G-funk, short for gangsta funk, is a sub-genre of gangsta rap that emerged from the West Coast scene in the early 1990s. The genre was heavily influenced by the synthesizer-heavy 1970s funk sound of Parliament-Funkadelic, often incorporated through samples or re-recordings. It was represented by commercially successful albums such as Dr. Dre's The Chronic (1992) and Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle (1993).
Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde is the debut album by American hip hop collective The Pharcyde, released on November 24, 1992, through the Delicious Vinyl and EastWest labels. The album was produced by former group member J-Swift, and features only one guest appearance, provided by little-known Los Angeles rapper Bucwheed. In the years after its release, Bizarre Ride has been hailed by music critics and alternative hip hop fans, as a classic hip hop album along with Souls of Mischief's 93 'til Infinity, and has appeared in numerous publications' "best albums" lists.
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.
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.
The Score is the second and final studio album by the hip hop trio Fugees, released worldwide on February 13, 1996, on Columbia Records. The album features a wide range of samples and instrumentation, with many aspects of alternative hip hop that would come to dominate the hip-hop music scene in the mid- to late-1990s. Primarily, The Score's production was handled by Fugees themselves, Jerry Duplessis and Warren Riker, with additional production from Salaam Remi, John Forté, Diamond D, and Shawn King. The album's guest verses are from Outsidaz members Rah Digga, Young Zee, and Pacewon, as well as John Forté, and Diamond D. Most versions of the album feature four bonus tracks, including three remixes of "Fu-Gee-La", and a short acoustic Wyclef Jean solo track entitled "Mista Mista".
Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous is the debut studio album by American rapper Big L, and the only to be released during his lifetime. It was released on March 28, 1995, by Columbia Records. Recording sessions took place primarily at Powerplay Studios in Queens, New York, in mid-to-late 1994. Production was handled by Buckwild, Lord Finesse, Showbiz and Craig Boogie. The album title is a play on the television series, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
The Diggin' in the Crates Crew, commonly known as D.I.T.C., is an American hip hop collective formed in 1992 in New York City. The collective's name derives from the act of seeking out records to sample for production. The collective is composed of Lord Finesse, Diamond D, Big L, O.C., Fat Joe, Buckwild, Showbiz and A.G. Its members have achieved substantial and consistent recognition in underground rap circles, having often collaborated with undiscovered talents and underground hip hop artists alongside the most commercial of rappers.
Lord Finesse is an American rapper and hip-hop record producer from The Bronx, New York best known as the leader of the D.I.T.C. crew. About.com ranked him number 29 on its list of the Top-50 Hip-Hop Producers.
The Infamous is the second studio album by the American hip hop duo Mobb Deep. It was released on April 25, 1995, by BMG, RCA Records and Loud Records. The album features guest appearances by Nas, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, and Q-Tip. It was largely produced by group member Havoc, with Q-Tip also contributing production while serving as the mixing engineer. Most of the leftover songs from the album became bonus tracks for Mobb Deep's The Infamous Mobb Deep album (2014).
Joseph Kirkland, better known by his stage name Diamond D, is an American hip hop MC and record producer from The Bronx, New York City, and one of the founding members of the Diggin' in the Crates Crew, abbreviated as D.I.T.C.
"Still D.R.E." is a song by American rapper-producer Dr. Dre, featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was released on November 2, 1999, as the lead single from Dre's multi-platinum second studio album, 2001 (1999).
Joseph Antonio Cartagena, better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper. He began his music career as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.) in 1992, he then embarked on a solo career the following year with his debut studio album, Represent (1993). Cartegena formed the hip hop group Terror Squad and its namesake record label in the late 1990s, through which he signed fellow New York artists including Big Pun, Remy Ma, Tony Sunshine, and Cuban Link, as well as then-unknown producers DJ Khaled and Cool & Dre.
Enta da Stage is the debut album by American East Coast hip hop group Black Moon, released on October 19, 1993, through Nervous Records. The album was produced by Black Moon member DJ Evil Dee along with Mr. Walt of Da Beatminerz. Enta da Stage features the debut of underground hip hop duo Smif-N-Wessun, as well as appearances from Havoc of Mobb Deep and Dru Ha, the co-founder of Duck Down Records.
D.I.T.C. is the debut studio album by American New York-based hip hop collective Diggin' in the Crates Crew. It was released on February 22, 2000 via Tommy Boy Records. It features contributions from all the eight members of the group: Lord Finesse, Showbiz and A.G., Diamond D, Fat Joe, O.C., Buckwild and the late Big L, as well as Big Pun, Milano, Cuban Link, KRS-One, and production from DJ Premier, Amed Harris and Rockwilder. The album peaked at number 141 on the Billboard 200, number 31 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and number 9 on the Independent Albums in the United States.
The discography of American rapper Fat Joe consists of ten studio albums, two collaborative albums, three mixtapes and twenty-two singles, as well as other artists' singles in which Fat Joe did a guest performance. Fat Joe is an American rapper known for his solo work and membership in the rap groups D.I.T.C. and Terror Squad. His first solo album was Represent, released in 1993, followed by Jealous One's Envy in 1995. From 1998 to 2006, he was signed to Atlantic Records, releasing four albums under the label, Don Cartagena in 1998, Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.) in 2001, Loyalty in 2002, and All or Nothing in 2005. Starting in 2006, when his album Me, Myself, & I was released, Fat Joe was signed to Imperial Records, which distributes through Terror Squad Entertainment. His follow-up album was The Elephant in the Room, which was released in 2008; Jealous Ones Still Envy 2 , the sequel to his successful album Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.), was released in 2009.
Ego Trip is an album by the rapper Kurtis Blow, released in 1984 on Mercury Records. The only charting singles were "8 Million Stories", which peaked at 45 on the Hot Black Singles chart, and "Basketball", which peaked at 71 on the Hot 100.
Apache Ain't Shit is the only studio album by American rapper Apache. It was released in 1993 via Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records. Recording sessions took place at Unique Recording Studios in New York. Production was handled by S.I.D. Reynolds, Double J, Diamond D, Large Professor, Q-Tip, The 45 King, and Apache himself, with Benny Medina, Queen Latifah and Sha-Kim serving as executive producers. It features guest appearances from Nikki D, Cee, Collie Weed, Cut Monitor Milo, Double J, Latee, The Jigaboos, The My Dick Posse, Treach and Vin Rock.
"Poor Georgie" is the second single from hip-hop artist MC Lyte's third album Act Like You Know (1991). The song was produced by Ivan 'Doc' Rodriguez, and released on December 12, 1991. The song seeks to convey an anti-addiction message, through the story of George and the dysfunctional relationship MC Lyte has with this individual with self-destructive behaviors. It features a sample of "Georgy Porgy" by rock band Toto.
The discography of the Fugees, an American hip hop trio consisting of rapper/singer Lauryn Hill and rappers Pras Michel and Wyclef Jean, consists of two studio albums, three compilation albums, one remix album and nine singles and nine music videos. After the group formed in the 1980s under the name Tranzlator Crew, they signed to Ruffhouse Records and Columbia Records in 1993; they then changed their name to Fugees – an abbreviation of "refugees", also a reference to Haitian immigrants.
American rapper Megan Thee Stallion has released two studio albums, one compilation album, three mixtapes, three extended plays, thirty-nine singles, and two promotional singles. In her early career, Megan Thee Stallion released the non-commercial, SoundCloud-exclusive mixtapes Rich Ratchet (2016) and Megan Mix (2017). She made her official solo debut by commercially releasing her first professional EP, Make It Hot, on September 18, 2017, which was followed by her second EP Tina Snow on December 21, 2018.
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