Country Grammar is the debut studio album by American rapper and singer Nelly. It was released on June 27, 2000, by Universal Records. The production on the album was handled by Jason "Jay E" Epperson, with additional production by C-Love, Kevin Law, City Spud, Steve "Blast" Wills and Basement Beats. Nelly contributed to all lyrics on the album, with Epperson and City Spud also contributing. With the album's release, Nelly and his “St. Lunatics” crew cemented the St. Louis sound firmly amongst other southern hip hop artists in the year 2000, such as Juvenile, Trina, Ludacris, OutKast, Three 6 Mafia and UGK. Country Grammar also introduced the world to Nelly's unique musical style of pop-rap and radio “singalongs” with a Missouri twang. It was supported by four successful singles: "Country Grammar ", "E.I.", "Ride wit Me" and "Batter Up". Its lead single, "Country Grammar ", peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart. Its second single "E.I." peaked at number 16 on the Hot 100, number 12 on the UK Singles Chart and number 11 on the ARIA Singles Chart. "Ride wit Me" peaked within the top five on the Hot 100, ARIA Singles Chart, Irish Singles Chart and UK Singles Chart. The album's fourth and final single, "Batter Up" featuring St. Lunatics members Murphy Lee and Ali, achieved moderate chart success.
Greatest Hits is a posthumous double-disc greatest hits album by American rapper 2Pac, released by Amaru Entertainment, Death Row Records, Interscope Records, and Jive Records on November 24, 1998.
M.O.P. is an American hip hop duo composed of East Coast rappers Billy Danze and Lil' Fame. After years of underground performance, they gained mainstream recognition in 2000 with the song "Ante Up", which would become their biggest hit. The group has frequently collaborated with DJ Premier and is part of the Gang Starr Foundation. Fame sometimes produces under the moniker Fizzy Womack, and has produced tracks on every M.O.P. release since 1996's Firing Squad. He has also worked for other artists including Kool G Rap and Wu-Tang Clan.
At the Speed of Life is the debut studio album by American rapper Xzibit. It was released on October 15, 1996, through Loud/RCA Records. Recording sessions took place at Tha Concentration Camp and The Compound in Los Angeles and Ameraycan Studios in North Hollywood. Production was handled by Craig Sherrad, E-Swift, Thayod Ausar, Diamond D, DJ Muggs, DJ Pen One and Saafir. It features guest appearances from Hurricane G, J-Ro, King T, Ras Kass, Saafir, Tash and Ron Hightower.
Restless is the third studio album by rapper Xzibit. It was released December 12, 2000 though Epic Records, Loud Records, SRC Records, and Xzibit's Open Bar Entertainment. It debuted at #14 on the Billboard 200 with approximately 205,000 copies sold in its 1st week released. The album then fell 17 spots to #31 in the 2nd week, but then rose back up 19 spots to peak at #12 the following week. Since being released, the album has been certified Platinum by the RIAA with an excess of a million copies sold in the United States, making it Xzibit's most successful album.
"Always on Time" is a song by American rapper Ja Rule from his third studio album, Pain Is Love (2001). Produced by Irv Gotti, it was written by Ja Rule, 7 Aurelius, and Gotti. Originally set to feature Brandy, it features guest vocals from singer-songwriter and labelmate Ashanti. The song was released as the album's second single on November 27, 2001, through Island Def Jam Music Group, Def Jam Recordings and Gotti's Murder Inc. Records.
"Hello" is a song written and performed by American rappers and former N.W.A members Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and MC Ren. It was released in 2000 via Priority Records as the third and final single from Ice Cube's sixth solo studio album War & Peace Vol. 2 . Produced by Dr. Dre, with Mel-Man serving as co-producer, it features backing vocals from Traci Nelson.
American singer Usher has released nine studio albums, ten compilation albums, eight extended plays, and 81 singles. His music has been released on the LaFace, Arista, Jive and RCA record labels. Usher has sold more than 33 million albums in the United States alone and over 65 million albums worldwide. With over 150 million total records sold worldwide, he is one of the best selling music artists of all time. He has nine Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles and 18 Hot 100 top-ten singles. In 1994, Usher released his self-titled debut album in North America, producing three singles that had moderate chart success, and the album sold more than 500,000 copies. His follow-up 1997 album My Way sold over 8 million copies worldwide, becoming his breakthrough album. It is certified seven-times platinum in the US, and spawned three successful singles, including his first UK number-one "You Make Me Wanna..." and first US Hot 100 number-one song "Nice & Slow". Usher's success continued in 2001 with his third studio album 8701. It debuted at number four on the Billboard 200. The album produced two number-one singles—"U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad". In 2002, the album was certified five-times platinum in the US for sales of 5 million copies. As of 2010, its worldwide sales stand at over 8 million.
Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.) is the fourth solo studio album by American rapper Fat Joe. Originally scheduled for a summer 2000 release, the album was released on December 4, 2001, via Terror Squad/Atlantic Records. Recording sessions took place at TMF Studios, The Crackhouse, Chung King Studios and Sound On Sound in New York, The Hit Factory Criteria and Circle House Studios in Miami, TransContinental Studios in Orlando, The Studio in Philadelphia, and The Enterprise in California. Production was handled by Buckwild, Irv Gotti, Ron G, Alchemist, Bink!, Chink Santana, Cool & Dre, DJ Nasty & LVM, Psycho Les, Reef, Rockwilder, Sean C, Self and Younglord. It features guest appearances from Remy Ma, Armageddon, Prospect, R. Kelly, Ashanti, Busta Rhymes, Buju Banton, Ja Rule, Ludacris, M.O.P., Noreaga, Petey Pablo and Xzibit.
Knowledge Is King is the third solo studio album by American rapper Kool Moe Dee, released on May 30, 1989, via Jive Records.
Enigma is the second solo studio album by American rapper Keith Murray. It was released on November 26, 1996, via Jive Records. Recording sessions took place at Mirror Image Recordings in Long Island. Production was handled by Erick Sermon, who also served as executive producer, Ty Fyffe, The Ummah and Rod 'KP' Kirkpatrick. It features guest appearances from 50 Grand, Kel-Vicious, Erick Sermon, Busta Rhymes, Dave Hollister, Jamal and Redman. The album peaked at number thirty-nine on the Billboard 200 and number six on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart in the United States. Its lead single "The Rhyme" made it to number 59 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, number 12 on the Hot Rap Songs and number 3 on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales charts.
It's a Beautiful Thing is the third solo studio album by American rapper Keith Murray. It was released on January 12, 1999, via Jive Records, making it his final record for the label. Recording sessions took place at Mirror Image Recording Studios in Dix Hills, New York. Production was handled entirely by Erick Sermon, who also served as executive producer. It features guest appearances from Déjà Vu, Canibus, Erick Sermon, LL Cool J, Redman and Too $hort. The album peaked at number thirty-nine on the Billboard 200 and number nine on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart in the US. Its single "Incredible" reached number 70 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and number 36 on the Hot Rap Songs.
Lyricist Lounge 2 is the fourth hip hop compilation album by American record label Rawkus Records. It was released on November 28, 2000, as the second installment of Lyricist Lounge album series, based on New York's Lyricist Lounge showcases.
"MC's Act Like They Don't Know" is a hardcore hip hop song written and performed by American rapper KRS-One. It was released on August 28, 1995 via Jive Records as the lead single from his second solo studio album KRS One. Recording sessions took place at D&D Studios in New York. Production was helmed by DJ Premier.
The discography of Trinidadian rapper Nicki Minaj consists of five studio albums, one compilation album, three mixtapes, 136 singles, and 20 promotional singles.
"Incredible" is a song by American rappers Keith Murray and LL Cool J. It was released on September 15, 1998 through Jive Records as the only single from Murray's third studio album It's a Beautiful Thing. Recording sessions took place at Mirror Image Recorders in Dix Hills. Production was handled by Erick Sermon, who used a sample from James Brown's song "Sportin' Life". The single peaked at 70 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and 27 on the Hot Rap Songs in the United States.
"Where I Wanna Be" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Shade Sheist featuring Nate Dogg and Kurupt. It was released on October 28, 2000 via MCA Records as the first single from Shade Sheist's debut studio album Informal Introduction. Recording sessions took place at Larrabee West Recording Studios in West Hollywood. Production was handled by Eddie Berkeley and KayGee with Damizza serving as co-producer and presenter.
"Feedback" is a song by American hip-hop artist Kanye West from his seventh studio album The Life of Pablo (2016). It includes a sample of "Talagh" by Googoosh and West raps about his career experiences. The song charted on both the US Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart at number 99 and 92 respectively in 2016.
Queen is the fourth studio album by rapper Nicki Minaj. It was released on August 10, 2018 by Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Republic Records. It was Minaj's first album in nearly four years following The Pinkprint (2014). Recording sessions with a handful of producers for the album began in late 2016 and concluded in August 2018. The album includes guest appearances by rappers Eminem, Foxy Brown, Future, Swae Lee, and Lil Wayne; along with singers Ariana Grande, Labrinth, and the Weeknd.
"Distraction" is a song by American rapper Polo G. It was released as a single through Columbia Records on June 3, 2022. Polo wrote the song with producer Southside and co-producers Cubeatz and J3. "Distraction" marks Polo's first official single since Hall of Fame 2.0 (2021), which serves as the deluxe edition of his third studio album, Hall of Fame (2021). Polo announced the song on May 26, 2022, alongside a trailer video.
[1] 
