Dutch hip hop or Nederhop, is hip hop music created by musicians in the Netherlands and Flanders.
West Coast hip hop is a regional genre of hip hop music that encompasses any artists or music that originate in the West Coast region of the United States. The gangsta rap subgenre of West Coast hip hop began to dominate from a radio play and sales standpoint during the early 1990s with the birth of G-funk and the emergence of Suge Knight and Dr. Dre's Death Row Records.
The Black Eyed Peas is an American musical group, consisting of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Taboo and singer Jessica Reynoso. Originally an alternative hip hop group, they subsequently changed their musical sound to pop and dance-pop music. Although the group was founded in Los Angeles in 1995, it was not until the release of their third album, Elephunk, in 2003, that they achieved high record sales. Since that time, the group has sold an estimated 76 million records, making them one of the world's best-selling groups of all time. As of 2011, according to Nielsen SoundScan, the Black Eyed Peas were the second-best-selling artist/group of all time for downloaded tracks, behind Rihanna, with over 42 million sales.
Salt-N-Pepa are an American hip-hop girl group. The group originally called themselves "Super Nature", when James and Denton released their first single "The Showstopper",in 1985. The group made it's emergence became very significant because they became more popular and well-known in the well male-dominated art industry called hip-hop. As the first all-female hip-hop crew of importance, the group broke down the door and barriers of women in hip-hop. They were one of the first rap artists to cross over into the pop mainstream, laying the groundwork for the music's widespread acceptance in the early 90s.. The group originally consisted of Cheryl James ("Salt"), Sandra Denton ("Pepa"), and Latoya Hanson, before Hanson was replaced with Deidra Roper. They were signed to Next Plateau Records and released their single "Push It" in 1987, which hit number one in 3 countries. Their debut album Hot, Cool & Vicious sold more than a million copies worldwide, making them the first female rap act to achieve gold and platinum-status. Their fourth album Very Necessary sold over 7 million copies worldwide, making it the highest-selling album by a female rap act in history.
Lawrence Muggerud, better known by his stage name DJ Muggs, is an American DJ and producer. He produced tracks for Funkdoobiest, House of Pain, Dizzee Rascal, U2, Depeche Mode, Die Antwoord and more. He is a current member of hip hop group Cypress Hill, trip hop band Cross My Heart Hope To Die, and the leader of Los Angeles art collective Soul Assassins.
Timothy Blair, better known by his stage name Tim Dog, was an American rapper from the Bronx, New York, who rose to notoriety during the early 1990s with his debut LP Penicillin on Wax and the celebrated diss track "Fuck Compton." Tim had already appeared on songs with the Ultramagnetic MCs and went on to form a duo, Ultra, with member Kool Keith. "Fuck Compton" appeared in XXL magazine's "Top 25 Diss Tracks of All Time" and earned Tim Dog critical acclaim from progressive hip-hop producer Blockhead, who said Tim Dog's "The Dog's Gonna Getcha" is "quite possibly the hardest song ever made." Nas references Tim Dog on his track "Where Are They Now?" from his 2006 Album Hip Hop Is Dead, and despite Tim Dog's feud with Dr. Dre, Eminem name-checked him on the track "Ricky Ticky Toc."
Midwest hip hop is a regional genre of hip hop music performed by artists from the Midwestern United States. In contrast with its East Coast, West Coast and Southern counterparts, Midwest hip hop has very few constants in style or production.
"Renegades of Funk" is a song written by Afrika Bambaataa, Arthur Baker, John Miller & John Robie and recorded by Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force. Released in 1983 as a single on the Tommy Boy label, it was also included on the 1986 album Planet Rock: The Album. The song is an eclectic fusion of electronic music and heavy percussion, with politically fused hip hop lyrics that draw a connection between past revolutionaries and bohemians to present day street artists. It was produced and mixed by Arthur Baker and John Robie. Mastering was by Herb Powers Jr.. It was not until 1986 that the song appeared on Planet Rock: The Album.
Ricardo Emmanuel Brown is an American rapper and actor, better known by his stage name Kurupt. His career began in the early 1990s when he was signed to Death Row Records and shortly after formed the duo Tha Dogg Pound with Daz Dillinger. After leaving Death Row in 1996, he signed with A&M and released his debut studio album, Kuruption! in 1998. He is also a member of the hip-hop supergroups The HRSMN and Diirty OGz.
Khnum Muata Ibomu, better known by his stage name stic.man, is an American rapper, activist and author known for his work as one half of the political hip-hop duo Dead Prez with M-1.
Political hip hop is a subgenre of hip hop music that was developed in the 1980s as a way of turning rap music into a call for action and a form of social activism. Inspired by 1970s political preachers such as The Last Poets and musician Gil Scott-Heron, Public Enemy was the first predominately political hip-hop group. It has helped to create a new form of social expression for subordinate groups to speak about their exclusions, injustices and lack of power. Political hip-hop is the use of hip hop music to send political messages to inspire action or to convince the listener of a particular worldview. There is no all-encompassing political hip-hop ideology; rather, there are multiple perspectives that range anywhere from Marxism to the values of the Five Percent Nation.
Johnny Reed McKinzie, Jr.,, better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer from Watts, California. Rock ultimately chose to pursue a career as a rapper over a life of street crime, after Anthony Tiffith, the founder and CEO of the independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE), found Rock in 2005 and signed him to his label. In 2007, alongside TDE, Rock secured a recording contract with Warner Bros. Records and later Asylum Records, but after both mergers fell through, the label signed with Strange Music, after Tech N9ne, Missouri-based rapper and founder of the label, met with them and offered Rock a record deal.
John W. Armour, better known by his stage name Johnny Polygon, is an American hip hop recording artist from Tulsa, Oklahoma. In 2008, Polygon met DJ Green Lantern, who eventually offered him a record deal with his label imprint, Invasion Music Group. In 2009, Polygon released his first project under Invasion Music Group, an extended play (EP) titled Group Hug, which URB Magazine called "risky yet authentic." In 2010, Polygon followed his EP with Rebel Without Applause, his first official mixtape, which included the promotional single, "The Riot Song". The single went on to be featured on MTV, VH1 and Centric, as well as the HBO television series, How to Make it in America.
Kendrick Lamar Duckworth is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most skillful and successful hip hop artists of his generation.
Dominic Ross Hunn, better known by his stage name Dom Kennedy, is an American rapper from Leimert Park, Los Angeles, California. Since 2008, Kennedy has released 5 independent mixtapes, most notably his 2010 "critically acclaimed mixtape" From the Westside with Love. His first commercial studio album From the Westside with Love II was released on iTunes June 28, 2011. Despite it being his iTunes debut, FTWSWL2 received "a top 10 spot on Hip Hop/Rap albums chart during its release week" and was Kennedy's first album associated with The OpM Company, Kennedy's self-established record label. His song "My Type of Party" was ranked by Complex at #43 in the magazine's Best 50 Songs of 2012 list.
Black Hippy is an American hip hop supergroup from South Los Angeles, California, formed in 2008. The group is composed of West Coast rappers Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar and ScHoolboy Q. Black Hippy was constructed after all of its members had signed to Carson-based indie record label, Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE).
Maurice "Verse" Simmonds is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and record executive. Based in Los Angeles, California but raised in the Virgin Islands, he moved to the United States after high school and he formed the production duo the Jugganauts in the 1990s. The duo has since co-written and produced tracks such as "Man Down" by Rihanna and "Who Gon Stop Me" by Kanye West and Jay-Z, both of which charted prominently on Billboard.
Hard Knock TV is a premier multi-platform video production and entertainment company founded in 2005 by Nick Huff Barili. The LA-based media outlet reports on Hip-Hop and urban music, culture, sports and lifestyle news via in-depth video interviews and long-length editorial features.
