Jeffrey Bruce Atkins, better known by his stage name Ja Rule, is an American rapper and actor. Born in Hollis, Queens, he debuted in 1999 with Venni Vetti Vecci and its lead single "Holla Holla". During the 2000s, Ja Rule was signed to Irv Gotti's Murder Inc. Records, formerly known as The Inc. From 1999 to 2005, Ja Rule had multiple hits that made the top 20 of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, including "Between Me and You", "I'm Real " and "Ain't It Funny" —which both topped the Hot 100—the number 1 hit "Always on Time", "Mesmerize", and "Wonderful".
Curtis James Jackson III, known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor and entrepreneur. Known for his impact in the hip hop industry, he has been described as a "master of the nuanced art of lyrical brevity".
Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through, Interscope Records.
G-Unit was an American hip hop group formed by longtime friends and East Coast rappers 50 Cent, Tony Yayo, Lloyd Banks, and later adding " The First Lady of G-Unit" Olivia Longott. After releasing a string of mixtapes in the early 2000s, including 50 Cent is the Future, God's Plan and No Mercy, No Fear, the group released their debut album Beg for Mercy in 2003, which went on to ship over 4,000,000 copies in the US and was certified Quadruple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album, which followed the critical and commercial success of 50 Cent's major-label debut Get Rich or Die Tryin', served as a platform for Lloyd Banks, Young Buck and Tony Yayo to release their respective solo debut albums; The Hunger for More (2004), Straight Outta Cashville (2004) and Thoughts of a Predicate Felon (2005). In 2008, the group released their second album T·O·S .
Christopher Charles Lloyd, better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper. Banks began his career as a member of East Coast hip hop group G-Unit, alongside childhood friends 50 Cent and Tony Yayo. After the group's 2003 release of their debut album, Beg for Mercy, Banks released his first solo album, The Hunger for More, in 2004, featuring the top ten hit single "On Fire". His second studio album, Rotten Apple, was released in 2006.
David Darnell Brown, best known by his stage name Young Buck, is an American rapper. He heads his own record label, Cashville, and was a member of the former hip hop group G-Unit.
Jayceon Terrell Taylor, better known by his stage name the Game or simply Game, is an American rapper. Born in Compton, California, he initially released a series of mixtapes under the wing of fellow West Coast rapper JT the Bigga Figga. After releasing his debut independent album Untold Story in 2004, he was eventually discovered by record producer Dr. Dre and signed to his Aftermath Records label imprint. The Game rose to fame in 2005 with the success of his major-label debut album The Documentary and found continued success with the 2006 follow-up Doctor's Advocate. The Recording Industry Association of America certified The Documentary Double Platinum in March 2005.
Shady Records is an American record label founded by rapper Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg, after the highly successful release of Eminem's The Slim Shady LP (1999). Both serve as the label's presidents.
G-Unit Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group. Founded in 2003 by rapper 50 Cent, for the first eleven years of operation, G-Unit ran in conjunction with, and was distributed by, Interscope Records. In February 2014, distribution switched to Caroline Records and Capitol Music Group. G-Unit Records has a subsidiary label G-Note Records, which caters to R&B and pop.
The Documentary is the debut studio album by American rapper the Game. It was released on January 18, 2005, by Aftermath Entertainment, G-Unit Records, The Black Wall Street Records and Interscope Records. The record serves as his major-label debut, preceded by his independently released debut Untold Story in 2004. In 2001, while the Game was in hospital recovering from a shooting, he decided to pursue a career in music. He released the mixtape, "Q.B. 2 Compton" under his then record label "Get Low Recordz" in 2002, which was later was discovered by Dr. Dre and led to him signing the Game to his label, Aftermath Entertainment. The album includes production from high-profile producers such as Dr. Dre, Kanye West, Scott Storch and Timbaland, among others, and guest appearances from 50 Cent, Eminem, Nate Dogg and Faith Evans, among others. This would be the Game's only album on Aftermath and G-Unit Records, as he left the label later in 2006 after a feud began between him and fellow G-Unit label-mate 50 Cent.
Kejuan Waliek Muchita, better known by his stage name Havoc, is an American rapper and record producer. He was one half of the hip hop duo Mobb Deep with the late Prodigy.
Doctor's Advocate is the second studio album by American hip hop recording artist the Game, released on November 14, 2006, through The Black Wall Street Records and Geffen Records. The album is his second major-label release, following 2005's The Documentary, which was released on Aftermath/G-Unit. Due to his disputes with 50 Cent, Game left Aftermath/G-Unit and signed with Geffen Records, another label under Universal Music Group's Interscope-Geffen-A&M division to terminate his contractual obligations with G-Unit, in the summer of 2006.
Get Rich or Die Tryin' is the debut studio album by American rapper 50 Cent. It was released on February 6, 2003, by Interscope, Aftermath, Shady, and G-Unit. After signing with Eminem, 50 Cent also worked heavily with Dr. Dre, with the duo acting as the album's executive producers, who worked to combine the gangsta rap and R&B combo prevalent in New York hip hop. Additional production is provided by Mike Elizondo, Sha Money XL, Mr. Porter, Rockwilder, Dirty Swift, Megahertz, and more.
T·O·S is the second and final studio album by rap group G-Unit. It was the group's first album in five years since their previous album, Beg for Mercy. The title of the album was originally announced to be Shoot to Kill and then Lock & Load, with the eventual name being Terminate on Sight. The album was originally scheduled to be released on June 24, 2008, but was rescheduled to July 1.
Before I Self Destruct is the fourth studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released November 9, 2009 on Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment, G-Unit Records, Interscope Records and Universal Music Group. The album is his final solo release with Shady, Aftermath and Interscope excluding his 2017 Greatest Hits album Best Of. A feature film, also titled Before I Self Destruct was also made, and is available within the album packaging.
"I Get Money" is the third single from 50 Cent's third album, Curtis. This song was #14 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007. The song peaked at #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified Gold by the RIAA.
"I'll Still Kill" is a song by American hip hop recording artist 50 Cent, released as the fifth single from his third album Curtis (2007). The song, which was produced by DJ Khalil, features guest vocals from Senegalese-American singer Akon. The single officially hit airwaves on November 6, 2007. The song peaked at number 95 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
This article summarizes the events, album releases, and album release dates in hip hop music for the year 2008.
Marvin Bernard, better known by his stage name Tony Yayo, is an American rapper and hype man. He is best known as a member of G-Unit, a hip hop group he formed with his childhood friends 50 Cent and Lloyd Banks. Yayo released his debut studio album, Thoughts of a Predicate Felon, in 2005, which debuted at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. His stage name is derived from the 1983 film Scarface, referencing the main character Tony Montana, and Yayo, the slang word for cocaine.
