The Mighty Underdogs | |
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Origin | San Francisco Bay Area, California, U.S. |
Genres | Hip hop |
Years active | 2008–present |
Labels | Definitive Jux |
Members |
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The Mighty Underdogs is an American hip hop supergroup from the San Francisco Bay Area. [1] It consists of rappers Gift of Gab and Lateef the Truthspeaker and producer Headnodic. [2] [3]
The Mighty Underdogs was formed when Lateef the Truthspeaker, planning to make his own solo album, listened to some of Headnodic-produced tracks, rapped a verse for each, and sent them over to Gift of Gab. [4]
The group released The Prelude EP in March 2008. [5] In 2010, XXL included it on the "100 Essential Rap EPs" list. [6]
Their full-length studio album, Droppin' Science Fiction , was released on Definitive Jux in October 2008. [7] [8] [9] [10] It featured contributions from Chali 2na, DJ Shadow, Lyrics Born, and MF Doom, [11] as well as Mr. Lif, Akrobatik, Tash, Julian Marley, and Damian Marley. [12]
Burnin' is the sixth album by Jamaican reggae band Bob Marley and the Wailers, released in October 1973. It was written mostly by Bob Marley and recorded and produced by Bob Marley and the Wailers in Jamaica, and then mixed and overdubbed by Chris Blackwell in London. It contains the song "I Shot The Sheriff", which was later covered by Eric Clapton. It was the last album before Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer departed for solo careers. A commercial and critical success in the United States, Burnin' was certified Gold and later added to the National Recording Registry, with the Library of Congress deeming it historically and culturally significant.
Jaime Meline, better known by the stage name El-P, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Starting his career as a member of Company Flow, he has been a driving force in alternative hip hop since the early 1990s, producing for rappers including Aesop Rock, Cage, and Mr. Lif. He was a member of The Weathermen and is the co-founder, owner, and CEO of the Definitive Jux record label.
Ian Matthias Bavitz, better known by his stage name Aesop Rock, is an American rapper and producer residing in Portland, Oregon. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip hop acts that emerged during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was signed to El-P's Definitive Jux label until it went on hiatus in 2010. In a 2010 retrospective, betterPropaganda ranked him at number 19 at the Top 100 Artists of the Decade.
King is a website geared toward African-American and urban male audiences. It features articles about hip-hop and R&B as well as sports and fashion. The magazine is published by Townsquare Media and was a spinoff from XXL. The magazine was started in 2002. It ceased publication on March 31, 2009, citing failing ad sales as a result of the poor economy and plans to release monthly installments soon. It resumed publication, this time as a quarterly magazine, in late 2009. It was later suspended again, and the website was sold by Harris Publications to Townsquare Media in 2014.
Cannibal Ox is an American hip hop duo from Harlem, New York, United States. It consists of Vast Aire and Vordul Mega, often accompanied by DJ Cip-One.
Timothy Jerome Parker, better known by his stage name Gift of Gab, was an American rapper best known for performing in the Bay Area hip hop duo Blackalicious along with DJ Chief Xcel. He was also a member of Quannum Projects, a Bay Area hip hop crew and record label, and performed and recorded as a solo artist.
Emergency Rations is the second EP by American rapper Mr. Lif, released on June 25, 2002, by Definitive Jux. It was recorded at Bandulero Sound in Berlin, Boston Butta Beats in Boston, and The Pool Room in New York City.
I Phantom is the debut studio album by American rapper Mr. Lif. It was produced mostly by alternative hip hop artist El-P, among others, at Boston Butta Beats in Boston and the New York City-based Steel Acres, The Danger Room, and Def Jux Studios. Mr. Lif composed I Phantom as a concept album about the working life of an African American who is pressured into pursuing the dubious rewards of the American dream.
Christian Palko, better known by his stage name Cage, is an American rapper and actor from Middletown, Orange County, New York. He spent most of his career on the labels Definitive Jux and Eastern Conference. He has released six solo albums, in addition to two compilation albums and two extended plays.
Charles Stewart, better known as Chali 2na, is an American painter and rapper, associated with the groups Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli. He is known for his bass-baritone and quick delivery rapping style.
Lateef Daumont, better known by his stage name Lateef the Truthspeaker, or mononymously as Lateef, is a hip hop artist from Oakland, California. He is a member of several hip hop groups such as Latyrx, Lateef and the Chief, and the Mighty Underdogs. He was one of the founding members of the Solesides collective, which became Quannum Projects.
Robert Smith, better known by his stage name Rob Sonic, is an American rapper and record producer from the Bronx, New York. He has been a member of the groups Sonic Sum and Hail Mary Mallon. He is a founder of the record label Skypimps Music.
The Cold Vein is the debut studio album by American hip hop duo Cannibal Ox. It was produced by El-P and released on his Definitive Jux label on May 15, 2001. The album has since been reissued by iHipHop Distribution.
Peter Chung, better known by his stage name Cool Calm Pete, is a Korean American rapper and producer from Seoul, Korea, who is currently based in Queens, New York. Cool Calm Pete has been profiled in major publications such as URB and XXL. He is a founding member of the hip hop trio Babbletron.
Eleventh Hour is the fifth solo studio album by American hip hop musician Del the Funky Homosapien. It was announced and partially recorded in 2004, but didn't come out until March 11, 2008, when it was released by Definitive Jux. The album is produced by Del himself with additional production from Opio, KU, and J-Zone. It debuted at number 122 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 5,810 copies in its first week.
The following is an incomplete discography for Definitive Jux, an independent hip hop record label based in New York City, United States. Artists such as El-P, Aesop Rock, Cannibal Ox, Mr. Lif, RJD2, and Cage have released records through Definitive Jux.
How to Rap: The Art & Science of the Hip-Hop MC is a book on hip hop music and rapping by Paul Edwards. It is compiled from interviews with 104 notable rappers who provide insights into how they write and perform their lyrics.
Droppin' Science Fiction is the first studio album by The Mighty Underdogs, an American hip hop group consisting of producer Headnodic and rappers Lateef the Truthspeaker and Gift of Gab. It was released by Definitive Jux on October 14, 2008. It peaked at number 50 on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart.
Blackalicious was an American hip-hop duo from Sacramento, California, made up of rapper Gift of Gab and DJ/producer Chief Xcel. They are noted for Gift of Gab's often tongue-twisting, multisyllabic, complex rhymes and Chief Xcel's soulful production. The duo released four full-length albums: Nia in 1999, Blazing Arrow in 2002, The Craft in 2005, and Imani Vol. 1 in 2015. Gift of Gab died in June 2021.
Tsutomu "Tom" Shimura, better known by his stage name Lyrics Born, is a Japanese-American rapper, singer, and producer. He is one half of the duo Latyrx with Lateef the Truthspeaker.