Richard Martin Lloyd Walters, better known as Slick Rick, is an English-American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence as part of Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew in the mid-1980s. Their songs "The Show" and "La Di Da Di" are considered early hip hop classics. "La Di Da Di" is one of the most sampled songs in history.
Reginald Noble, better known by his stage name Redman, is an American rapper, DJ, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame in the early 1990s as an artist on the Def Jam label.
Erick Sermon is an American rapper and producer. He is best known as one-third—alongside PMD & DJ Scratch—of 1980s/1990s hip hop group EPMD and for his production work.
Def Jam Recordings is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop.
Ernest Dion Wilson, professionally known as No I.D., is an American record producer, DJ and songwriter from Chicago, Illinois. He is also a former recording artist, having released his only studio album, Accept Your Own and Be Yourself (1997) through Relativity Records. He is best known for his early work with Chicago-based rapper Common, as well as his career mentorship of rappers Kanye West, J. Cole and Logic. Wilson first gained success for his role as an in-house producer for Jermaine Dupri's So So Def Recordings—leading to largely uncredited work on Dupri's productions "My Boo" by Usher, "Outta My System" and "Let Me Hold You" by Bow Wow—before reaching commercial success with his solo productions. He worked with Jay-Z to produce his singles "Run This Town" and "Holy Grail,". He also worked with Kanye West to produce "Heartless," and Drake to produce "Find Your Love" and "Nonstop"—each have peaked within the top five of the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Hip Hop Is Dead is the eighth studio album by American rapper Nas, released December 19, 2006, on Def Jam Recordings. His first album for the label, it was co-financed by Nas's previous label, Columbia Records, which once distributed for Def Jam. The album's title was inspired by Nas's view of the music industry and the state of hip hop music at the time. The album features appearances from Nas's then-wife Kelis, Def Jam label-mates Kanye West, Jay-Z, and Chrisette Michele, as well as will.i.am, Snoop Dogg, and The Game, among others.
Muddy Waters is the third studio album by American rapper Redman. It was released on December 10, 1996, through Def Jam Recordings. Recording sessions took place at Mirror Image and Rockin' Reel Recording Studios in New York City. Production was handled by Erick Sermon, who also served as executive producer, Rockwilder, Jerry Duplessis, Pras, Ty Fyffe, and Redman himself. It features guest appearances from Erick Sermon, Jamal, Keith Murray, K-Solo, Method Man, Napalm and Rockwilder. The album debuted at number 12 on the Billboard 200 and topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart in the United States. It was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on February 12, 1997 for exceeding shipments of 500,000 copies. The album spawned three charted singles: "It's Like That", "Whateva Man" and "Pick It Up" and a promotional single "Smoke Buddah".
Curtis is the third studio album by American rapper 50 Cent. It was released September 11, 2007, by Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment, G-Unit Records, Interscope Records, and Universal Music Group. The album features production from Dr. Dre, Eminem, and Timbaland, among others. Music writers have noted that 50 Cent divides between "hard" and "soft" songs on the album. The album went through many changes in the lead up to its release and was heavily anticipated after the success of 50 Cent's two prior albums, Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003) and The Massacre (2005).
Keenon Dequan Ray Jackson, known professionally as YG, is an American rapper from Compton, California. He began his recording career in 2008, and released his debut mixtape, 4Fingaz and its follow up, The Real 4Fingaz both in the following year. The latter gained recognition for its local hit song "Toot It and Boot It", which entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 67 and received platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). He signed a recording contract with Def Jam Recordings in October 2009, which entered joint-venture with Atlanta-based rapper Jeezy's record label, CTE World in 2013.
Nicholaus Joseph Williams, better known by his stage name Trinidad James, is a Trinidadian-American rapper and songwriter. In December 2012, he signed a recording contract with Def Jam Recordings and released his debut single, "All Gold Everything". The song reached number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100, received platinum certification by the RIAA, and spawned a remix featuring fellow Georgia-based rappers T.I., Jeezy and 2 Chainz. He was dropped from the label in 2014 after failing to promptly record a debut album.
Mass Appeal Records is an American independent record label founded in 2014. The label is the music division of the Mass Appeal Media Group. In May 2014, it was announced that American rapper Nas was launching an indie label with Mass Appeal with Peter Bittenbender of company Decon. The label's current roster includes artists such as: Nas, DJ Shadow, Mannie Fresh, Dave East, Fashawn, Black Milk, and Keyon Harrold.
Richard Welton Morales Jr., better known by his stage name Gunplay, is an American rapper from Carol City, Florida. He is best known for his association with fellow Florida-based rapper Rick Ross, with whom he formed the hip hop group Triple C's in 2005, along with rappers Torch and Young Breed. Following their debut album, Custom Cars & Cycles (2009), Morales signed a solo recording contract with Ross' Maybach Music Group, which entered a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings in July 2012. His debut studio album, Living Legend (2015), narrowly entered the Billboard 200 and served as his only release on a major label.
Durk Derrick Banks, known professionally as Lil Durk, is an American rapper from Chicago, Illinois. He first garnered a regional following with the release of his Signed to the Streets mixtape series (2013–2014), which led to his signing of a recording contract from Def Jam Recordings. The label released his debut studio album, Remember My Name (2015) and its follow up, Lil Durk 2X (2016) to moderate commercial reception before parting ways with the artist in 2018.
Cydel Charles Young, known professionally as CyHi the Prynce, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter from Stone Mountain, Georgia. He signed his first major-label recording contract with Akon's Konvict Muzik, in a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings in 2009. The following year, he gained mainstream attention for his guest appearance on Kanye West's 2010 song "So Appalled" from his fifth album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010). Young was thereafter credited with extensive songwriting work for West's following releases, resulting in five Grammy Award nominations for Best Rap Song, as well as one further nomination for his work on Travis Scott's 2018 single "Sicko Mode."
Sanju Jaison, better known by his stage name San Jaimt, is an Indian rapper, songwriter and a music producer. He has worked in Malayalam cinema projects and is one of the early rappers to come out of Kerala. He is known for his independent singles "We're Sorry" (2013),"Thee" (2018),"Win" (2017), "These Wings" (2017) and "Walk Alone(2017)"
Street Academics is an Indian alternative hip-hop group from Kerala, known for their songs blending malayalam, english and tamil lyrics. The collective of rappers based out of various districts from their home state are noted for emphasizing on contemporary and philosophical themes ranging from social realism to dystopian fantasy. They collaborate with projects like Mappila Lahala and Palakkadan Dystopia, to release songs that focus on having cultural discussions set in avant-garde backdrops.
Febin Joseph better known by his stage name Fejo, is an Indian rapper and songwriter from Kerala who started his solo career professionally in 2009. Rapping in Malayalam, Fejo has worked with music composers including Raftaar, Sushin Shyam, Jakes Bejoy, Rahul Raj, Girish Nakod. He is considered one of the pioneers of Malayalam Rap, noted for his socio political themes & commercially performing tracks.
Thallumaala is a 2022 Indian Malayalam-language action film directed by Khalid Rahman, produced by Ashiq Usman and written by Muhsin Parari and Ashraf Hamza. The film stars Tovino Thomas, Kalyani Priyadarshan and Shine Tom Chacko. The music was composed by Vishnu Vijay, while the editing and cinematography were done by Nishadh Yusuf and Jimshi Khalid.
Kerala hip hop is a genre of popular music developed in Kerala starting in 2000. The term has also come to be used as an alternative for rap music, and even pop music, which involves rappers of South Asian origins.
Mohammed Fasil,, known professionally as Dabzee, is an Indian rapper and songwriter from Kerala. He is well known for his film debut as a rapper with the song "Manavaalan Thug" from the movie Thallumaala.
