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Mr. Len | |
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Birth name | Leonard Smythe |
Born | Bronx, New York, U.S. |
Genres | Hip hop |
Years active | 1990s–present |
Mr. Len (Leonard "Lenny" Smythe) is a hip hop DJ born in the Bronx, New York. He moved to Hillside, NJ when he was 12 years old. He was a member, with Bigg Jus and El-P, of the underground hip hop trio Company Flow, which disbanded in the late 1990s. [1] His debut full-length, released on Matador Records in 2001, included guest spots by Jean Grae, Chubb Rock, and Mr. Live. [2] Later he formed a group with Kimani Rogers from The Masterminds named Roosevelt Franklin. He also collaborated with Handsome Boy Modeling School member Prince Paul to produce the faux-doo wop group The Dix. Mr. Len was also a voice actor in the American action comedy television series, Kung Faux.
Company Flow was an American hip hop trio from Brooklyn, New York City, consisting of Bigg Jus, El-P and Mr. Len.
Reflection Eternal is an American hip hop duo composed of emcee Talib Kweli and producer Hi-Tek. They released their first album, Train of Thought, in 2000. They have since released a mixtape, The RE: Union, in late December 2009, and their second album Revolutions Per Minute was released May 18, 2010.
Jaime Meline, better known by the stage name El-P, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Starting his career as a member of Company Flow, he has been a driving force in alternative hip hop since the mid-1990s, producing for rappers including Aesop Rock, Cage, and Mr. Lif. He was a member of The Weathermen and is the co-founder, owner, and CEO of the Definitive Jux record label.
Rawkus Records was an American hip hop record label, owned by James Murdoch, known for starting the careers of many rappers. Rawkus started in 1995 with releases in hip-hop, drum and bass and fun-dustrial.
Da Beatminerz are an American hip-hop production crew from Bushwick, Brooklyn, known for their dark, gritty sound that is very popular with the underground hip-hop scene.
Soundbombing II is the second installment in Rawkus Records' Soundbombing compilation series, released by the label on May 18, 1999. Mixed by DJ Babu and J Rocc of Beat Junkies, the album included tracks from a variety of artists, both Rawkus' signees and popular artists from other labels.
Fondle 'Em Records was a hip hop record label founded and owned by Robert "Bobbito" Garcia from 1995 to 2001, based in New York, New York. Bobbito formed the label after realizing that the many unsigned rappers making guest appearances on The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show, a program Bobbito co-hosted with DJ Stretch Armstrong on Columbia University radio station WKCR 89.9 FM, did not have a proper outlet for their talents.
Little Johnny from the Hospitul: Breaks & Instrumentuls Vol.1 is the second and final studio album by American hip hop group Company Flow, released in 1999. The record itself is an instrumental album which differs from the group's previous work. It peaked at number 29 on the UK R&B Albums Chart.
Black Star is an American hip hop duo formed in 1996, from Brooklyn, New York City. The duo is composed of rappers Yasiin Bey and Talib Kweli. The duo is named after The Black Star Line, a shipping company founded by Marcus Garvey. Their critically-acclaimed debut album Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star was released on September 29, 1998. After decades of only releasing singles and appearing on compilations, Black Star released their sophomore studio album No Fear of Time May 3, 2022 on the podcasting platform Luminary.
Funcrusher Plus is the debut studio album by American hip hop group Company Flow. It was released by Rawkus Records in 1997. In 2009, it was re-released on Definitive Jux. The album has been recognized as "a landmark independent hip-hop release".
Home Field Advantage is the debut studio album by American hip hop group The High & Mighty. It was released on August 24, 1999 via Rawkus Records. Recording sessions took place at the Muthafuckin' Spot on Lexington. Production was produced mostly by member DJ Mighty Mi, but also featured production from Alchemist and Reef. It features guest appearances from Bobbito García, Cage, Defari, Eminem, Evidence, Kool Keith, Mad Skillz, Mos Def, Pharoahe Monch, Thirstin Howl III, What? What? and Wordsworth. The album peaked at number 193 on the Billboard 200, number 45 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and number 11 on the Heatseekers Albums in the United States. The single "B-Boy Document '99" reached number 63 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, number 7 on the Hot Rap Songs, and was later appeared on the soundtrack of 2000 video game Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2. The single "Dick Starbuck "Porno Detective"" made it to number 37 on the Hot Rap Songs.
Funcrusher is the debut EP by the New York underground hip hop group Company Flow. It was released in 1995 on the group's own label Official Recordings. It sold well for an independently released record, with more than 30,000 copies sold despite only being available on vinyl. It was ranked sixth by album sales of its distributor Big Daddy Music by April 1996. Following the release, the group signed a deal with upstart label Rawkus Records for the release of their acclaimed album Funcrusher Plus, released in 1997, which includes all the tracks from Funcrusher.
Mr. Dibbs is an American DJ and hip hop producer. He is the Founder of 1200 HOBOS [dj/graff collective]. He was also one of the founders of Scribble Jam.
Eastern Conference Records is an independent record label based in New York City. It is owned and operated by DJ Mighty Mi, the DJ/producer for the High & Mighty.
Roger Perryman, better known as Mr. Attic, is a Canadian hip-hop producer from Toronto, Ontario. He is a member of Juno Award-winning production team, Da Grassroots.
Hip Hop for Respect is a benefit maxi-single brought together by American hip hop duo Black Star to speak out against police brutality after four New York City Police Department officers murdered West African immigrant Amadou Diallo fired 41 shots at the unarmed man. The project was released on April 25, 2000, through Rawkus Records.
Marcus Vialva, better known by his stage name Shabaam Sahdeeq, is an alternative hip hop artist from Brooklyn, New York. He first reached fame with Rawkus Records and was featured alongside artists including Busta Rhymes, Redman, Method Man, Kool G Rap, Common, Mos Def and Eminem. Shabaam Sahdeeq is notable for his work on the Soundbombing and Lyricist Lounge series in the late 1990s and the early 2000s. In 1998, Sahdeeq collaborated with DJ Spinna, Mr. Complex and Apani B to form the hip-hop collective Polyrhythm Addicts, a supergroup renowned for its pivotal role in the explosion of late 1990s indie hip-hop. The single "Not Your Ordinary: gained a positive critical and commercial reception, which paved the way for their first album, Rhyme Related, released in 1999, and widely regarded as a hip-hop classic. After this success, the group disbanded to focus on their individual careers. Sahdeeq's distinct voice and unique delivery catapulted him to mainstream stardom on the "Simon Says" Remix alongside label mate Pharoahe Monch. He is currently releasing music independently. Shabaam Sahdeeq's recent work has been receiving rave reviews in some of the biggest hip-hop publications.
Troy Donald Jamerson, better known by his stage name Pharoahe Monch, is an American rapper known for his complex lyrics, intricate delivery, and internal and multisyllabic rhyme schemes.
Cashless Society also known as The Hard Cashless Society or THC Society are a Southern African hip hop crew from Gaborone, Botswana and Johannesburg, South Africa. The group consists of Snazz D, Draztik, X-Amount, Black Intellect, Fat Free & DJ IQ, the group made later acquisitions of other like minded artists with Criminal, Tizeye & Gemini joining to form the group well known as Cashless Society.
Soundbombing is a hip hop compilation album by Rawkus Records, released on October 14, 1997. The album helped launch the careers of Mos Def and Reflection Eternal, who later became Rawkus's most popular artists. Soundbombing is regarded as a "scene-defining" underground hip hop album.