Nathaniel Thomas Wilson, better known by his stage name Kool G Rap, is an American rapper. He began his career in the mid-1980s as one half of the group Kool G Rap & DJ Polo and as a member of the Juice Crew. He is widely considered to be one of the most influential and skilled MCs of all time, and a pioneer of mafioso rap/street/hardcore content and multisyllabic rhyming. On his album The Giancana Story, he stated that the "G" in his name stands for "Giancana", but on other occasions he has stated that it stands for "Genius".
Christopher Edward Martin, known professionally as DJ Premier, is an American record producer and DJ. He is considered one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time. He was half of the hip hop duo Gang Starr—alongside the rapper Guru—and presently forms half of the hip hop duo PRhyme, together with Royce da 5'9".
Queensbridge Houses, also known simply as Queensbridge, is a public housing development in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens, New York City. Owned by the New York City Housing Authority, the development contains 29 buildings and 3,142 units accommodating approximately 7,000 people in two separate complexes. The complex opened in 1939 and is the largest housing project in North America.
The Bridge Wars was a hip hop music rivalry during the mid-to-late 1980s and early 1990s, that arose from a dispute over the true birthplace of hip hop music and retaliation over the rejecting of a record for airplay. The Bridge Wars originally involved the South Bronx's Boogie Down Productions, led by KRS-One, and Marley Marl's Juice Crew, hailing from Queensbridge. KRS-One and Marley Marl have since officially retired the feud, with the release of their collaborative 2007 album Hip-Hop Lives.
Percy Lee Chapman, known by his stage name Tragedy Khadafi, is an American rapper and record producer. Chapman hails from the Queensbridge Housing Projects in Queens, New York City, and helped spawn other hip hop artists such as Mobb Deep, Capone-N-Noreaga, Nas. He is documented to be the first to use the phrase "illmatic" in 1988 on a record called "The Rebel", from the Marley Marl album In Control, Volume 1, which was an inspiration and influence on fellow New York rapper Nas.
Infamous Mobb, also known as IM3, is a hip hop group from Queensbridge, Long Island City, Queens, New York, United States, composed of members Ty Nitty, Twin Gambino aka Big Twin and G.O.D. Part III aka Godfather Part III. They are an integral part of the Queensbridge Hip Hop scene, which includes rappers like Nas, Tragedy Khadafi, Mobb Deep, Cormega, Capone-N-Noreaga, whose legacy originated mid 80's in Marley Marl's studio and with him and his protegés on Cold Chillin' Records, known as the Juice Crew.
Special Edition is the debut studio album by American hip hop group Infamous Mobb. It was released on March 26, 2002 via IM³/Landspeed Records. Recording sessions took place at Chung King Studios, In Ya Ear Studios, Soundtrack Studios, Othaz Recording Studio, D&D Studios, and Battery Studios in New York. Production was handled by The Alchemist, Ax The Bull, Havoc, DJ Muggs, Phil, Ron Gotti, Uno-Dos and V.I.C. It features guest appearances from Mobb Deep, Chinky, Big Noyd, Blitz, Hostyle, Kaos, Ty Maxx, Uno-Dos and V-12. The album peaked at number 118 on the Billboard 200, number 19 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, number 5 on the Independent Albums and number 2 on the Heatseekers Albums.
Y2K: The Album is the debut album by American hip hop group Screwball. It was released on February 8, 2000 via Tommy Boy Records. Recording sessions took place at C Mo' Greens Studio, D&D Studios and House Of Hits in New York City. Production was handled by several record producers, including Mike Heron, Godfather Don, DJ Premier, Pete Rock, Marley Marl and Biz Markie. It features guest appearances from Big Noyd, Capone, Cormega, MC Shan, Mobb Deep, Nature, Nashawn, Prince A.D. and Triple Seis. The album peaked at number 50 on the US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Its singles "F.A.Y.B.A.N." and "H-O-S-T-Y-L-E" were also charted on the Hot Rap Songs.
Loyalty is the second studio album by American hip hop group Screwball. It was released on June 26, 2001 via Hydra Entertainment/Landspeed Records. Recording sessions took place at C Mo' Greens Studio in New York. Production was mainly handled by Godfather Don and Ayatollah. It features guest appearances from Black Attack, Complexion, Cormega, Kool G Rap, Matrix Bars, M.O.P., Nature, N.O.R.E. and Tragedy Khadafi. The album peaked at number 185 on the US Billboard 200. Its lead single, Lee Stone-produced "Torture", made it to #78 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and #2 on the Hot Rap Songs.
Wilbur Bass, better known as Blaq Poet, is an American rapper from Queensbridge, New York City.
Half a Klip is an album by American rapper Kool G Rap, released on February 5, 2008 by Chinga Chang, Latchey and Koch Records. It was the first new solo release from Kool G Rap in six years, and its producers included DJ Premier, Marley Marl, Domingo, and Marks. KL of Screwball, D-Roc and Haylie Duff appeared as a guest vocalists.
Hip Hop Lives is the collaborative studio album by American rapper KRS-One and record producer Marley Marl. It was released on May 22, 2007 via Koch Records. Recording sessions took place at House Of Hits in New York and at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles. Production was handled by Marley Marl himself, except for one track produced with 88 Fingers. It features guest appearances from Blaq Poet, Busy Bee Starski and Magic Juan. The album's title is a response to Nas's 2006 album Hip Hop Is Dead.
Screwed Up is a compilation album by American hip hop quartet Screwball. The double disc project was released on July 19, 2004, via Hydra Entertainment. It is primarily composed of songs from the group's two previous albums Y2K: The Album and Loyalty, as well as new tracks, remixes, and songs from member Hostyle's One Eyed Maniac album. The album's title came from the group's 1996 single "Screwed Up" b/w "They Wanna Know Why". After the release of Screwed Up, member Blaq Poet pursued a solo career. Member Kenneth "KL" Lewis died on March 28, 2008, of an asthma attack, and member Fredrick "Hostyle" Ivey died in January 2020. The compilation was re-issued for digital download shortened to fifteen tracks.
Stone Crazy is the second studio album by American hip hop duo The Beatnuts. It was released on June 24, 1997 via Relativity Records. Recording sessions took place at Worldwide Studios. Produced solely by the Beatnuts, it features guest appearances from Big Pun, Blaq Poet, Cuban Link, Don Gobbi, Gab Gotcha, Horny Man and Hostyle. Member Fashion left the group to pursue a solo career and is not featured on the album.
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.
Tha Blaqprint is the second studio album by American hip hop recording artist Blaq Poet, released June 30, 2009 on DJ Premier's record label Year Round Records via Fat Beats Records. It features guest appearances by the also Year Round Records signed group NYGz and Nick Javas, Capone-N-Noreaga member N.O.R.E., Imani Montana, Lil' Fame from M.O.P., and the late Screwball member KL. The album was entirely produced by DJ Premier, except for two tracks: "U Phucc’d Up", produced by Easy Mo Bee, and "Sichuwayshunz", produced by Gemcrates. Several tracks have been released on various mixtapes, such as "Blaq Out" or "No Talent Required", dating all the way back to 2006. The album's lead single, "Ain't Nuttin' Changed", has been released in February 2009. There's also a remix version to the single, released in June 2009. It features verses by MC Eiht from Compton's Most Wanted and Young Maylay from Ice Cube's Lench Mob Records.
Rewind: Deja Screw is the debut studio album by American Queensbridge hip hop emcee Blaq Poet since 1991's Without A Warning together with producer DJ Hot Day. Released on March 21, 2006 through Traffic Entertainment, the album features a mix of old and new verses by Poet over all new beats, hence the title. The three main producers are 45 Scientific from France, DJ Premier, and Blaq Poet himself, although Easy Mo Bee and The Alchemist both contribute a track each. Poet's cousin, KL, who died in early 2008, makes three appearances on the LP.
The following is a discography of production credited to Marley Marl.
Free Agents: The Murda Mixtape is a double mixtape album by American hardcore/East Coast hip hop duo Mobb Deep. It was released on April 22, 2003 through Landspeed Records with distribution via Koch Entertainment.
Mike "Heron" Herard is New York based songwriter, producer and talent manager, primarily in the hip hop music genre. He is a vice president of Artists and Repertoire (A&R) for Shady Records. Additionally, Herard is a producer and co-owner at Hydra Entertainment, and the founder of BeatHustle, a music platform and management company.
