Tupac Amaru Shakur, also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and songwriter. Considered one of the most influential and successful rappers of all time, Shakur is among the best-selling music artists, having sold more than 75 million records worldwide. His lyrical content has been noted for addressing social injustice, violence, and the marginalization of African-Americans.
Christopher George Latore Wallace, better known by his stage names The Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta rap, he is widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time. Wallace became known for his distinctive laid-back lyrical delivery, offsetting the lyrics' often grim content.
This is a list of notable events in music that occurred in 1996.
Boyz II Men is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. Formed in 1985, they have been a trio composed of baritone Nathan Morris alongside tenors Wanyá Morris and Shawn Stockman since 2003. During the 1990s, Boyz II Men was a quartet with bass singer Michael McCary, who left the group in 2003 due to health issues that were diagnosed as multiple sclerosis.
Digital Underground is an American alternative hip hop group from Oakland, California. Its lineup changed with each album and tour.
Jada Koren Pinkett Smith is an American actress, singer and talk-show host. She is co-host of the Facebook Watch talk show Red Table Talk, for which she has received a Daytime Emmy Award. Time named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2021.
Naughty by Nature is an American hip hop trio from East Orange, New Jersey, consisting of Treach, Vin Rock, and DJ Kay Gee.
Popular music in the 1990s saw the continuation of teen pop and dance-pop trends which had emerged in the 1970s and 1980s. Furthermore, hip hop grew and continued to be highly successful in the decade, with the continuation of the genre's golden age. Aside from rap, reggae, contemporary R&B, and urban music in general remained popular throughout the decade; urban music in the late-1980s and 1990s often blended with styles such as soul, funk, and jazz, resulting in fusion genres such as new jack swing, neo-soul, hip hop soul, and g-funk which were popular.
Robert Hunter Caldwell was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He released several albums spanning R&B, soul, jazz, and adult contemporary. He is known for his soulful and versatile vocals. Caldwell released the hit single and his signature song "What You Won't Do for Love" from his double platinum debut album Bobby Caldwell in 1978. After several R&B and smooth jazz albums, Caldwell turned to singing standards from the Great American Songbook. He wrote many songs for other artists, including the Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single "The Next Time I Fall" for Amy Grant and Peter Cetera. Caldwell's musical catalog is perhaps best known today for its later sampling by several prolific hip hop and R&B artists.
Newsboys are a Christian rock band founded in 1985 in Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia, by Peter Furler and George Perdikis. Now based in Nashville, Tennessee, the band has released 17 studio albums, 6 of which have been certified gold. As of 2023, the band consists of lead vocalist Michael Tait, drummer and percussionist Duncan Phillips, keyboardist Jeff Frankenstein, electric guitarist Jody Davis, and bassist Adam Agee. In addition to performing music, the band has appeared in the films God's Not Dead, God's Not Dead 2, and God's Not Dead: A Light In Darkness.
Uptown Records is an American record label, based in New York City, founded in 1986 by onetime rapper Andre Harrell. From the late 1980s into the early 1990s, it was a leader in R&B and hip hop.
Gregory Edward Jacobs, known professionally as Shock G and by his alter ego Humpty Hump, was an American rapper and musician who was best known as the lead vocalist of the hip hop group Digital Underground. He was responsible for Digital Underground's "The Humpty Dance", 2Pac's breakthrough single "I Get Around", and co-producer of 2Pac's debut album 2Pacalypse Now.
Dwight Arrington Myers, known professionally as Heavy D, was a Jamaican-born American rapper, record producer, and actor. Myers was the leader of Heavy D & the Boyz, a group that included dancers/hype men G-Whiz and "Trouble" T. Roy, as well as DJ and producer Eddie F. The group maintained a sizeable audience in the United States through most of the 1990s. The five albums the group released included production mainly by Teddy Riley, Marley Marl, DJ Premier, Myers's cousin Pete Rock, and "in-house" beatmaker Eddie F. Myers also released four solo albums and discovered Soul for Real and Monifah.
"Hit 'Em Up" is a diss track by American rapper 2Pac, featuring the Outlawz. It is the B-side to the single "How Do U Want It", released on June 4, 1996. The song's lyrics contain vicious insults to several East Coast rappers, chiefly Shakur's former friend turned rival, The Notorious B.I.G.. The song was recorded at Can Am Studios in 1996. A previous version of the song was recorded in October 1995.
All Eyez on Me is the fourth studio album by American rapper 2Pac and the last to be released during his lifetime. Released on February 13, 1996, by Death Row and Interscope Records, the album features guest appearances from Dr. Dre, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Redman, Method Man, Nate Dogg, Kurupt, Daz Dillinger, E-40, K-Ci & JoJo, and the Outlawz, among others.
DJ Fuze, is an American Hip-Hop DJ and record producer, who is most known for his work in the 1990s with the multi-platinum, P-Funk-inspired rap group Digital Underground.
Edward Ferrell is an American record producer, DJ, songwriter, and record executive. With business partner Heavy D, he formed the new jack swing group Heavy D and the Boyz in 1985, for which he served as the de facto producer and DJ. The group signed with the New York City-based record label Uptown Records to release seven studio albums to commercial success. He served as Vice President of A&R for LaFace Records from to 1993 to 1995, as well as for Motown from 1995 to 1997, and Executive Consultant for Def Jam Recordings from 2005 to 2007. In 1989, he founded the record label Untouchables Entertainment, through which he discovered and signed R&B singer Donell Jones.
Nuttin' but Love is the fifth and final studio album by American rap group Heavy D & the Boyz. It was released on May 24, 1994, by Uptown Records and was produced by DJ Eddie F, Teddy Riley, Marley Marl, Erick Sermon, Kid Capri, Easy Mo Bee, The Trackmasters, and Pete Rock. The first track on the album, "Friends & Respect", featured spoken intros by the likes of LL Cool J, Buju Banton, KRS-One, Kool G Rap, Little Shawn, MC Lyte, Martin Lawrence, Pete Rock, Positive K, Q-Tip, Queen Latifah, Spike Lee and Treach.
Crystal Johnson is an American singer and songwriter from Brooklyn, New York. She has performed in a variety of stage productions and has collaborated with a wide array of well-known artists including Anthony Hamilton, Dr. Dre, Heavy D, Mobb Deep, Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Angie Stone, Usher and many others.
Eboni Foster is an American R&B singer. Born in Sacramento, California, she became best known for her work as the lead singer of the '90s R&B group Nuttin' Nyce, and then for her solo single "Crazy for You", which became a top 40 hit on the US R&B chart in 1998. Foster went on to release her debut studio album, Just What You Want, the same year. The R&B/pop record drew favorable reviews and spawned a second single, "Everything You Do".
