil Hutchins; co-vocalist John Fletcher, a.k.a. Ecstasy ; and turntable artist DJ Drew Carter, a.k.a. Grandmaster Dee.
The Blueprint 2: The Gift and the Curse is the seventh studio album by American rapper Jay-Z. It was released on November 12, 2002, by Roc-A-Fella Records and Island Def Jam Music Group. The album serves as a sequel to his sixth album The Blueprint (2001). Parts of the album were later reissued for his compilation album, titled Blueprint 2.1 (2003). The album debuted at number one, shipping with first-week sales of 545,000 units. The album is certified 3x Multi-Platinum by the RIAA.
R.A. Thorburn, better known by his stage name R.A. the Rugged Man, is an American rapper and producer. He began his music career at age 12, building a reputation locally for his lyrical skills. Thorburn signed to major label Jive Records at age 18, but his debut album, Night of the Bloody Apes, was never released.
Paul Hartmut Würdig, better known as Sido, is a German rapper. He interprets his artist name as "super-intelligentes Drogenopfer". It used to stand for "Scheiße in dein Ohr", a line from his track Terroarr.
Keith Omar Murray is an American rapper from Long Island, New York. Murray grew up on Carleton Ave. in Central Islip, which is located on the South Shore of Long Island in Suffolk County. Murray was a known member of a local rap collective in Long Island called Legion of Doom (L.O.D.) which included fellow rappers 50 Grand, Ron Jay, and Kel-Vicious. Murray is more famously known for being a member of the Hip Hop trio the Def Squad, which includes fellow rappers Redman and fellow Long Island native Erick Sermon, previously the co-founder of the legendary Hip-Hop group EPMD.
Maximilian Herre is a German rapper, singer-songwriter and music producer who rose to fame as a member of the group Freundeskreis. He is also A&R for the record label Nesola, a joint venture with his wife Joy Denalane, among others.
Hell Hath No Fury is the second studio album by hip hop duo Clipse. The album was released on November 28, 2006 in the United States by Re-Up, Star Trak and Jive. Recording sessions for the album took place over a period of several years, and suffered numerous delays prior to release. Production was handled by The Neptunes.
Terrence LeVarr Thornton, better known by his stage name Pusha T, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record executive. He initially gained major recognition as half of hip hop duo Clipse, alongside his brother and fellow rapper No Malice, with whom he founded Re-Up Records. In September 2010, Thornton announced his signing to Kanye West's GOOD Music imprint, under the aegis of Def Jam Recordings. Later that year, he was notably featured on West's single "Runaway," which peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Daniel Ebel, better known as Dendemann, is a German rapper. He is known for his rough voice and his witty, wordplay-filled lyrics in which he mostly tells stories from everyday life.
Wasiem Taha, better known as Massiv, is a German gangsta rapper of Palestinian origin, living in Berlin. During his early career Taha was signed to the label Horrorkore Entertainment, but later he left and signed to major label Sony BMG. He acts in the German TV-Series 4 Blocks
Lawrence "Kris" Parker, better known by his stage names KRS-One, an abbreviation of Knowledge Reigning Supreme Over Nearly Everyone, and Teacha, is an American rapper and occasional producer from Bronx, New York. He rose to prominence as part of the hip hop music group Boogie Down Productions, which he formed with DJ Scott La Rock in the mid-1980s. KRS-One is best known for his top hits, "Sound of da Police", "Love's Gonna Get'cha ", and "My Philosophy", among others. Boogie Down Productions received numerous awards and critical acclaim in their early years. Following the release of the group's debut album, Criminal Minded, fellow artist Scott La Rock was shot and killed, but KRS-One continued the group, effectively as a solo project. He began releasing records under his own name in 1993. He is politically active, having started the Stop the Violence Movement after Scott's death. He's also a vegan activist, expressed in songs such as "Beef". He is widely considered an influence to many hip hop artists, including 2Pac and Eminem.
Giwar Hajabi, better known by his stage name X A T A R, is a German entrepreneur, publisher, rapper and producer of Kurdish descent. He is also founder and owner of the labels Alles oder Nix Records, Kopfticker Records, Groove Attack TraX and Goldmann Entertainment. Through his labels, he promoted hip hop musicians such as SSIO, Schwesta Ewa, Kalim, Eno, Mero, and Sero el Mero. In addition to his musical activities, Xatar expanded his entrepreneurial work with the fast food company Haval Grill, the hookah lounge Bar Noon, the tobacco brand Orijinal and jewelry and clothing design for Massari. He authored his autobiography Alles oder Nix: Bei uns sagt man, die Welt gehört dir in 2015. The newspaper Die Zeit calls him "The Hype Mashine" pointing out that each venture becomes a business.
Gene Elliott Thornton Jr., better known by his stage name No Malice, is an American rapper from Virginia Beach, Virginia. He is best known for being one half of Southern hip hop duo Clipse, alongside his brother and fellow rapper Pusha T. No Malice released his solo debut album Hear Ye Him, on August 18, 2013, and his second studio album, Let the Dead Bury the Dead, on August 18, 2017.
