Earl Tywone Stevens Sr., better known by his stage name E-40, is an American rapper and actor. He is a founding member of the rap group the Click, and the founder of Sick Wid It Records. He has released twenty-eight studio albums to date, appeared on numerous movie soundtracks, and has also done guest appearances on a host of other rap albums. Initially an underground artist, his 1995 solo album In a Major Way opened him up to a wider audience. Beginning in 1998, he began collaborating with mainstream rappers outside the Bay Area. He rose to higher mainstream popularity in 2006 with his single "Tell Me When to Go", which was produced by Lil Jon.
Jonathan H. Smith, better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, songwriter, DJ, and record producer. He was the frontman of the multi-platinum selling rap group Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz and was instrumental in the emergence of the hip/hop subgenre crunk. He is credited with bringing the genre into mainstream success, producing Top 10 Billboard Hot 100 singles "Get Low," "Goodies," "Cyclone," "Freek-a-Leek," and "Yeah!". "Yeah!" won a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Performance. Lil Jon is also a frequent collaborator with friend and fellow rapper Pitbull. In 2013, Lil Jon collaborated with DJ Snake and released the electronic dance music multi-platinum hit, "Turn Down for What," that won Billboard Music Award for Top Dance/Electronic Song. The music video for the single, released in 2014, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Music Video, and has been viewed over 900 million times on YouTube as of October 2019. As of 2016, Lil Jon is listed as one of the Top Billboard Music Award Winners of All Time. In 2019, Lil Jon achieved his 8th #1 on Billboard’s Rhythmic Chart as a songwriter on the song "My Type" by Sacramento rapper Saweetie.
Straight Outta Cashville is the debut studio album by American rapper Young Buck, released on August 24, 2004 by G-Unit Records and Interscope Records.
Big Tymers was an American musical duo active from 1997 to 2005 and again in 2018 from New Orleans, Louisiana consisting of Cash Money Records co-founder Birdman and former Cash Money in-house producer Mannie Fresh. Baby later changed his stage name to Birdman after the duo dissolved in 2005. Big Tymers released their debut album in 1997 titled How You Luv That.
"Encore" is a song by rappers Eminem, 50 Cent and Dr. Dre, released on November 9, 2004 as a vinyl single in the U.S. It was the title track from the Eminem album of the same name, which was also released that year. It is the third single and final track from the album.
"Can't Hold Us Down" is a song recorded by American singer Christina Aguilera and rapper Lil' Kim for the former's fourth studio album Stripped (2002). It was released by RCA Records on July 8, 2003 as the fourth single from the album. The track was written and produced by Scott Storch, with additional songwriting by Aguilera and Matt Morris. An R&B and hip hop song with a dancehall outro, "Can't Hold Us Down" criticizes gender-related double standards.
Be is the sixth studio album by American rapper Common. It was released on May 24, 2005, by Geffen Records and GOOD Music. The album was primarily produced by rapper Kanye West, with additional production from frequent collaborator J Dilla. It debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 185,000 copies in the United States. The album is Common's second album to sell over 500,000 copies, becoming a certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
"Through the Wire" is the debut single by American rapper Kanye West. West wrote and recorded the song with his jaw wired shut after a car accident in October 2002. The song samples Chaka Khan's 1985 single "Through the Fire" and was released on the last day of September 2003 as the lead single from his debut album The College Dropout (2004).
Welcome Back is the third studio album by American rapper Mase, released August 24, 2004. The album debuted at #4 on the charts, selling 188,000 copies in the first week; the album would eventually go Gold, selling 559,000 copies in the United States. This was Mase's first album to not have a Parental Advisory warning, and his first official studio release since 1999's Double Up.
Snap music is a subgenre of hip hop music derived from crunk that originated in the South in the 2000s, in Bankhead, West Atlanta, United States. It achieved mainstream popularity throughout the mid-late 2000s, but declined shortly thereafter. Popular snap artists include D4L, Dem Franchize Boys and K-Rab.
Earl Tywone Stevens Jr., better known by his stage name Droop-E, is an American rapper, and producer. He is the son of the Bay Area rapper E-40.
Kelefa T. Sanneh is an American journalist and music critic. From 2000 to 2008, he wrote for The New York Times, covering the rock and roll, hip-hop, and pop music scenes. Since 2008 he has been a staff writer for The New Yorker.
Shon Adams, better known by his stage name E-A-Ski, is an American rapper and producer from Oakland, California. He served as both a rapper and producer for No Limit Records, producing on Master P's early records and also releasing some of his own material.
Rick Rock is an American record producer originally from Montgomery, Alabama and based in Fairfield, California. He is a founding member of the former rap group Cosmic Slop Shop and the Federation (band) with fellow rapper Doonie Baby, and is regarded as a pioneer of the hip-hop subgenre Hyphy.
Turf Talk, is a Bay Area rapper at the forefront of the hyphy movement. His unique style of delivery has earned both local and national acclaim. Turf Talk is the protégé and cousin of platinum-selling Bay Area pioneer and legend E-40, and is signed to his mentor's Sick Wid It/30/30 Records.
Dedication 2 is a 2006 mixtape by Lil Wayne, hosted by DJ Drama. It is a sequel to Lil Wayne's previous mixtape, The Dedication, and is second in DJ Drama's Gangsta Grillz series with Lil Wayne. It is one of the few mixtapes in the hip hop genre to be both financially successful and critically acclaimed. Despite its illegal use of unlicensed instrumentals and samples, it was sold through iTunes and retail stores such as Best Buy and FYE, was widely reviewed in the mainstream media, and peaked at #69 on Billboard's "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums” chart. The cover shows Lil Wayne with "Fear God" tattooed on his eyelids. Much of the mixtape showcases Lil Wayne's free associating rhymes and "liquid non-sequiturs."
Byron Otto Thomas, better known by his stage name Mannie Fresh, is an American DJ, record producer, and rapper. He’s best known for his productions on Cash Money Records releases, as well being half of the hip hop duo the Big Tymers. He produced all or most of the songs on 17 multi-platinum, platinum or gold albums for Cash Money from 1998 to 2004 before leaving the label. He also was their only in-house producer when the company started in 1991-92.
Da Bidness is an album released by the Bay Area rappers, PSD, Keak da Sneak and Messy Marv. It was released on February 13, 2007, for Thizz Entertainment, SMC Recordings and Gateway Records and was produced by the prominent Bay Area producers Traxamillion, Droop-E, Rick Rock, Jake and the Phatman as well as PSD himself, Clipto, Indo & Fireworks, Lev Berlak, Tha Rolla and Don Juan. The collaboration proved successful and charted on three Billboard charts, peaking at #82 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, #40 on the Independent Albums chart and #12 on the Top Heatseekers. Two singles were released from the album, "Cus, Cus" and "That Go", though neither made it to the charts. Various other Bay Area rappers contributed to the album including E-40 and San Quinn.
The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 1 is the fifteenth studio album by American rapper E-40. The album is part of a trilogy that was released on March 26, 2012. The other albums in the trilogy include The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 2, and The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 3. E-40's last four albums were released in pairs; Revenue Retrievin': Day Shift and Revenue Retrievin': Night Shift were released in 2010, and Revenue Retrievin': Overtime Shift and Revenue Retrievin': Graveyard Shift were released in 2011.
History: Function Music is a collaborative studio album by American rappers E-40 and Too Short. The album was released on November 6, 2012, by Heavy on the Grind Entertainment and EMI. The album was released in two pairs: History: Mob Music and History: Function Music. The album features guest appearances from Tyga, Travis Porter, Turf Talk, Wiz Khalifa, Suga Free, Jeremih, and Ice Cube among others.
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