Jeffrey Bruce Atkins Sr., better known by his stage name Ja Rule, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. Born and raised in New York City, Ja Rule became known as a leading figure in 2000s hip hop for his blending of gangsta rap with commercially-oriented pop sensibilities. He signed with Irv Gotti's Murder Inc Records, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings to release his debut studio album Venni Vetti Vecci (1999), which spawned his first hit single, "Holla Holla". Ja Rule peaked the Billboard Hot 100 thrice in 2001 with his single "Always on Time" and his guest appearances on Jennifer Lopez's "I'm Real " and "Ain't It Funny". His encompassing singles, "Put It on Me", "Mesmerize", "Livin' It Up" and "Wonderful" have each peaked within the top ten of the chart and spawned from commercially successful album releases.
"In da Club" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent from his debut studio album Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003). Written by 50 Cent alongside producers Dr. Dre and Mike Elizondo, the song, which uses an unconventional off-beat rhythm, was released on January 7, 2003, as the album's lead single and peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming 50 Cent's first number-one single.
Blaque is an American girl group that charted from 1999 to 2004. Outside of the United States, they are known as Blaque Ivory. Their self-titled debut album Blaque sold more than 1 million copies and was certified Platinum. The group's debut included the platinum-selling lead single "808", a second single, "I Do", and the international pop hit "Bring It All to Me". In 1999, Billboard named Blaque the 4th Best New Artist of the year, with "Bring It All to Me" landing at number 30 on the 2000 Year End Chart. In 2002 and 2003, the group released three less successful singles, "Can't Get It Back", "Ugly", and "I'm Good", the latter appearing in the film Honey.
8 Mile: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture is the official soundtrack album to the 2002 film of the same name. The album, performed by various artists, was released by Universal Pictures' then subsidiary Universal Music, through Interscope and Shady Records. It spawned the hit single "Lose Yourself" by Eminem, who also stars in the semi-autobiographical movie.
"Candy Shop" is the second single by rapper 50 Cent from his second commercial album, The Massacre (2005). It features Olivia and was written by 50 Cent and the song's producer, Scott Storch. The single was released through Interscope Records, Eminem's Shady Records, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, and 50 Cent's G-Unit Records.
"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.
"Put You on the Game" is a single by American rapper and West Coast hip hop artist the Game, released as the final single from his debut album, The Documentary. Written by the Game himself and produced by both Timbaland and co-produced by Danja, the song was the album's fifth official single, and it was released on August 30, 2005. This was the first single released by the Game after a beef with former fellow G-Unit member 50 Cent fell apart and after the Game released the mixtape titled You Know What It Is Vol. 3. Also failing to match the popularity of his previous singles, and failing to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, the song peaked at number 96 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song was placed 44th on About.com's Best Hip-Hop Songs of 2005.
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 regarded as among the greatest rappers of all time. His 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 influencing many musical artists. His most successful songs on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 include "The Real Slim Shady", "Without Me", "Lose Yourself", "Not Afraid", "Love the Way You Lie", "The Monster", "Godzilla" and "Houdini".
Get Rich or Die Tryin' is the debut studio album by American rapper 50 Cent. It was released on February 6, 2003, by Interscope Records, Eminem's Shady Records, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, and 50 Cent's G-Unit Records. After signing with Eminem, 50 Cent also worked heavily with Dr. Dre acting as the album's executive producers, who worked to combine the gangsta rap and R&B combo prevalent in New York hip hop. Additional production is provided by Mike Elizondo, Sha Money XL, Mr. Porter, Rockwilder, Dirty Swift, Megahertz, and more.
"Hail Mary" is a song by American rapper Tupac Shakur from his fifth studio album, The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory (1996). It was released after his September 1996 murder under the Makaveli stage name as the album's third single. Hail Mary features rap verses by Kastro, Young Noble and Yaki Kadafi of the Outlawz rap group and vocals from reggae musician Prince Ital Joe. A music video was shot for the song and can be found on the DualDisc of The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory.
"Ha" is a 1998 single by rapper Juvenile, from his third album 400 Degreez. It was produced by Mannie Fresh. This song, along with Juvenile's "Back That Azz Up" and B.G.'s "Bling Bling" was responsible for taking Cash Money Records from a small local label in New Orleans to the pop mainstream. The song is notable for its unique style of rapping, with every line except the chorus ending with "ha". The chorus to the song includes a line taken from the earlier Juvenile single "Solja Rags".
"Coffee Shop" is the first single from Yung Joc's second album Hustlenomics. It was officially released on May 5, 2007, but had been leaked onto the Internet beforehand. The track features Gorilla Zoe and uncredited chorus vocals by The-Dream. Joc and T-Pain performed the song at the season finale of Making the Band.
"I Get Money" is the third single from 50 Cent's third album, Curtis. This song was #14 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007. The song peaked at #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified Gold by the RIAA.
"I Get It In" is a song by rapper 50 Cent. It was initially released as the official second single from Before I Self Destruct, but it was later replaced by "Do You Think About Me".
"Crack a Bottle" is a song by American rappers Eminem, Dr. Dre and 50 Cent. The song was released as the lead single from the former's sixth studio album Relapse (2009). On February 12, 2009, the song broke the first week digital sales record with 418,000 downloads, topping the previous record held by "Live Your Life" by T.I. featuring Rihanna. This record was broken again the following week by "Right Round" by Flo Rida. The song won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 2010.
"We Made You" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his sixth studio album Relapse (2009). It was released as the second single from the album on April 7, 2009. "We Made You" was written by Eminem, Dr. Dre, Dawaun Parker, Mark Batson, Trevor Lawrence Jr. and Walter Egan. Production was handled by Dr. Dre, with Eminem and Doc Ish serving as additional co-producers.
"Clap Back" is a song by American rapper Ja Rule, released as the only single from his fifth studio album, Blood in My Eye (2003). It was produced by American producer Scott Storch, who helped write the song along with Ja Rule and Irv Gotti. In the United States, the song was released along with "The Crown" from Blood in My Eye, and in the UK the song was released alongside "Murder Reigns", the final single from Ja Rule's previous studio album The Last Temptation (2002).
"My Life" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent featuring fellow American rapper Eminem and American singer Adam Levine of Maroon 5. It was originally released as the second official single of 50 Cent's scrapped studio album Street King Immortal, but was later removed from the project. The single was produced by American music producer Symbolyc One. The song premiered on American radio station Hot 97, and was made available for digital download on iTunes Store on November 26, 2012.
"Berzerk" is a song by American rapper Eminem. The song, released on August 27, 2013, is the first single from Eminem's eighth studio album The Marshall Mathers LP 2. The song was produced by Rick Rubin and samples Billy Squier's "The Stroke", as well as the Beastie Boys' "Fight for Your Right", taken from their 1986 debut album Licensed to Ill, which Rubin had also produced, and Naughty by Nature's "Feel Me Flow". The song was heavily downloaded in its first week of release, resulting in the song debuting at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100.
"Without Me" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his fourth studio album The Eminem Show (2002). "Without Me" was released on May 13, 2002, as the lead single from the album, and re-released on his greatest hits compilation album Curtain Call: The Hits (2005). "Without Me" is one of Eminem's most successful singles, reaching number two on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and number one in fifteen countries.
