Andre Romell Young, known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and was the president of Death Row Records. Dr. Dre began his career as a member of the World Class Wreckin' Cru in 1985 and later found fame with the gangsta rap group N.W.A. The group popularized explicit lyrics in hip hop to detail the violence of street life. During the early 1990s, Dre was credited as a key figure in the crafting and popularization of West Coast G-funk, a subgenre of hip hop characterized by a synthesizer foundation and slow, heavy beats.
The Eminem Show is the fourth studio album by American rapper Eminem. After it had originally scheduled for release on June 4, 2002, the album was released nine days earlier on May 26, 2002, through Aftermath Entertainment, Shady Records, and Interscope Records due to pirating and bootlegging of it. The album saw Eminem take a substantially more predominant production role; most of it was self-produced, with his longtime collaborator Jeff Bass. It features guest appearances from Obie Trice, D12, Dr. Dre, Nate Dogg, Dina Rae and Eminem's daughter Hailie Jade Scott-Mathers.
The Marshall Mathers LP is the third studio album by American rapper Eminem, released on May 23, 2000, by Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. The album was produced mostly by Dr. Dre and Eminem, along with the 45 King, the Bass Brothers, and Mel-Man. Recorded over a two-month period in several studios around Detroit, the album features more introspective lyricism, including Eminem's thoughts on his rise from rags to riches, the criticism of his music, and his estrangement from his family and wife. A transgressive work, it incorporates horrorcore and hardcore hip hop, while also featuring satirical songs. The album includes samples or appearances by Dido, RBX, Sticky Fingaz, Bizarre, Snoop Dogg, Xzibit, Nate Dogg, and D12.
The Slim Shady LP is the second studio album and major label debut by American rapper Eminem. It was released on February 23, 1999, by Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. Recorded in Ferndale, Michigan following Eminem's recruitment by Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine, the album features production from Dr. Dre, the Bass Brothers, and Eminem himself.
Grits Sandwiches for Breakfast is the debut studio album by American rapper Kid Rock. Released on November 27, 1990, by Jive Records, the album is marked by a straightforward hip hop music style, in sharp contrast to the largely rock-oriented sound of his later albums.
Esham Attica Smith, known mononymously as Esham, is an American rapper from Detroit, Michigan. Emerging as one of the first ever hip hop artists from Detroit, Esham released his debut studio album, Boomin' Words from Hell, in 1989 at the age of 16. Since then, he has gone on to release 15 studio albums in total and is best known as a representative of the hip hop subgenre horrorcore. In 1992, he co-founded the horrorcore group Natas. He and his brother James Smith founded and ran the Detroit hip hop label Reel Life Productions.
Devil's Night is the debut studio album by American hip-hop supergroup D12. It was released on June 19, 2001, by Shady Records and Interscope Records. It was also the first album to be released on Shady Records, although the label had been active since 1999. Production was primarily handled by Eminem and Dr. Dre, with contributions by Mr. Porter, DJ Head, and Jeff Bass. The album features guest appearances by Obie Trice, Truth Hurts, and Dina Rae.
The People vs. is the debut solo studio album by American rapper Trick Trick. It was released on December 27, 2005 via WonderBoy Entertainment/Motown. Recording sessions took place at Batcave, at 54 Sound in Detroit, at X-Labs, at Doppler Studios in Atlanta, at Area 51, Brooklyn, and at Studio 612 in Bealeton, Virginia. Production was handled by Eminem, Mr. Porter, Jazze Pha and Trick Trick himself. It features guest appearances from his brother and Goon Sqwad bandmate Diezel, one-half of D12 members, Miz Korona, Obie Trice and Jazze Pha. The album peaked at number 115 on the Billboard 200. It spawned one single and music video for "Welcome 2 Detroit".
Marshall Bruce Mathers III, known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in Middle America and is frequently mentioned among the greatest rappers of all time. Eminem's global success and acclaimed works are widely regarded as having broken racial barriers for 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 for many artists of various genres.
Lorenzo Dechalus, known professionally as Lord Jamar is an American rapper, DJ, record producer, actor and podcaster. He is a founding member of the hip hop group Brand Nubian, which was formed in 1989. In 1996, he discovered Dead Prez and got them signed to Loud Records.
Freddie Beauregard, professionally known by his stage name Paradime, is an American rapper and producer from Detroit, Michigan.
"Welcome 2 Detroit" is a song by American rappers Trick Trick and Eminem. It was released on November 8, 2005 via Motown/Universal Music Group as the lead single from Trick Trick's debut solo studio album The People vs. written by Trick Trick, Eminem and Luis Resto, it was recorded at Em's home recording studio, at 54 Sound Studios, and at Batcave. Production was handled by Eminem with additional production from Resto. The single peaked at number 100 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Tongues is the eighth studio album by American rapper Esham. It was released in 2001 via Gothom, marking the return of Esham's old horror/devil sound. It features guest appearances from Natas, The Dayton Family, Kool Keith, Violent J of Insane Clown Posse, Brittany Hurd, Heather Hunter, Jill O'Neil, Mujahid and Santos. The album peaked at #195 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the United States.
LGBT representations in hip hop music have existed since the birth of the genre even while enduring blatant discrimination. Due to its adjacency to Disco, the earliest days of hip hop had a close relation to LGBT subcultures, and multiple LGBT DJs have played a role in popularizing hip hop. Despite this early involvement, hip hop has long been portrayed as one of the least LGBT-friendly genres of music, with a significant body of the genre containing homophobic views and anti-gay lyrics, with mainstream artists such as Eminem and Tyler, the Creator having used homophobia in their lyrics. Attitudes towards homosexuality in hip hop culture have historically been negative, with slang that uses homosexuality as a punchline such as "sus", "no homo", and "pause" being heard in hip hop lyrics from some of the industry's biggest artists. Since the early 2000s there has been a flourishing community of LGBTQ+ hip hop artists, activists, and performers breaking barriers in the mainstream music industry.
Pink Friday is the debut studio album by rapper Nicki Minaj. It was released on November 22, 2010, by Young Money, Cash Money and Universal Motown. After signing a recording contract with Young Money Entertainment in 2009, Minaj began planning the album that same year and work continued into 2010. Minaj enlisted a variety of producers whose efforts resulted in a primarily hip hop and pop record, which sees additional influences from R&B. The album features guest vocals from Eminem, Rihanna, Drake, will.i.am, Kanye West and Natasha Bedingfield.
Revenge of the Barracuda is the fourth solo studio album by American rapper WC. It was released on March 8, 2011 via eOne. Production was handled by Hallway Productionz, Jahzilla, EQ, Fredwreck, Jiggolo, THX and Trick-Trick. It features guest appearances from Young Maylay, Bad Lucc, Daz Dillinger, Ice Cube, Juvenile, Kokane, Kurupt, Soopafly and Traci Nelson.
Brian Harmon, better known by his stage name Champtown, is an American rapper, disc jockey, film director and teacher from Detroit, Michigan. Founder of the Straight Jacket independent record label, Champtown is known for helping establish the careers of a number of Detroit hip hop artists, including Kid Rock. He has also worked with Ice-T, Rev Run, Public Enemy and Uncle Kracker. He produced a documentary film, The Untold Story of Detroit Hip Hop, which featured interviews with notable Detroit rappers.
Christian Anthony Mathis, better known by his stage name Trick Trick, is an American rapper and record producer from Detroit. He is a member of the hip hop group Goon Sqwad.
Marvin Eugene O'Neal, professionally known by his stage name Marv Won, is an American rapper and record producer from east side Detroit, Michigan. He is a member of underground hip hop group the Fat Killahz and rap duo Twin Towers. In 2021, he received a Detroit Music Award nomination for Outstanding Rap MC at the 30th Detroit Music Awards.
Kamikaze is the tenth studio album by American rapper Eminem, released on August 31, 2018, through Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment, and Interscope Records. The album was released with no prior announcement. It features guest appearances from Joyner Lucas, Royce da 5'9", Jessie Reyez, and uncredited vocals by Justin Vernon from the band Bon Iver. Eminem, credited as Slim Shady, and Dr. Dre served as executive producers, while production was handled by Eminem himself alongside a variety of producers such as Boi-1da, Tay Keith, Ronny J, Mike Will Made It, frequent collaborator Luis Resto, and others.
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