Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, known professionally as Nas, is an American rapper and entrepreneur. Rooted in East Coast hip hop, he is regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time. The son of jazz musician Olu Dara, Nas began his musical career in 1989 under the moniker "Nasty Nas", and recorded demos under the wing of fellow East Coast rapper Large Professor. Nas made his recording debut on Professor's group, Main Source's 1991 song "Live at the Barbeque".
Germaine Williams, better known by his stage name Canibus, is a Jamaican-American rapper. He gained fame in the 1990s for his ability to freestyle, and released his debut album Can-I-Bus in 1998. Canibus has released 13 solo studio albums, as well as multiple collaboration albums and EPs with other rappers as a member of the Four Horsemen, Refugee Camp All-Stars, Sharpshooterz, Cloak N Dagga, the Undergods and one-half of T.H.E.M.
Peter George "Peet" Coombes was an English guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He was the lead singer and primary songwriter of the group The Tourists, the first charting band to feature guitarist Dave Stewart and singer Annie Lennox, who later gained greater fame as the duo Eurythmics.
EPMD is an American hip hop duo from Brentwood, New York. The duo's name is an acronym for "Erick and Parrish Making Dollars", referring to its members: emcees Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith. During an interview on college radio station WHOV in 1987, Parrish Smith stated that the name evolved from the original: "We were originally known as "EEPMD", but chose to go with EPMD because it was easier to say." He also stated that they dropped the two "E's" because N.W.A.'s Eric Wright was already using "Eazy-E" as his stage name. The group has been active for 37 years.
Farid Karam Nassar, better known by his stage name Fredwreck, is a Grammy Award-winning American hip hop recording artist, DJ and record producer. He got his big break when he became a producer for Dr. Dre's newly founded record label Aftermath Entertainment, and then went on to work with Snoop Dogg's record label Dogghouse Records and became a known producer on Tha Dogg Pound-affiliated material. During this time he also was a producer for Snoop Doggs track: Riders on the storm Ft The Doors on EA's Need for Speed Underground 2. He has produced tracks from Kurupt's Tha Streetz Iz a Mutha and most of his next release, Space Boogie: Smoke Oddessey; both released during the period the rapper had left Death Row Records. He has also produced for other hip-hop and pop artists such as Eminem, Britney Spears, Ice Cube, Westside Connection, Lil' Kim, Hilary Duff, Xzibit, The Game, Nate Dogg, Everlast, Cypress Hill, 50 Cent, Mobb Deep, as well as non-US acts such as Dizzee Rascal, Tamer Hosny, Qusai Kheder and Karl Wolf.
Joey Coombes, better known as Chester P, is a British rapper. He was a founding member of Task Force, Bury Crew and the M.U.D. Family. He and his brother Farma G are both sons of musician Peet Coombes.
Mic Club: The Curriculum is the fourth studio album by American rapper Canibus, released on November 19, 2002 through Canibus' own label, Mic Club Music. It is generally recognized for its scholarly vocabulary and complex lyrics. Much of the production is handled by relatively unknown producers, though the album has been praised overall for its lyrics and beats. It contains over 1,000 bars combined throughout the thirteen tracks, with only three choruses in "Behind Enemy Rhymes", "'C' Section", and "Liberal Arts".
James Victor Heinz, known professionally as J57, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, record executive, and music video director that infuses hip hop with indie rock, pop, folk & Americana music. He is a member of the Brown Bag AllStars, a group of emcees he helped create while working at Fat Beats in 2004, and Jamo Gang, a hip-hop group along with Ras Kass and El Gant. J57 cites DJ Eclipse and his mentor DJ Premier, as his musical influences. He owns a record label called FiveSe7en Collective which is the home of a lot of new, promising talent in different genres of music. J57 was co-host of Shade45 / SiriusXM’s show “Rap Is Outta Control” with DJ Eclipse for 5 years.
William G. Shields, better known by his stage name Jehst, is an English rapper and co-founder of hip hop label YNR Productions.
Foreign Beggars were an English hip hop and dubstep group. Since their formation in 2002, the group's trajectory had seen them evolve from an underground hip hop group to an electronic crossover act. The group consisted of four artists individually known as Orifice Vulgatron, Metropolis Graham, DJ Nonames, and Dag Nabbit. Vulgatron and Metropolis combined with Noisia to make the side project and supergroup "I Am Legion". They released their collaborative album I Am Legion on 2 September 2013.
"One Mic" is a song by American rapper Nas, released April 16, 2002 on Columbia Records and distributed through Ill Will Records in the United States. It was issued as the third single from his fifth studio album, Stillmatic (2001). The single peaked at number 43 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it Nas's third top-fifty hit on the chart.
Rob Wilson, better known by his stage name Fresh I.E., is a Christian rap artist from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
"The Corner" is the second single released by rapper Common on his sixth album, Be. It features a chorus and production by Kanye West as well as spoken word lyrics by The Last Poets. The song's lyrics deal with street corners in poor neighborhoods. The song's beat contains samples from "You Make the Sun Shine" by The Temprees and "What It Is" by The Temptations. Because of the song's gritty sound, some fans considered it to be a return to Common's Resurrection days. A music video directed by Kanye West was made for "The Corner."
Task Force are a British hip hop group from Highbury in London, England. The group is led primarily by two brothers Chester P and Farma G. However, the Task Force family, according to Chester P, also includes DJ Louis Slipperz, Ramson BadBones, Remus, D.Molish, Inja MC, Calculus, Merkamillion, Blinks and Marley. Task Force officially formed in 1999, releasing their debut album New Mic Order.
Freddie Beauregard, professionally known by his stage name Paradime, is an American rapper and producer from Detroit, Michigan.
Godfather Don is an American rapper and record producer from New York City. He has been "a creative force within New York City's underground hip-hop scene" since he made his debut in 1991.
"Roc the Mic" is the first single to be released from the soundtrack of the 2002 crime film State Property and was performed by Beanie Sigel and Freeway. The single was so far the highest-charting single from both rappers making it to #55 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Demigodz are an American hip hop collective founded by Connecticut rappers Open Mic and Reflex. The group was originally named "The Nobility" but Open Mic renamed the group "The Demigodz" with inspiration from one of his own verses. The group has changed several times through the years. As of 2012, the group consists of; Apathy, Celph Titled, Ryu, Esoteric, Motive, & Blacastan.
Ice City Boyz, often abbreviated as ICB, also known as CSB and CRS, is a British hip hop collective from Church End, London.
Jerome Allen, better known by his stage name Rome Streetz, is an American rapper from Queens, New York currently signed to Griselda Records. Allen's music sports a brand of 90's inspired, lyrically dense hip hop detailing drug deals, street violence, and the harsh realities of city life. Getting his start as a battle rapper, Allen first started releasing music in 2015. Since then he has released a plethora of studio albums, mixtapes, and EPs, though it was his Noise Kandy series and his Griselda Records debut Kiss The Ring (2022) that saw him gain significant recognition in the underground hip hop scene, the latter of which receiving critical acclaim and making Rolling Stone's list of the 25 best rap albums of 2022.
