History
The group was formed in 1987. Dimitris Petsoukis was experimenting with his synthesizer when in 1987 he met Kostas Kourmentalas via breakdancing and their mutual love for hip hop. FF.C was formed with DJ Mix Mad. Influenced by American hip hop, FF.C initially stood for "Funky Fresh Concept". They adopted the stage names of High Cool (Petsoukis) and Fresh Cool G (Kourmentalas) while the majority of their raps were in Greek. Thodoris Maggos (Free Jah Present) and Thomas Putikakis (DJ Everlast) soon joined the group.
Horizon Studio was used for their recordings. In 1993 they released their debut album using their own funds because at that time the Greek music industry didn't recognize the hip hop sound as commercially viable. The album was named Skliri Keri (Hard Times) and was pressed on 200 vinyl copies. By that time the FF.C acronym got a new meaning, "Fight Fashion Captivity". On this album Dimitris Petsoukis rapped while most of the lyrics were provided by Kostas Kourmentalas. Thodoris Maggos and DJ Mix Mad left the group after its release, while Thodoris Sartetzakis (Sparky T) joined in.
FF.C continued recording but soon realized that they had to drop their American influences and start to rap only in Greek. Petsoukis and Kourmentalas chose new stage names of Skinothetis and Rythmodamastis respectively, and the group was renamed to "FortiFied Concept". They got the industry's recognition thanks to major labels starting to approach hip hop artists. Thodoris Sartetzakis sent a 20-track demo to Polydor Records, and they managed to get a record deal with the label, in which they released four albums: S'alli diastasi (1997; Thodoris Sartetzakis left the group after its release), I Apili (1998), Ohiromeni Antilipsi (2000) and Ip' Opsin (2002).
Because of their track "Paramythi" being censored by the label, and not being included in the record Ip' Opsin, they left the label soon after its release. They then decided to release their material independently, which led them to Hxotron Productions, where they released their final two albums, Klassika Ixografimena (2004) and Antilipsies Suneidhshs (2005). After that, the group disbanded due to Kostas Kourmentalas' retirement from the music scene.
They have cited Public Enemy as their main influence.
Boogie Down Productions (BDP) was an American hip hop group originally composed of KRS-One, D-Nice, and DJ Scott La Rock. DJ Scott La Rock was murdered on August 27, 1987, five months after the release of BDP's debut album, Criminal Minded. The name of the group, Boogie Down, derives from a nickname for the South Bronx section of New York City. The group pioneered the fusion of dancehall reggae and hip hop music and their debut LP Criminal Minded contained frank descriptions of life in the South Bronx during the late 1980s, thus setting the stage for what would eventually become gangsta rap.
Greek hip hop, is the chief genre of rap music in Greece.
West Coast hip hop is a regional genre of hip hop music that encompasses any artists or music that originated in the west coast of the United States. West Coast hip hop began to dominate from a radio play and sales standpoint during the early to-mid 1990s with the birth of G-funk and the emergence of record labels such as Suge Knight and Dr. Dre's Death Row Records, Ice Cube's Lench Mob Records, the continued success of Eazy-E's Ruthless Records, Aftermath Records belonging to Dr. Dre, and others.
Beginner is a German rap group from Hamburg, consisting of Jan Delay, Denyo and DJ Mad. Their fourth album, Advanced Chemistry, was released in August 2016.
Australian hip hop traces its origins to the early 1980s and is largely inspired by hip hop and other urban musical genres from the United States. As the form matured, Australian hip hop has become a commercially viable style of music that is no longer restricted to the creative underground, with artists such as The Kid Laroi, Manu Crooks, Onefour, Iggy Azalea, Hilltop Hoods, Bliss n Eso and Youngn Lipz, having achieved notable fame. Australian hip hop is still primarily released through independent record labels, which are often owned and operated by the artists themselves. Despite its genesis as an offshoot of American hip-hop, Australian hip hop has developed a distinct personality that reflects its evolution as an Australian musical style.
David Marvin Blake, better known by his stage names DJ Quik or Da Quiksta, is an American rapper and producer, known for his production in the G-funk style of West Coast hip-hop. Blake has collaborated with Snoop Dogg, Kurupt, Tupac, Chingy, R. Kelly and Shaquille O'Neal, among others. Blake's stage name reflects his ability to produce songs in a short period of time. Some of his top songs include "Dollaz + Sense", "Tonite", "Born and Raised in Compton" and "Jus Lyke Compton".
Kendrick Jeru Davis, known as Jeru the Damaja, is an American rapper and record producer. He is known for his 1993 single "Come Clean" from his debut album, The Sun Rises in the East, ranked as one of the 100 greatest hip-hop albums of all time by the editors of About.com. He has worked extensively with Guru and DJ Premier of Gang Starr, whom he has known since he was in high school.
Brazilian hip hop is a national music genre in Brazil. From its earliest days in the African-Brazilian communities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the genre has grown into a countrywide phenomena. Rappers, DJs, break dancers and graffiti artists are active across the complete spectrum of society blending Brazil's cultural heritage with American hip hop to form a contemporary musical fusion.
Def Wish Cast are an Australian hip hop group from Western Sydney.
Active Member is a Greek hip-hop/low bap group, founded in 1992 by Michalis Mitakidis and Dimitris Kritikos.
European hip hop is hip hop music created by European musicians. Hip hop is a style of music developed by African American and Caribbean communities in the United States during the mid-1970s, and became a large part of modern pop culture during the 1980s. Due to this success, it has gained worldwide popularity, especially in Europe where many diverse and unique styles of hip hop have been created. This diversity is especially apparent in the forms of hip hop music and culture emanating from settler communities from Europe's former colonies and peripheries.
Twin Cities hip hop, also referred to as Minneapolis hip hop, is sub-genre of rap music that originates from the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Minnesota.
Imiskoumbria, also known as Imiz, is a comedy hip hop group from Athens, Greece. The group's roster has been the same since its inception in 1996. Imiz members include rapper Dimitris Mentzelos, Mithridatis and DJ Pritanis. They are widely credited for the establishment of hip-hop within Greek music show business.
Industrial hip hop is a fusion genre of industrial music and hip hop.
Onirama is a Greek pop rock band that has had a number of hits in Greece. They are known for their wide range of music, and party-like concerts.
Panagiotis Stravalexis, also known by his stage names Waze-Taki-TsanTimvorihos, Pedi Thavma and Taki Tsan, is a Greek music producer, tattoo artist and rapper. He is a founding member of the group Zontanoi Nekroi and also a member of the rap duet Tigre Sporakia, .
The Partysquad is a Dutch DJ production team. It consists of Jerry Leembruggen, Ruben Fernhout and Lorenzo Biemans. Since the early 2000s they have had 12 singles charting on the Dutch Top 40. They produced part of British rapper M.I.A.'s fourth and fifth albums, Matangi, released in 2013, and AIM, released in 2016.
Horst Christian Simco, better known by his stage name Riff Raff, is an American rapper. He was originally managed by Swishahouse co-founder OG Ron C. After being associated with rapper and producer Soulja Boy's imprint S.O.D. Money Gang Inc., Riff Raff was signed to DJ and producer Diplo's record label Mad Decent from 2013 to 2015.
Maybach Music Group is a record label imprint founded by American rapper Rick Ross. Maybach Music Group albums are distributed by Atlantic Records, a division of the Atlantic Records Group. Atlantic took over distribution following the expiration of a deal with Island Def Jam. As of December 12, 2012, the label releases are now distributed by Atlantic Records. 19 solo and three compilation albums have been released by Maybach Music Group, including five certified Gold albums and three certified Platinum albums.
Run-DMC was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, formed in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history of hip hop culture and especially one of the most famous hip hop acts of the 1980s. Along with Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, and Public Enemy, the group pioneered new-school hip hop music and helped usher in the golden age of hip hop. The group was among the first to highlight the importance of the MC and DJ relationship.
