The hip hop subculture in the Czech Republic emerged after the Velvet Revolution in 1989. Since then the subculture has become an influential urban phenomenon, with hip hop groups, clubs and festivals appearing across the country. Notable hip hop artists from the Czech Republic include Chaozz, Gipsy.cz, Naše Věc and Prago Union.
Slovak hip hop is said to have begun in 1988. The first rap release in Slovakia was done by Rap Steady Crew from Košice in 1993, followed by Jednotka slovenskej starostlivosti (JSS) with their album Kompromis in 1997 as well as the duo Trosky releasing their record. Long-running crews are Lúza and Drvivá Menšina, who perform together as Názov Stavby with DJ Hajtkovič. Vec, formerly of the seminal duo Trosky, is considered by many today to be the most influential figure within hip hop music in Slovakia, although newer acts such as 2H+, A.M.O, MC Vrabec, Čistychov, Kontrafakt have also gained significant popularity since 2003. Slovak hip hop is considered to start becoming popular when Kontrafakt releases their first video "Dáva mi" in 2003 and it topped many video charts in Slovakia and Czech Republic, and the video even appeared on MTV. Kontrafakt's platinum debut album E.R.A. is considered to be one of the albums with the "classic" status.
Miroslav Žbirka is a Slovak pop music singer and songwriter. He performs in Slovak, Czech, and English.
Supraphon Music Publishing is a Czech record label, oriented mainly towards publishing classical music and popular music, with an emphasis on Czech and Slovak composers.
Chaozz is a Czech hip hop group active from 1995 to 2002, during which time they released four studio albums. They regrouped in 2017 and have since published one single.
...a nastal chaos is the debut album by Czech hip hop group Chaozz, released in 1996. It was certified platinum in the Czech Republic and gold in Slovakia, selling just under 50,000 copies. Music videos were made for "Televize", "Policijeee", "Planeta opic" and "Nejhorsi den v mym zivote"
Prago Union is a Czech hip hop group. The current members are MC Kato and DJ Maro. DJ Maro joined Prago Union in 2008, replacing DJ Skupla. Deph and Skupla were previously members of the group Chaozz.
Marika Gombitová is a Slovak singer-songwriter and musician. Once a member of Modus, Gombitová started to gain early acclaim as a former female vocalist of the group. Nevertheless, she gradually developed her public image as a solo artist, making own debut on short play in 1977. Subsequently, after topping the local music charts with "Študentská láska" (1978), her debut set entitled Dievča do dažďa (1979) saw its eventual results on OPUS Records. The album's lead "Vyznanie", earned several music awards; most notably at the 4th Intervision Song Contest held in Poland (1980). In years to come later, the love anthem was to be celebrated as "The Hit of the Century" (2007) in her country.
Slovak recording artist Marika Gombitová entered the music industry in 1975 by recording promotional compositions entitled "Karta" and "Nájdem hviezdu" for SRo Košice. Prior to that, she performed with local bands such as Profily (1971–73) and the orchestras of Juraj Szabadoš, respectively of Július Olajoš (1974–75). Following an offer to become a member of Ján Lehotský's ensemble, she joined Modus in 1976 as their only female vocalist. Simultaneously with staging for the group, Gombitová recorded a number of tracks as soloist; among others also "Čo má rieka" and "Deň ako z pohľadnice". Eventually, "Boľavé námestie" was released as her own debut single issued on OPUS Records in 1977.
Dievča do dažďa is the debut album by Slovak singer-songwriter Marika Gombitová, released on OPUS in 1979.
Mince na dne fontán is the fourth album by Marika Gombitová, released on OPUS in 1983.
The Best of the Best is the third compilation album by Slovak singer-songwriter Marika Gombitová and her first featuring two compact discs, released on OPUS in 1998.
Gold is the fourth compilation album by Marika Gombitová, released on OPUS in 2005.
Vyznanie is the fifth compilation album by Marika Gombitová, and her second featuring two compact discs. The set was released on OPUS in 2007.
Katarína Knechtová is a Slovak singer-songwriter and guitarist, originally known for her work with the band Peha.
Modrý album is the twelfth studio album by Slovak singer Miroslav Žbirka, released on Universal Music in 2001.
Dúhy (Rainbows) is the thirteenth studio album by Slovak singer Miroslav Žbirka, released on Universal Music in 2005.
Tajnosľubná is a duet by Marika Gombitová and Miro Žbirka, released on Universal Music in 2005.
Gabriela Gunčíková, also known as Gabriela Gun, is a Czech singer. Her singing voice has been described as a cross between Sheryl Crow and Ann Wilson from the band, Heart. She was the runner-up of the second season of Česko Slovenská SuperStar and won the New Artist award at the 2011 Český slavík awards. Gunčíková was a touring vocalist of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra from 2014 until 2015. She represented the Czech Republic at the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 in Stockholm with "I Stand".
Adam Svatoš, known by his stage names MC Kato and Deph, is a Czech rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and DJ. He gained recognition as the primary songwriting and performing member of hip-hop groups Chaozz and Rigor Mortiz. Later, he formed and led a hip-hop band named Prago Union.
