Stevland Hardaway Morris, known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include R&B, pop, soul, gospel, funk, and jazz. A virtual one-man band, Wonder's use of synthesizers and other electronic musical instruments during the 1970s reshaped the conventions of contemporary R&B. He also helped drive such genres into the album era, crafting his LPs as cohesive and consistent, in addition to socially conscious statements with complex compositions. Blind since shortly after his birth, Wonder was a child prodigy who signed with Motown's Tamla label at the age of 11, where he was given the professional name Little Stevie Wonder.
John David Jackson, better known by his stage name Fabolous, is an American rapper. Raised in Brooklyn, he first gained recognition for his ability upon performing live on DJ Clue's Hot 97 radio show. Jackson then signed to Clue's record label, Desert Storm Records in a joint venture with Elektra Records. He first gained mainstream prominence for his debut studio album Ghetto Fabolous (2001), which spawned the hit singles "Can't Deny It" and "Young'n ." His second album, Street Dreams (2003) was further commercially oriented and supported by the singles "Can't Let You Go" and "Into You" —both of which peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100.
Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is an American songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and arranger. He has co-written and co-produced over 90 hit singles with multiple artists and albums his songs have appeared on have sold over 250 million copies. In 2020, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Raymond Leon Scott, better known by his stage name Benzino, is an American urban media proprietor, television personality, rapper and record producer. Benzino produced records and co-owned The Source magazine.
Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., better known by the stage names T.I. and Tip, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Harris is known as one of the pioneers of the hip hop subgenre trap music, along with fellow Atlanta-based rappers Jeezy and Gucci Mane. Harris first became aquainted with local music executive Kawan "KP" Prather, and joined his company Ghet-O-Vision Entertainment by the late 1990s. He was led to sign his first major-label record deal in 1999 with its parent company LaFace Records, an imprint of Arista Records. His debut studio album, I'm Serious (2001) was met with lukewarm commercial reception and became his only release with the label. He then signed with Atlantic Records, where he soon reached his mainstream breakthrough and co-founded his own label imprint, Grand Hustle Records by 2003.
"Like Toy Soldiers" is a song by American rapper Eminem, from his fifth album Encore (2004). The song received positive reviews from music critics, and peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "Like Toy Soldiers" topped the charts in the United Kingdom, and peaked within the top ten of the charts in 12 countries, including Australia, Denmark, Germany, and New Zealand. The song samples the 1989 song "Toy Soldiers" by Martika. It is the fourth single from the album. The single would appear on the Curtain Call: The Hits compilation released in 2005.
Steven Aaron Jordan is an American DJ, record producer, and television personality. As part of the Bad Boy Records production team the Hitmen, Jordan won a Grammy Award for his work on Puff Daddy's debut album No Way Out (1997). Throughout the late 1990s, Jordan produced for a number of artists including Mariah Carey, Tevin Campbell, The Notorious B.I.G., 112, Jodeci, Faith Evans, Jay-Z, and Eve.
Lo-fi is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate choice. The standards of sound quality (fidelity) and music production have evolved over the decades, meaning that some older examples of lo-fi may not have been originally recognized as such. Lo-fi began to be recognized as a style of popular music in the 1990s, when it became alternately referred to as DIY music. Some subsets of lo-fi music have become popular for their perceived nostalgic and/or relaxing qualities, which originate from the imperfections that define the genre.
Marshall Bruce Mathers III, known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in Middle America and is widely regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time. His global success is considered to have broken racial barriers to the acceptance of white rappers in popular music. While much of his transgressive work during the late 1990s and early 2000s made him a controversial figure, he came to be a representation of popular angst of the American underclass and has been cited as an influence by and upon many artists working in various genres.
Leshan Lewis, professionally known by his pseudonym L.E.S., is an American DJ and record producer commonly associated with New York rapper Nas, with whom he grew up in the Queensbridge housing project. His first production credit landed on Nas' popular song "Life's a Bitch" from Illmatic album in 1994. The following year saw him producing his first charted single, AZ's "Sugar Hill" from Doe or Die. Since the mid-90's, Lewis has produced songs for hip hop acts such as Fat Joe, Shyheim, Mobb Deep, Royal Flush, LL Cool J, Big Pun, Capone-N-Noreaga, MC Lyte, Flipmode Squad, Rahzel, Benzino, Cassidy and Cormega, as well as R&B singer Joe, and German rappers Kool Savas and Azad.
Arch Nemesis is the third solo studio album by American rapper and record producer Benzino. It was released independently on February 22, 2005 via ZNO Records. Production was handled mostly by Benzino's production team Hangmen 3, as well as Reefa, Diego Morales, Gizz, L.E.S., M. Brown, Nomad, Scott Storch, S. Joyner, StreetRunner, the Beat Brokers, Troy Bell and Vincent Herbert. It features guest appearances from the Untouchables, 2Pac, 3 Down, Ekko, Faheim, Freddie Foxxx, Gambino, Huddy, Lil' Jon, Miss Lilli, Scarface, Yaga & Mackie. The album peaked at number 117 on the Billboard 200, number 39 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, number 19 on the Rap Albums and number 12 on the Independent Albums.
The Almighty RSO was an American hip hop group from Boston, Massachusetts. Members included MCs E-Devious, Ray Dog, Tony Rhome and DJ Deff Jeff.
"What Up, What's Haapnin'" is a song by American rapper T.I., released on September 2, 2008, as the fifth single from his sixth studio album Paper Trail (2008). The song, which was produced by high-profile American record producer Drumma Boy, is a diss track directed towards fellow Atlanta-based rapper Shawty Lo, in response to his multiple accusations that T.I. is not from his hometown of Bankhead. The song peaked at 84 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at number 97 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, when it first leaked online. The video had made its way to iTunes, BET's 106 & Park, and MTV.
Carlos Rico Walker, better known as Shawty Lo, was an American rapper from Atlanta, Georgia.
Dorwin Demarcus Dorrough, known professionally as Dorrough Music, is an American rapper and songwriter. His singles include "Walk That Walk", "Get Big", "Ice Cream Paint Job", and "Beat Up the Block". He has produced a series of 6 mixtapes and 2 studio albums.
"Beamer, Benz, or Bentley" is the first official single from Lloyd Banks' third album H.F.M. 2 , which was released on November 23, 2010. The song was released as a digital download on February 9, 2010. It was added to KAMP-FM in Los Angeles in four days from release.
Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta is the second installment of the Love & Hip Hop reality television franchise. It premiered June 18, 2012, on VH1, and chronicles the lives of several people in Atlanta involved with hip hop music. The show features appearances from notable figures associated with Southern hip hop.
The HBK Gang is an American hip-hop collective based in San Francisco Bay Area. Founded by Iamsu!, Chief, Skipper, and P-Lo in 2008, members also include singer Kehlani and rapper-producers Sage the Gemini, IsThatCJ, Rossi, Dave Steezy, Jay Ant, and Kool John. After contributing to various mixtapes, including Iamsu's Kilt II, in August 2013, the group released their debut mixtape, Gang Forever. HBK Gang Records is the name of an associated independent record label.
Coi Leray Collins is an American rapper and singer from Hackensack, New Jersey. The daughter of rapper and media executive Benzino, she began her musical career in 2018 with the release of her debut mixtape, Everythingcoz. She signed with Karriem Mack's 1801 Records, in a joint venture with Uptown and Republic Records to release her second mixtape EC2 (2019) and debut extended play, Now or Never (2020). In 2021, the Lil Durk remix of her song "No More Parties" peaked within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 and received double platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
