Way back in 1992, a Hip Hop revolution was occurring and there were only certain critical albums that were a part of that musical metamorphosis. House Of Pain’s Fine Malt Lyrics is one of those albums released during the peak of Hip Hop’s diversified authentic artists. This album came out during the same era as the premier of emcees like B-Real & Cypress Hill, The Beatnuts, and of course, the apex of 3rd Bass.
Fine Malt Lyrics, which was produced by the legendary DJ Muggs of Cypress Hill and DJ Lethal, churned out the all-time classic smash “Jump Around”. The song is considered one of the greatest of all time, making at least ten silver screen theme music appearances and even more in football and baseball entrances.
Other dope tracks include “Put Your Head Out” featuring B-Real, House And The Rising Son” featuring Funkdoobiest, and of course, the “Jump Around remix by Pete Rock.
We salute Everlast, DJ Muggs, and DJ Lethal for this 3.5 Micer and because of you guys, we will forever lose it when we hear Jump Around!
On this day in Hip Hop history, West Coast legend MC Eiht released his debut LP, We Come Strapped. Featuring his group Compton’s Most Wanted, this gangsta rap classic is one of California’s pre-G Funk hits. Riding the popularity that came from his breakthrough single “Straight Up Menace” featured in the film Menace II Society, this album took the rap game by storm creating a new star on the West Coast.
Coming off group success, MC Eiht was no rookie and knew exactly what putting out a good album entailed. We Come Strapped followed a simple yet effective formula resulting in its success. This project is straight and to the point; no drawn out skits, no filler, and no big name features. Aside from a cameo from Spice-1, Redman, and his fellow Compton’s Most Wanted members, the album is entirely MC Eiht spiting cold gangsta rhymes over DJ Slip’s jazzy, keyboard heavy production.
Commercially the project was quite a success, peaking at #5 on the Billboard 200 and #1 on the Top R&B/Hip Hop chart. The album was certified gold shortly after its release and continues to sell copies today. This album serves as MC Eiht’s most successful project to date.
Over the weekend, N.O.R.E. celebrated 25 years in the game as it was the anniversary of his debut album.
“I got to celebrate 25 years of my first album !!!” N.O.R.E. wrote on Instagram. “I cried in the bathroom didn’t want anyone to see !!! I’m so thankful and greatful and humble !!! If u a cnn fan, a Nore fan or drinkchamps fan I LOVE U AND THANK U!!!”
Noreaga of famed duo Capone-N-Noreaga (CNN) released his debut solo studio album titled N.O.R.E. on Penalty Records and Tommy Boy Entertainment.
The certified gold, No.1 charting, 19-track album featured a star-studded array of feature artists on the mic including Nas, Busta Rhymes, the legendary Kool G Rap, Big Pun, Styles P, Cam’ron, Nature and Jadakiss all on the classic posse cut track “Banned From T.V.”. Not to be outdone, the executively produced by Capone album featured production from Marley Marl, Trackmasters, The Neptunes, Swizz Beatz and DJ Clue amongst others.
Singles that made this album a Hip Hop classic include the sentimental “I Love My Life” featuring Carl Thomas, the action-filled “Body In The Trunk” with Queensbridge cohort Nas and the Neptune-produced hit “Superthug”.
Today marks a quarter of a century since Queens native Noreaga of famed duo Capone-N-Noreaga (CNN) released his debut solo studio album titled N.O.R.E. on Penalty Records and Tommy Boy Entertainment.
The certified gold, No.1 charting, 19-track album featured a star-studded array of feature artists on the mic including Nas, Busta Rhymes, the legendary Kool G Rap, Big Pun, Styles P, Cam’ron, Nature and Jadakiss all on the classic posse cut track “Banned From T.V.”. Not to be outdone, the executively produced by Capone album featured production from Marley Marl, Trackmasters, The Neptunes, Swizz Beatz and DJ Clue amongst others.
Singles that made this album a Hip Hop classic include the sentimental “I Love My Life” featuring Carl Thomas, the action-filled “Body In The Trunk” with Queensbridge cohort Nas and the Neptune-produced hit “Superthug”.
Ever since the “Eric B. For President” single featuring a young Long Islander named Rakim Allah was released in the summer of ’86 (which was produced by Marley Marl), the fans were feigning for more of the God with the slow flow, so the two were scooped up by Russell Simmons and the genesis of Paid In Full began.
As the prototype album of Hip Hop’s “Golden Era”, everything from song arrangement, album artwork, and even their wardrobe on the album cover became iconic items of that time period. Manufactured and distributed by indie label Zakia/4th and Broadway Records, the album’s anticipation and response was so unprecedented, it earned the duo a new contract with Uni Records for the sophomore project.
A few of the ten-track classic’s stand-out songs include “Move The Crowd”, “I Ain’t No Joke”, “I Know You Got Soul” and the classic title track, “Paid In Full”.
Even though Eric B. and Rakim just reunited as a group in 2018, this album solidified them as one of the greatest Hip Hop duo’s in the culture’s history and we here at The Source salute them for that. Peace!
The summer of 1994 was marked by a history-making debut album by Da Brat. Funkdafied was the album that largely unleashed the talents of the rapper into the limelight. Da Brat quickly cemented herself in the history books with the nine-track project. Looking back 29 years later, it’s easy to see how she became a pioneer female MC.
As the album inches closer to its third decade, it’s important to note how Da Brat’s debut inspired women in rap worldwide. A solo woman rapper selling one million copies at the time was an arduous task. Nonetheless, Da Brat came out swinging, becoming the first female solo act to achieve a Platinum certification with an album. The rest, as they say, was history.
The History Behind Da Brat’s Rise
When he was just 19 years old, Jermaine Dupri discovered the chart-topping hip hop duo Kriss Kross. In 1992, they had become mainstream acts and watched a then-unknown Da Brat win a rap battle in Chicago. Enthralled by her flow, the pair encouraged Dupri to bring her on the So So Def label. Although reluctant, Dupri decided to give her a chance.
“She was introduced to me by Kriss Kross. They saw her while they were on tour, and they came to me and said, “We got this female rapper you should check out,” Dupri told Angela Yee for Fox Soul. “And when they did it, I didn’t want no female rapper. But I thought that since they said I should check her out… I’m like, what does she do that made them want me to look at her? So I at least decided to give it a listen.”
The Success Of Funkdafied
Funkdafied was released on June 28, 1994 to overwhelmingly positive reviews. Importantly, Da Brat was only 20 years old when her debut album hit the airwaves. This left more than enough room for the artist to carve out a distinct rap career for herself. Funkdafied housed the lead single of the same name, which also achieved Platinum status two months after the album’s release.
Da Brat has previously mentioned that while Dupri expressed the near-impossibility of a largely successful debut, she wasn’t deterred. Things would later work in her favor, as Funkdafied sold over a million copies, the first by a solo woman in rap to do so. Da Brat quickly became a noteworthy act, especially for her edgier rap style that many women artists would later emulate.
Jermaine Dupri also earned significant acclaim for his impressive production on the album. Funkdafied peaked at the eleventh spot on the Billboard 200. It further hit the top spot on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Featured acts on the project include Kandi Burruss, LaTocha Scott, Y-Tee, Mac Daddy from Kris Kross, and Dupri himself on the lead track.
Besides the title track, two other singles were released from Brat’s debut album. “Fa All Y’all” and “Give It 2 You” also succeeded, becoming her second and third consecutive songs to hit the Top 40. However, none of Da Brat’s other songs have enjoyed the success of “Funkdafied,” which peaked at the sixth spot on the Billboard Hot 100. The G-funk single was praised for its infusion of parody, funk music, and heavy-hitting rap lyrics.
Funkdafied’s Legacy
With her debut album, Da Brat paved the way for many after her. By breaking the Gold-certification hold others had before her, she proved a woman could sell a million copies in rap solo. Today, it’s impossible to highlight Hip Hop’s most iconic albums without including Funkdafied. While Da Brat has found success with other ventures, she will still be widely heralded for her stellar debut album and her impressive catalog of hits.
On this day in Hip Hop history, Big Daddy Kane released his debut LP Long Live The Kane. Released by Cold Chillin’ Records and produced by Marley Marl, this album is one of Hip Hop’s earliest successes. Through this project, Big Daddy Kane was able to craft one of the most desirable brand in Hip Hop of the time. His ability to touch on a plethora of subjects ranging from sex to Afrocentrism made him universally appealing and easily marketable.
This album can be credited as one of the most influential LPs of the golden age of Hip Hop. Nas, Pete Rock, AZ, Gang Starr, RZA, Biggie Smalls and MF DOOM are among some of the acclaimed artists who have made directed references to either this album or Big Daddy Kane in general throughout their music. In 1998, The Source Magazine ranked this project as one of the 1000 Greatest Albums in Hip Hop. The album was certified gold in the year of its release and serves as one of the two projects from Big Daddy Kane that has sold over 500,000 copies.
During a recent appearance on the Rap Radar Podcast, Tyler, The Creator shared his thoughts on his first studio album, Goblin. Fans may be disappointed to hear that the artist‘s debut effort isn’t anywhere close to his favorite, however, he does say it continues to hold a special place in his heart. “Goblin is f*cking terrible,” he explains, “But I still love it.”
He continues, “It’s an energy and an aura that it has. And hearing my wonky synths, and gross drums, and me not realizing I’m yelling on every song and saying the most wild shit is what got people there. It’s not about the music. If you were there, that energy and that aura and that air just cutting through what everyone else is doing is so important.” He goes on to say, “It’s still some ones on there. I still think, ‘Yonkers,’ is awesome. ‘She’ is awesome. The first two versions of ‘Nightmare’ is ill, ‘Tron Cat’ is still awesome. ‘Analog’ is still cool, like there’s still a few things on there but people don’t know like, a lot of songs on that album were just like, random songs I recorded after Goblin that we kinda just, yeah here I got these songs.”
Tyler, The Creator also shared details of his experience attending Jay-Z’s annual Pre-Grammy Roc Nation Brunch in February during the appearance. “Illest part of the Roc Nation Brunch, I went for three reasons. I always wanted to go just ’cause I never went,” he revealed, “Two, I was curious what food they had there. And three, I wanted to see how many times I could be called ‘king.’ I counted nine.” He went on, “And the illest part is Jay let me park my BMW right in the front. Everybody else had to shuttle. He let me park it right in front in the hills. Probably top four moments I’ve ever felt cool. Like, the textbook cool.”
He did, however, share that having priority parking at the event had one major downside. He explained, “My homie sent me two weeks ago Christian Combs’ Instagram and these motherf*ckers had a photo shoot with my car in front of the God damn Roc Nation! And I saw Christian last night and I shoulda told him, ‘N***a, don’t sit on my God damn car!’ I like Christian, I’m just saying, but that was ill.”
Gang Starr is arguably the defining hip-hop group of the underground. Consisting of complex lyricist MC Guru and eclectic producer DJ Premier, the two introduced a jazz-infused sound that really hasn’t been paralleled in the same manner since. In essence, there are two different stages to the arch of Gang Starr, both of which influenced hip-hop indefinitely. The first was the bridging between jazz and hip-hop, capturing the complex sound of New York in a way that hadn’t been done before. The second was an uncompromising, street-built sound of pure grit built around menacing beats. However, it all got started with Gang Starr’s debut album, No More Mr. Nice Guy.
Hip hop duo Gang Starr, portrait, London, United Kingdom, 1990. MC Guru (1961-2010) and DJ Premier. (Photo by Martyn Goodacre/Getty Images)
Gang Starr had been in the works for a while before the release of No More Mr. Nice Guy. Back in the mid-1980s, MC Guru was rapping in his hometown Boston. However, Guru and his three friends disbanded after a few recordings. He pivoted to the streets of New York, acutely aware that hip-hop’s epicenter existed a few hours south of him.
Discovering DJ Premier through a demo tape, he invited the Houston native out to Brooklyn. Their first recording was ‘Words That I Manifest.” From the jump, their sound infused jazz in a way that hadn’t been done. The track sampled Dizzy Gillespie’s “A Night in Tunisia,” who was an iconic jazz trumpeter. In the years leading to the golden era, hip-hop had primarily existed in the world of disco or funk, with the likes of James Brown being a go-to sample artist.
In addition, Gang Starr was delivering a fresh form of social commentary off of No More Mr. Nice Guy. Blatantly influenced by contemporary MC hip-hop outfits such as Public Enemy, they were one of the pioneering groups to utilize their influence to deliver commentary in a sociopolitical manner. The project would receive extended attention with the appearance of “Jazz Thing” in Spike Lee’s 1990 film, Mo’ Better Blues. The placement made the burgeoning wave of jazz-rap even more popular while solidifying Gang Starr as a leader in the genre.
No More Mr. Nice Guy is certainly not the greatest album Gang Starr has put out. While it may read as a damning statement, the two would probably be happy to know that they would further refine their sound with time. Their debut studio album, in essence, was their playground to hone their sound.
The two had grown up with jazz, it was just a matter of implementing it into an album setting. DJ Premiere’s grandfather used to be in a jazz band. On the other hand, Guru’s godfather was a jazz buff. As he put it with The Commentator, “If I was with my friends and I needed some money or something, I’d pass by his house. He’d grab the whole posse and say, ‘Sit down and listen.’ He’d sit us in between two big-ass speakers, as tall as the next man. It would sound like you could hear every instrument.”
No More Mr. Nice Guy Set Gang Starr Up For Future Success
Rapper Guru (Keith Edward Elam) and DJ Premier (Christopher Edward Martin) of Gang Starr poses for photos at their tour bus outside the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois in July 1998. (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
MC Guru and DJ Premier were a musical match made in even. Each connecting with the same vision for where they’d steer hip-hop, the two drew comparisons to De Niro and Scorsese in the film world. Guru makes this sentiment known throughout No More Mr. Nice Guy, stating, “So I frown at the scene where you be takin’ it / And like the winds of change, I’ll be breakin’ it up” on “2 Steps Ahead.” While Gang Starr wasn’t going to take any s**t from rivals, their philosophical approach set them apart from the pack. As Guru puts it on the album opener, “Premiere and The Guru,” “Knowledge, wisdom, peace are what I’m true to / In the rear is Premiere, and I’m the Guru.”
No More Mr. Nice Guy was a launching pad for Gang Starr’s more commercially successful future releases. 1991’s Step in the Arena saw Premier and Guru take significant strides. Eventually, their commercial success would take off through 1994’s Hard to Earn. However, the two had always made it clear that they weren’t in the game for financial benefit. They didn’t care about the lavish Cadillacs or mansions that large-scale record labels may have offered. They were in the business of pioneering a new sound in hip-hop, one that all got started with No More Mr. Nice Guy.
It’s long been established that the late ’80s marked the golden age of New York’s hip-hop scene. MCs such as Rakim, Gang Starr, Slick Rick, and LL Cool J were pioneering the genre’s initial meandering into the mainstream sound of music. However, you also had the funk-infused duo of EPMD behind Strictly Business. Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith, known as PMD, met in Long Island, New York, where they made an instant connection regarding their love for rapping. The duo’s first big break occurred in 1987 with “It’s My Thing.” The track expressed a refreshing blend of charisma and funky drum samples.
In many ways, EPMD was actually throwing it back to the early days of the genre. Since hip-hop’s inception in the 1970s, its prevailing sonic technique had gone from breakbeats to soul sampling. The two were mixing each of these techniques, paying homage to their block parties while pushing hip-hop’s sound forward. Their steadfast success caught the attention of Russell Simmons RUSH Management. A year after the hit success of the single “It’s My Thing,” EPMD released their debut studio album Strictly Business.
Strictly Business Delivered A New Sound To Hip-Hop
To put it simply, Strictly Business opened up doors surrounding hip-hop that had never been touched on before. The record contributed to the ushering in of the golden age of hip-hop, spearheaded by the intricate wordplay of Parrish Smith. However, their sound was very much distinctive from the increasingly popularized form of gangster rap that began proliferating across the West Coast. Instead, Strictly Business and its follow-up, Unfinished Business, injected the charts with a disco edge amidst poetic storytelling. The duo truly existed in their own world. They stressed the importance of independence in a time when record labels had as much creative control over their artists as ever.
The duo’s backs were against the wall, which is obvious in the hungry verses throughout Strictly Business. Parrish explained to Billboard, “On all our business titles, our first album was basically titled Strictly Business because we put everything on the line. We gave up a lot just to be a part of the hip-hop culture so [the name of the album] had to be Strictly Business. You couldn’t lose.” Hip-Hop certainly isn’t a world of second chances, especially during the earlier days of the genre. An utterly coherent affair, the ten-song project received applause across the board from hip-hop.
Parrish and Erick’s deliveries are distinctly laid back from start to finish. While they were still defending themself against doubters and delivering violent lyricism, it was done in a manner so laid-back that it was downright intimidating to fellow MCs. Their nonchalant energy while curating certified Gold albums proved that yelling into the mic wasn’t a necessary precursor for a successful hip-hop album. Take “You Gots to Chill,” a funk anthem that would morph into one of their most recognizable tracks. Scratching the turntable amidst a laid-back melody, the duo sounds utterly languid. “You’re A Customer” samples Steve Miller Band and Kool & The Gang. Parrish hilariously compares the haters to something toilet paper might wipe off.
In essence, EPMD’s Strictly Business reinforced oddity into the hip-hop space. That left-field energy was always going to exist in the genre. Ever since its inception, hip-hop was rooted in fighting back against the prevailing corrupt establishment. Parrish and Erick weren’t screaming into the camera or puffing out their chest from track to track. Instead, the two were each repping a goofy ushanka while smoking weed, and they were certainly not remised to let you know about it. That distinct personality showed up in their sound, which sampled rock and funk rather than the prevailing sonic pallets of the late ’80s hip-hop scene. It’s certainly a sound that takes a few listens to become accustomed to. However, it’s one that influenced the landscape of hip-hop for good.
