Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper and singer. He grew up in St. Louis and embarked on his musical career with the Southern hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993. He signed to Universal Records in 1999. Nelly began his solo career in 2000, with his commercial debut album Country Grammar, of which the featured title track and the single "Ride wit Me" were top 10 hits. The album peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, and became Nelly's best-selling album to date, selling over 8.4 million copies in the United States. His following album Nellyville produced the number-one hits "Hot in Herre" and "Dilemma", along with the top-five single "Air Force Ones".
Howard Earl Bailey Jr., known professionally as Chingy, is an American rapper. Chingy grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and began rapping in his late teens. He toured as an opening act with Nelly in the summer of 2002 and then was signed by Ludacris to his newly formed Disturbing Tha Peace (DTP) record label. The rapper's 2003 summer debut single, "Right Thurr", put him on the musical map as a good-time rapper who specialized in catchy, club-friendly beats and simplistic lyrics delivered in a sing-song, nursery rhyme style.
Iron Flag is the fourth studio album by American East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan, released on December 18, 2001, on Loud Records. It was certified gold in sales by the RIAA. Iron Flag served as the group's second lowest-selling album, as their record label, Loud, was on the verge of shutting down at the time. The album debuted at No. 32 on the Billboard 200 with 153,000 copies sold in its first week of release. It has sold 500,000 copies in the United States, and certified Gold by the RIAA on January 29, 2002. Rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard is completely absent from the album.
Korean hip-hop, also known as K-hip-hop or K-rap, is a subgenre of Korean popular music.
"Right Thurr" is a song by American rapper Chingy. It was co-written and produced by St. Louis production team The Trak Starz. It was released on April 14, 2003, by Capitol Records, Priority Records, and Disturbing tha Peace as the debut single from his debut album, Jackpot (2003). The song received positive reviews from critics, who praised the production and Chingy's addictive delivery.
Jackpot is the debut studio album by American rapper Chingy. It was released on July 15, 2003, by Capitol Records, The Trak Starz's Trak Starz imprint, and Ludacris's Disturbing Tha Peace. Anchored by the smash single "Right Thurr", this album also had two other hits, "Holidae In" featuring Ludacris and Snoop Dogg, and "One Call Away" featuring J-Weav. The album was produced by the Trak Starz except for "Bagg Up", which was produced by Da Quiksta. The enhanced version of the album features the uncut video of "Right Thurr".
"Tipsy" is the debut single by American rapper J-Kwon, released through So So Def Recordings and Arista Records on January 12, 2004, as the lead single from his debut studio album, Hood Hop (2004). Written by J-Kwon alongside Joe Kent and Mark Williams, "Tipsy" was produced by American production team Trackboyz.
"Holidae In" is a song by American rapper Chingy featuring Ludacris and Snoop Dogg. It was released on August 25, 2003, by Capitol Records and Ludacris's Disturbing tha Peace record label as the second single off his debut album Jackpot (2003). Produced by the duo the Trak Starz, the release garnered positive reviews from critics who praised the performances. In 2020, Entertainment Weekly wrote that the legacy of the song was that increased the "coolness factor" of Holiday Inn, hotel chain based in Atlanta, and owned by the hospitality company, Intercontinental Hotels Group.
Hood Hop is the debut album by rapper J-Kwon. It was released on April 6, 2004. Club hit, "Tipsy", was successful on the US, UK and Australian charts. A popular remix of the song features Chingy and Murphy Lee. The LP sold 125,000 copies in its first week of release.
Hoodstar is the third studio album by the hip hop artist Chingy, following the release of Powerballin'. Released on September 19, 2006, the disc is split into two sides with different musical styles. While the "Hood" segment has the tracks "Hands Up" and "Cadillac Door", "Star" has more uptempo and club-oriented tracks like "Brand New Kicks" and "Dem Jeans". The guest features are by Three 6 Mafia, Chopper and Chingy's cousin Young Spiffy. The album was produced by Jermaine Dupri, Timbaland, the Trak Starz, Mannie Fresh, Mr. Collipark and the dance group Hoodstarz, among others. The album entered the Billboard 200 at number 9 with first week sales of 77,000 copies in the US. It was certified Gold by RIAA for shipping over 500,000 copies in the US.
"Don't Worry" is a song by American rapper Chingy with guest vocals from singer Janet Jackson, released as the second promotional single from his second album Powerballin', which sold over two million copies worldwide and served as the follow-up to his debut album Jackpot. A music video was not filmed.
"Rock Box" is a song by the American hip hop group Run-DMC. The song was produced by Larry Smith and Russell Simmons and released by Profile Records in March 1984. Following the popularity of their previous two singles "Hard Times" (1983) and "It's Like That" (1983), Profile Records head suggested to the producers and group that they should attempt to record an album as they already had four songs ready, and releasing a few more would not hurt them. Despite speculating low sales from the label and the group not feeling that hip hop was a genre appropriate for a full-length album, they were given an advance to start recording. This led to Run-DMC members Joseph "Run" Simmons and Darryl "DMC" McDaniels going through their rhyme book to develop new songs, one of which would become "Rock Box".
The Trak Starz are an American hip hop songwriting and record production duo from St. Louis, composed of Alonzo "Zo" Lee Jr. and Shamar "Sham" Daugherty.
Roland Sato Lee Page, also known as Yung Ro is an American hip-hop/rap artist. Born Roland Sato Lee Page in Houston Texas, he is an independent artist and CEO of his own record label, Black Pearl Entertainment.
Lexus Arnel Lewis, professionally known as Lex Luger, is an American record producer. His stage name is inspired by the WCW/WWF professional wrestler Lex Luger. He co-founded the American hip hop production team 808 Mafia with Southside. He is a member of the hip hop production duo Low Pros with A-Trak, and the VABP, a hip hop group that he founded in high school.
"Gorgeous" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Kanye West from his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010). The track features a hook provided by Kid Cudi, a recording artist formerly signed to West's label GOOD Music, and a rap verse provided by the Wu-Tang Clan member Raekwon. The song was written by West, Cudi, Raekwon, No I.D., Mike Dean and Rhymefest, and was produced by West, No I.D. and Dean. It contains elements of Enoch Light and the Glittering Guitars' cover version of The Turtles' song "You Showed Me". "Gorgeous" received mostly positive reviews from music critics, who generally praised the intricacy of the production, the quality of the guest features and the rock music inspired aesthetic of the song. Several critics cited West's verses as a highlight of the track, complimenting his lyricism and delivery.
Love After War is the fifth studio album by American R&B recording artist Robin Thicke. It was released on December 6, 2011, by Star Trak Entertainment in the United States. Love After War also features guest contributions by American rapper Lil Wayne.
Untitled is the debut EP by Los Angeles, California rapper Hodgy Beats, member of hip-hop collective Odd Future. It was released on February 24, 2012. It is Hodgy Beats' first solo release since his 2009 debut mixtape, The Dena Tape. Announced on February 20, 2012, the EP was released on the 25th of the same month. The project features production by Juicy J, The Alchemist and Flying Lotus. Lyrically the record deals with thoughts about self-reflection, the contemplation of death, and a struggle with drugs. The EP received mostly positive reviews from music critics.
Digi+Phonics is an African American hip hop production team, composed of California-based record producers Tae Beast, Sounwave, Dave Free and Willie B. They currently serve as the main in-house producers for Carson-based record label, Top Dawg Entertainment. Digi+Phonics work significantly on projects from all the members of hip hop supergroup Black Hippy, who are also signed to Top Dawg and is composed of rappers Kendrick Lamar, Jay Rock, Schoolboy Q, and Ab-Soul. Their best known productions include "Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe" by Kendrick Lamar, "There He Go" by Schoolboy Q, and "Terrorist Threats" by Ab-Soul. They frequently co-produce songs together and put the finishing touches on the projects released by Top Dawg Entertainment.
Neon Icon is the debut studio album by American rapper Riff Raff. It was released on June 24, 2014, by Mad Decent. The album, which features Childish Gambino, Mac Miller, Paul Wall, Amber Coffman, Mike Posner, and Slim Thug, was produced by DJA, Larry Fisherman, DJ Mustard, Raf Riley, Harry Fraud, and executive producer Diplo. Neon Icon was supported by singles "How to Be the Man" and "Tip Toe Wing in My Jawwdinz".
