Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones,better known by his stage name Nas,is an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop,he is regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time. The son of jazz musician Olu Dara,Jones's musical career began in 1989 as he adopted the moniker of "Nasty Nas" and recorded demos for Large Professor. He was later featured on the 1991 single "Live at the Barbeque" by Main Source.
Lauryn Noelle Hill is an American rapper,singer,songwriter,and actress. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time,as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. Hill is credited for breaking barriers for female rappers,popularizing melodic rapping and for bringing hip hop and neo soul to popular music. She is known for being a member of Fugees,and for her 1998 solo album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill,which became one of the best-selling albums of all time. Hill has won many accolades,including eight Grammy Awards,the most for a female rapper to this day.
Fugees is an American hip hop group formed in the early 1990s. Deriving its name from a shortening of the word "refugees",the group consists of Wyclef Jean,Pras Michel,and Lauryn Hill. The group rose to fame with its second album,The Score (1996),one of the best-selling albums of all time. The group is often cited as being one of the most significant alternative hip hop groups of the 1990s.
The Chronic is the debut studio album by the American hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre. It was released on December 15,1992,by his record label Death Row Records and distributed by Interscope Records. Recording sessions took place in June 1992 at Death Row Studios in Los Angeles and at Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood.
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the debut solo album by American singer and rapper Lauryn Hill. It was released on August 25,1998,by Ruffhouse Records and Columbia Records. The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a neo soul and R&B album with some songs based in hip hop soul and reggae. Its lyrics touch upon Hill's pregnancy and the turmoil within her former group the Fugees,along with themes of love and God. The album's title was inspired by the film and autobiographical novel The Education of Sonny Carson,and Carter G. Woodson's The Mis-Education of the Negro.
Lonnie Rashid Lynn,known by his stage name Common,is an American rapper and actor. He debuted in 1992 with the album Can I Borrow a Dollar?, and gained critical acclaim with his 1994 album Resurrection. He maintained an underground following into the late 1990s. He achieved mainstream success through his work with the Soulquarians.
Radio is the debut studio album by American rapper LL Cool J. It was released on November 18,1985,by Def Jam Recordings and Columbia Records. It was also Def Jam's first full-length album release.
Doggystyle is the debut studio album by American rapper Snoop Dogg,then known as Snoop Doggy Dogg. It was released on November 23,1993,by Death Row Records and Interscope Records. The album was recorded and produced following Snoop's appearances on Dr. Dre's debut solo album The Chronic (1992),to which Snoop contributed significantly. The West Coast style in hip-hop that he developed from Dre's first album continued on Doggystyle. Critics have praised Snoop Dogg for the lyrical "realism" that he delivers on the album and for his distinctive vocal flow.
Basehead,also known as dc Basehead and Basehead 2.0,is an American alternative rock band formed by Michael Ivey in 1992. Ivey serves as the group's songwriter and leader,performing vocals and various instruments. Basehead's 1992 debut album,Play with Toys,was recorded at Ivey's home with various studio musicians. Ivey formed a touring band for live performances,which contributed to Basehead's second album,Not in Kansas Anymore. The group's current lineup consists of Ivey,drummer Aaron Burroughs and bassist Brendan Ciotta.
The Beatnuts are an American hip hop group and production duo from New York City. Its current members are JuJu and Psycho Les. JuJu is a Dominican American from Corona and Psycho Les is a Colombian American from Jackson Heights,Queens. Although only peripheral members,they are routinely acknowledged by Q-Tip as being members of Native Tongues. The Beatnuts were originally a trio before Fashion,now known as Al' Tariq,left the group to start a solo career. V.I.C. was also a member of The Beatnuts' production team for a while.
The College Dropout is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on February 10,2004,by Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. In the years leading up to release,West had received praise for his production work for rappers such as Jay-Z and Talib Kweli,but faced difficulty being accepted as an artist in his own right by figures in the music industry. Intent on pursuing a solo career,he signed a record deal with Roc-A-Fella and recorded the album over a period of four years,beginning in 1999.
Can-I-Bus is the debut album by rapper Canibus,released on September 8,1998 through Universal Records. The album was released after the rapper's success with his LL Cool J diss track,"Second Round K.O.",which was included on Can-I-Bus,with additional support from heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson.
MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 is a live album by American singer and rapper Lauryn Hill. The performance comes from her 2002 MTV Unplugged special recorded on July 21,2001 at MTV Studios in Times Square,New York City. Hill abandoned the hip hop sounds of her debut album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998) in favor of folk and soul songs she performed with an acoustic guitar. The songs were interspersed with spoken interludes about her personal and artistic struggles.
One Day It'll All Make Sense is the third studio album by rapper Common,released on September 30,1997,on Relativity Records. It was the follow-up to his critically acclaimed album Resurrection and the last Common album to feature producer No I.D. until Common's 2011 album The Dreamer/The Believer. It was also the first album in which Common officially dropped Sense from his name.
"Doo Wop" is the debut solo single of American recording artist Lauryn Hill. The song is the lead single from her debut album,The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. It was written and produced by Hill. The song was initially released as a radio-only single in the United States on August 10,1998,and no commercial release was originally intended for the single;however,limited-quantity physical formats were issued two months later,on October 27,making the song eligible to appear on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
"Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer" is a 1971 song by Stevie Wonder,featured on his album Where I'm Coming From. The song is a ballad,describing a failed relationship using the metaphor of changing seasons. Co-written by Syreeta Wright and released on Tamla 54202 in 1971 as the flip side of "We Can Work It Out",the single stalled at #78 on the Billboard Hot 100,but it remains one of Stevie Wonder's most popular ballads to this day. Cash Box described the song by saying that "lively melodic work is heightened by an exceptional performance."
"Champion" is a song by American rapper and singer Nicki Minaj,taken from her second studio album,Pink Friday:Roman Reloaded (2012). The song features additional vocals from hip hop artists Drake,Nas,and Young Jeezy. "Champion" was written by Minaj,Aubrey Graham,Jay Jenkins,Nasir Jones,and Jayceon Taylor,while the production and additional writing was handled by Pink Friday (2010) collaborators T-Minus and Nikhil Seetharam. Musically,"Champion" is a downtempo hardcore hip hop ballad that also incorporates elements of R&B,new-age,and space music. The lyrics speak of each artist's rise to fame,as well as the trials and tribulations that it carries;it references the death of Minaj's cousin,Nicholas Telemaque,who was murdered near his Brooklyn home on July 3,2011.
"Lost Ones" is a diss song by American rapper and singer-songwriter Lauryn Hill. It was released on August 25,1998,through Ruffhouse and Columbia Records. The song was written by Hill and produced by Hill,alongside Vada Nobles and Che Pope. Despite never naming him in the song,the song is widely presumed to be about Hill's former Fugees Bandmate Wyclef Jean.
Nastradamus is the fourth studio album by American rapper Nas,released on November 23,1999 by Ill Will and Columbia Records. Originally scheduled to be released on October 26,1999 as a follow-up composed of material from sessions for his previous album I Am...,also released in 1999. Due to bootlegging of the material,Nas recorded separate songs for Nastradamus to meet its November release date.
"Save the Day" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter Mariah Carey. It was released on August 21,2020 as the lead single from her eighth compilation album,The Rarities (2020) by Columbia and Legacy Records. The song's music was composed by Carey,and the lyrics and melody were written by Carey,Jermaine Dupri,James "Big Jim" Wright,Charles Fox,and Norman Gimbel. The song was also produced by Carey along with Dupri.
