Gilbert Scott-Heron was an American jazz poet, singer, musician, and author known for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Jackson fused jazz, blues, and soul with lyrics relative to social and political issues of the time, delivered in both rapping and melismatic vocal styles. He referred to himself as a "bluesologist", his own term for "a scientist who is concerned with the origin of the blues". His poem "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", delivered over a jazz-soul beat, is considered a major influence on hip hop music.
Utah Saints are an English electronic music duo consisting of members Jez Willis and Tim Garbutt. The band had three top-ten and another five top-40 singles on the UK Singles Chart in the 1990s, as well as number-one dance tracks in the UK and US. They were notable for pioneering use of sampling technology, in particular, their practice of manipulating samples from mainstream pop, rock, R&B and soul songs and combining them with contrasting dance beats, using the samples in a new context. The band wrote, produced and mixed all of their own music. The duo were joined on stage by additional musicians when they played live from 1991 to 2001. They were one of the first electronic groups to play as a live collective and supported both the Shamen and U2 live at 10 stadium shows. Since then the duo have performed live sets themselves.
Texas are a Scottish rock band from Glasgow, founded in 1986 by Johnny McElhone, Ally McErlaine, and Sharleen Spiteri. Texas, despite their name, has no connection with the US state of Texas. Texas made their performing debut in March 1988 at the University of Dundee. The band released their debut album Southside in 1989, along with the debut single "I Don't Want a Lover", which was a top-ten hit on the UK Singles Chart and peaked within the top ten of the charts in many other European countries. Southside entered at number three on the UK Albums Chart and number 88 on the Billboard 200 album chart in the United States, and sold over two million copies worldwide. Despite the success of Southside, the follow-up albums Mothers Heaven (1991) and Ricks Road (1993) were less successful, peaking at number 32 and number 18 on the UK Albums Chart respectively, but achieved moderate success on various European markets.
"Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a song composed by Charles Fox with lyrics by Norman Gimbel. The lyrics were written in collaboration with Lori Lieberman after she was inspired by a Don McLean performance in late 1971. Denied writing credit by Fox and Gimbel, Lieberman released her version of the song in 1972, but it did not chart. The song has been covered by many other artists.
"Loverboy" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey. It was released on June 19, 2001, by Virgin Records America as the lead single from her eighth studio album Glitter, the soundtrack to the 2001 film of the same name. Written and produced by Carey, Larry Blackmon, Thomas Jenkins and Clark Kent, "Loverboy" is built around a sample from "Candy" by the funk band Cameo, who are also featured on the track. Lyrically, the song finds Carey fantasizing about her loverboy, a man that will fulfill her physical and sexual desires. The recording was accompanied by an official remix, titled "Loverboy Remix", featuring guest artists Ludacris, Da Brat, Shawnna and Twenty II.
"SOS" is a song by Barbadian singer Rihanna, and included in her second studio album, A Girl like Me (2006). It was released on February 14, 2006, through Def Jam Recordings as the lead single of the album. "SOS" was written by J. R. Rotem and E. Kidd Bogart, with additional credit assigned to Ed Cobb for inspiration built around a sample of Soft Cell's 1981 recording of "Tainted Love". This song was written by Cobb in 1965, later influencing the creation of "SOS". Production of the dance-pop, hip hop and R&B song was handled by Rotem. Critical reception of "SOS" was generally positive, with the majority of music critics praising the inclusion of the "Tainted Love" sample. Some critics compared "SOS" to Rihanna's debut single, "Pon de Replay".
"Freak like Me" is a song by American R&B singer Adina Howard, released on January 25, 1995 by East West and Lola Waxx, as the debut single from her first album, Do You Wanna Ride? (1995). The song reached number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks, as well as number two on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart for four weeks, and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of one million copies. Its music video was directed by Hype Williams. In 2023, Billboard ranked "Freak like Me" among the "500 Best Pop Songs of All Time". The song has been covered by several artists, most notably by British girl group Sugababes, who reached number one on the UK Singles Chart with their version in 2002.
"Rivers of Joy" is a song recorded by all-female German pop group No Angels. It was written by Hans Andersson and Niklas Petterson from Swedish composing duo Petterson & Haze and recorded by the band for their debut studio album, Elle'ments (2001). Production on the track was helmed by German musician Peter Ries. An anthemic song about self-empowerment, the dance-pop track combines elements of gospel music and eurodance with prominent usage of a piano sample.
I'm New Here is the 15th and final studio album by American vocalist and pianist Gil Scott-Heron. It was released on February 8, 2010, by XL Recordings and was his first release of original music in 16 years, following a period of personal and legal troubles with drug addiction.
"What Can You Do for Me" is a song by English electronic group Utah Saints. It was released on 12 August 1991 as the first single from their self-titled debut album (1992). The song reached number 10 on the UK Singles Chart and number three on the UK Dance Singles Chart. It uses samples from "There Must Be an Angel " by Eurythmics and "Ain't Nothin' Goin' on But the Rent" by Gwen Guthrie. The title "What Can You Do for Me" is taken from lyrics of "Ain't Nothin' Goin' on But the Rent". A music video was also produced to promote the single.
"Do You See" is a song by American hip hop artist Warren G. It was released in October 1994 as the third and final single from his debut album, Regulate...G Funk Era. "Do You See" found some success in the United States, reaching number 42 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song found more success in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 29 on the UK Singles Chart in March 1995.
James Thomas Smith, known professionally as Jamie xx, is an English musician, DJ, record producer, and remixer. He is known for both his solo work and as a member of the indie pop band the xx.
We're New Here is a remix album by American vocalist Gil Scott-Heron and English music producer Jamie xx, released on February 21, 2011, by Young Turks and XL Recordings. A longtime fan of Scott-Heron, Jamie xx was approached by XL label head Richard Russell to remix Scott-Heron's 2010 studio album I'm New Here. He worked on the album while touring with his band The xx in 2010 and occasionally communicated with Scott-Heron through letters for his approval to rework certain material.
"Otis" is a song by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West from their first collaborative album Watch the Throne (2011). The song samples soul singer Otis Redding's version of "Try a Little Tenderness". The production was covered solely by West. The track was premiered by Funkmaster Flex's Hot 97 radio show and was released onto the Internet the day afterward. Lyrically, the song has the two rappers sharing lines discussing wealth, decadence and fame. The track received highly positive reviews from music critics who praised the trading off of verses by the two rappers and the Redding-sampled beat, which was compared to the style heard on West's The College Dropout. Several publications placed the song amongst the best of the year.
"Take Care" is the title track from Canadian rapper and singer Drake's 2011 studio album of the same name. The song features guest vocals from Barbadian singer Rihanna. The song heavily samples Jamie xx's remix of Gil Scott-Heron's version of "I'll Take Care of You", written by Brook Benton. "Take Care" was released as the fifth single from the album on January 17, 2012. It is a club song about a couple in a relationship acknowledging they have been hurt in their past, but will look after one another.
"Last Nite" is a song by American rock band the Strokes. It was released on October 23, 2001, as the second single from their debut album, Is This It (2001). Outside of the United States, "Last Nite" peaked within the top 20 of the charts in the United Kingdom.
Secrets is a 1978 studio album by American vocalist Gil Scott-Heron and keyboardist Brian Jackson.
American rapper Angel Haze has released one studio album, one internet album, two extended plays (EPs), four mixtapes and nineteen singles. In July 2012, after releasing two prior mixtapes, Haze released a mixtape Reservation online for free. The title is inspired by the act of reserving a table at a restaurant, saying "[...] For me, it's like that with the rap industry. I made my reservation there [...] and now I'm finally arriving". The lead single "New York" peaked at number 58 on the UK Singles Chart, and number 12 on the UK R&B Singles Chart. Shortly after, Haze released a commercial EP compiled of tracks from Reservation, titled New York, followed by a fourth mixtape, Classick. Throughout late 2013, during the run-up to the release of the debut album, Haze released a cover of a popular song every day, for thirty days. Most famous from these freestyles was the adaptation of Macklemore and Ryan Lewis's track "Same Love", which discusses childhood, prejudice, homophobia and sexuality. The series was dubbed 30 Gold.
"Battle Cry" is a song recorded by American rapper Angel Haze featuring Australian singer-songwriter Sia. It was released as the second single from Haze's debut album, Dirty Gold, on January 9, 2014. The song was produced by Greg Kurstin.
Reservation is the third mixtape by American rapper and singer Angel Haze. It was released on July 17, 2012, by labels Biz 3, Noizy Cricket and True Panther. Reservation received critical acclaim from critics, receiving an 88/100 score from aggregate review site Metacritic, while the BBC named it one of the best mixtapes of 2012.
