Country Grammar is the debut studio album by American rapper and singer Nelly. It was released on June 27, 2000, by Universal Records. The production on the album was handled by Jason "Jay E" Epperson, with additional production by C-Love, Kevin Law, City Spud, Steve "Blast" Wills and Basement Beats. Nelly contributed to all lyrics on the album, with Epperson and City Spud also contributing. With the album’s release, Nelly and his “St. Lunatics” crew cemented the St. Louis sound firmly amongst other southern hip hop artists in the year 2000, such as Juvenile, Trina, Ludacris, OutKast, Three 6 Mafia and UGK. Country Grammar also introduced the world to Nelly's unique musical style of pop-rap and radio “singalongs” with a Missouri twang. It was supported by four successful singles: "Country Grammar ", "E.I.", "Ride wit Me" and "Batter Up". Its lead single, "Country Grammar ", peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart. Its second single "E.I." peaked at number 16 on the Hot 100, number 12 on the UK Singles Chart and number 11 on the ARIA Singles Chart. "Ride wit Me" peaked within the top five on the Hot 100, ARIA Singles Chart, Irish Singles Chart and UK Singles Chart. The album's fourth and final single, "Batter Up" featuring St. Lunatics members Murphy Lee and Ali, achieved moderate chart success.
The Blueprint is the sixth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, released on September 11, 2001, through Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. Its release was set a week earlier than initially planned in order to combat bootlegging. Recording sessions for the album took place during 2001 at Manhattan Center Studios and Baseline Studios in New York City. Contrasting the radio-friendly sound of Jay-Z's previous work, The Blueprint features soul-based sampling and production handled primarily by Kanye West, Just Blaze, and Bink, as well as Timbaland, Trackmasters, and Eminem, who also contributes the album's sole guest feature.
Lamont Coleman, known professionally as Big L, was an American rapper. Emerging from Harlem in New York City in 1992, Big L became known among underground hip-hop fans for his freestyling ability. He was eventually signed to Columbia Records, where, in 1995, he released his debut album, Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous. On February 15, 1999, he was fatally shot nine times in a drive-by shooting in Harlem.
Stankonia is the fourth studio album by the American hip hop duo Outkast. It was released on October 31, 2000, by LaFace Records. The album was recorded in the duo's recently purchased Atlanta recording facility Stankonia Studios, which allowed for fewer time and recording constraints, and featured production work from Earthtone III and Organized Noize.
The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse is the seventh studio album by American rapper Jay-Z. It was released on November 12, 2002, by Roc-A-Fella Records and Island Def Jam Music Group. The album serves as a sequel to his sixth album The Blueprint (2001). Parts of the album were later reissued for his album, titled Blueprint 2.1 (2003). The album debuted at number one, shipping with first-week sales of 545,000 units. The album is certified 3x Multi-Platinum by the RIAA. In 2013, Jay-Z cited this album as his second-worst due to an overabundance of songs on the album.
Jay-Z: Unplugged is rapper Jay-Z's 2001 live album that contains some of his past songs with live instruments performed by the hip-hop band the Roots. The album, which sold more than 600,000 copies, was recorded during the taping of an MTV Unplugged 2.0 episode on November 18, 2001.
Nellyville is the second studio album by American rapper and singer Nelly. It was released on June 25, 2002, by Universal Records and Fo' Reel Entertainment. The album's production was handled by Waiel Yaghnam, the Neptunes, Jay E, Trackboyz, Ryan Bowser, and Just Blaze. Two singles from Nellyville, "Hot in Herre" and "Dilemma", both topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for respectively seven and ten weeks. The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who praised the production.
Diamond Princess is the second album by American rapper Trina. It was released on August 27, 2002, through the Atlantic Records and Slip-N-Slide Records. The album debuted at number 14 on the US Billboard 200 and number 5 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
Sweatsuit is a compilation album by American rapper Nelly, released on November 22, 2005. The album consists of tracks from his 2004 simultaneous album releases, Sweat and Suit. The US edition of the compilation also includes four extra tracks, including the single "Grillz" featuring rappers Paul Wall and Ali & Gipp, which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart; along with The Notorious B.I.G. single "Nasty Girl", "Tired" featuring Avery Storm, and "Fly Away" from the soundtrack of the 2005 film The Longest Yard.
Thugs Are Us is the fourth studio album by American rapper Trick Daddy. It was released on March 20, 2001 via Slip-N-Slide/Atlantic Records. Production was handled by Righteous Funk Boogie, The Committee, Black Mob Group, Jim Jonsin, J-Roc, Mr. Charlie, Roc, Saint Benson, and Styles, with Ted Lucas serving as executive producer. It features guest appearances from Duece Poppito, Tre+6, JoVaughn "J.V." Clark, Trina, Society, Kase and Migraine.
Broken Silence is the third studio album by American rapper Foxy Brown, released on July 17, 2001, by Violator and Ill Na Na Entertainment; distributed under Def Jam Recordings. The album debuted at number five on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 131,000 copies. It has been certified gold by the RIAA for shipments of 500,000 copies in the United States. This is Foxy's only album to be released in the 2000s, and remains her most recent release.
Jason Lee Epperson is an American record producer and DJ from St. Louis, Missouri. He first became known as the producer of hometown native Nelly's 2000 debut album Country Grammar, which received diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America. Thereafter, he produced heavily for Nelly and his collaborators, signing to his record label, Derrty Entertainment as an in-house producer. He has produced songs for other artists including Murphy Lee, St. Lunatics, Justin Timberlake, E-40, Cedric the Entertainer, Lil Wayne, Ron Isley, Three 6 Mafia, and Hilary Duff. Epperson's style is characterized by hip hop mixed with soul, R&B, and pop music. Billboard magazine, in its December 2000 issue, listed Epperson at number sixteen on its "Top 100 Producers" list, as well as number nineteen on its "Top 100 R&B/Hip Hop Producers of 2000" list. He's received a Grammy Award nomination.
New Jack City II is the sixth studio album by American rapper Bow Wow. It was released on March 31, 2009 through LBW Entertainment and Columbia Records. This is Bow Wow's first album to be released on his new label LBW Entertainment, and his first album to be receiving a parental advisory label for Adult Language. The production on the album was handled by Jermaine Dupri, LRoc, Nitti, T-Pain and Swizz Beatz among others. The album also features guest appearances from Swizz Beatz, Jermaine Dupri, Nelly, Trey Songz, T-Pain, Ron Browz, Dondria and T.I.
The Nutty Professor Soundtrack is the soundtrack to Tom Shadyac's 1996 comedy film The Nutty Professor. It was released in June 1996 via Def Jam Recordings, and contained hip hop and R&B music.
Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack Brown Sugar is the soundtrack to Rick Famuyiwa's 2002 film Brown Sugar. It was released on September 24, 2002 through MCA Records, and consists of hip hop and R&B music. The album peaked at number 16 on the Billboard 200, at number 2 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, at number 1 on the Top Soundtracks, and was placed at number 40 on Pitchfork's the 50 Best Movie Soundtracks of All Time.
Paid in Full is the soundtrack album to the 2002 film, Paid in Full. It was released on October 25, 2002, by Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. The soundtrack was released on two compact discs. The first disc was a collection of old school hip hop and R&B songs, while the second was a collection of new songs recorded by Roc-A-Fella. The album peaked at number 53 on the Billboard 200, number 10 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and number 2 on the Top Soundtracks chart.
The Source Presents: Hip Hop Hits, Volume 6 is the sixth annual music compilation album to be contributed by The Source magazine. Released December 10, 2002, and distributed by Def Jam Recordings, Hip Hop Hits Volume 6 features eighteen hip hop and rap hits. It went to number 31 on the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart and number 35 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
"Roc the Mic" is the first single to be released from the soundtrack of the 2002 crime film State Property and was performed by Beanie Sigel and Freeway. The single was so far the highest-charting single from both rappers making it to #55 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Mic Tyson is the third solo studio album by American rapper Sean Price. It was released on October 30, 2012, through Duck Down Records. Production was handled by Alchemist, Beat Butcha, Eric G, Evidence, 9th Wonder, AMP, Khrysis and Wool. It features guest appearances from Buckshot, Ill Bill, Pharoahe Monch, Pumpkinhead, Realm Reality, Ruste Juxx, Torae, Ike Eyes and Freddie Gibbs.
"Without Me" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his fourth studio album The Eminem Show (2002). "Without Me" was released on May 15, 2002, as the lead single from the album, and re-released on his greatest hits compilation album Curtain Call: The Hits (2005). "Without Me" is one of Eminem's most successful singles, reaching number two on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and number one in fifteen countries.
