Exclusives

Today in Hip Hop History: Lauryn Hill Dropped Her Solo Debut Album ‘The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill’ 24 Years Ago

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On this date in 1998, after her successful intro into the game with The Fugees, Lauryn Hill embarked on her solo journey and released her first solo LP entitled The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill on the Ruffhouse/Columbia imprint.

As a play on the titles of Carter G. Woodson’s The Mis-Education of the Negro and the 1972 film The Education Of Sonny Carson, Lauryn Hill’s Miseducation album fused the sounds of neo-soul, reggae, R&B and Hip Hop to create an album unlike anything similar to that which was created during the “bling” era. The 16 track classic was a mainstream hit, mainly because of the cross over appeal of singles like “Everything Is Everything”, “Doo Wop(That Thing}”, Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You” and “Ex-Factor”, with production courtesy of Ms, Hill herself.

Supreme shout out to Ms, Hill for this timeless piece of Hip Hop history!

The post Today in Hip Hop History: Lauryn Hill Dropped Her Solo Debut Album ‘The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill’ 24 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Today in Hip Hop History: Tha Alkaholiks Dropped Their Debut Album ’21 & Over’ 29 Years Ago

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On this date in 1993, J-Ro, Tash, and E-Swift, the West Coast collective known as Tha Alkaholiks, released their premiere album 21 & Over on Steve Rifkind’s Loud/RCA imprint.

Founded by West Coast legend King Tee, Tha Alkaholiks and their music are recognized as the epitome of Cali party music, with the clinking bottles and drunken burps as the backdrop. The 21 & Over project served as one of the few examples of the West Coast Hip Hop that wasn’t oversaturated with California gang life. Instead, Tha Liks were a part of the Cali movement of MCs who had to prove their lyrical skills were competitive when compared to their East Coast counterparts.

The ten-track classic is less than 40 minutes in length, but the drunken style theme is maintained throughout the entire project, with sure shot singles like “Last Call”, “Make Room” and “Likwit” that solidified Tha Liks as a force from the West that continues to be recognized for their contribution to the game.

Salute to King Tee and the crew for churning out this timeless Hip Hop classic!

The post Today in Hip Hop History: Tha Alkaholiks Dropped Their Debut Album ’21 & Over’ 29 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Today In Hip Hop History: 50 Cent Arrested On Drug Charges 28 Years Ago

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On this date in 1994, before becoming one of Hip Hop’s top execs, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, who was then known as “Boo Boo”, was arrested on a direct sale of a controlled substance charge after selling four vials of crack cocaine to an undercover officer. Weeks later, he was arrested again when police raided his home and found heroin, ten ounces of crack cocaine, and a starter pistol.

50 was sentenced to three to nine years in prison, but because the charge was a non-violent offense, opted out to the SHOCK program, a bootcamp-like diversion program for first-time, non-violent offenders, where the would=be superstar completed a six-month program.

Soon after his release, Fif was introduced to Jam Master Jay(RIP) and the rest is history. 50 Cent has morphed into a entertainment mogul, with his projects in music and film receiving unprecedented reviews for someone who began as a gangster rapper from Southside Jamaica.

The post Today In Hip Hop History: 50 Cent Arrested On Drug Charges 28 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Happy 56th Birthday To Wu Tang Clan Co-Founder The GZA!

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The “genius” of the iconic WTC is celebrating his 56th born day today.

On this date in 1966, Gary Grice, better known to the rap world as the “GZA”, was born in Brooklyn, New York, and is now recognized as one of the most celebrated lyricists to ever grace the mic in Hip Hop.

Before the Wu-Tang Clan formed like Voltron, the GZA began his career as “The Genius”, signing a deal with Cold Chillin’ Records, where he released Words From The Genius in 1991. After an unsuccessful solo career, GZA joined forces with his cousin Robert “RZA” Diggs and created the world-famous Wu the following year and the rest is history. Wu-Tang Clan went on to become a multiplatinum group that is arguably the best Hip Hop collective of all time.

GZA went on the release four more solo projects and has even released a series on Netflix entitled Liquid Science, with the title being a play off of his Liquid Swords albums.

Peace and happy degree day to Allah Justice on his 54th birthday and many more hereafter!

The post Happy 56th Birthday To Wu Tang Clan Co-Founder The GZA! appeared first on The Source.

Happy 54th Birthday To Wu Tang Clan Co-Founder The GZA!

by
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The “genius” of the iconic WTC is celebrating his 54th born day today.

On this date in 1966, Gary Grice, better known to the rap world as the “GZA”, was born in Brooklyn, New York, and is now recognized as one of the most celebrated lyricists to ever grace the mic in Hip Hop.

Before the Wu-Tang Clan formed like Voltron, the GZA began his career as “The Genius”, signing a deal with Cold Chillin’ Records, where he released Words From The Genius in 1991. After an unsuccessful solo career, GZA joined forces with his cousin Robert “RZA” Diggs and created the world-famous Wu the following year and the rest is history. Wu-Tang Clan went on to become a multiplatinum group that is arguably the best Hip Hop collective of all time.

GZA went on the release four more solo projects and has even released a series on Netflix entitled Liquid Science, with the title being a play off of his Liquid Swords albums.

Peace and happy degree day to Allah Justice on his 54th birthday and many more hereafter!

The post Happy 54th Birthday To Wu Tang Clan Co-Founder The GZA! appeared first on The Source.

Today In Hip Hop History: J Dilla’s First Posthumous LP ‘The Shining’ Was Released 16 Years Ago

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On this day in Hip Hop history, The Source Magazine celebrates the 16th anniversary of the late great J Dilla’s first posthumous album The Shining. This relic of the culture is one of Hip Hop’s more cherished albums. In its “unfinished” glory, The Shining serves as the first LP that Jay Dee spits on since his debut Welcome 2 Detroit in 2001.

As J. Dilla’s time on this Earth was coming to a close, he was persistently working on what would become his final masterpiece. Unable to finish on his own, Dilla called upon fellow Detroit artist Karriem Riggins to put the final touches on the project for him. With Riggins acting as if inside Dilla’s head, this style of completion brought about an interestingly unique sound for the album. Although some may call it “disjointed”, the warm and unpolished mastering of this album give it the nostalgic quality of a Golden Age LP.

With features from Common, D’Angelo, and Black Thought this album is a staple of Hip Hop soul. Dilla’s trademark smooth cut production beefed up with live instrumentation created a sound that showed a matured J. Dilla more refined than before. Short and to the point, like the majority of his work, this project is project was the perfect remedy to aid the loss of one of the most loved and respected figures in Hip Hop.

Commercially, the album was met with success as well as critical acclaim. Despite being put out by the independent Barely Breaking Even Records, The Shining peaked at #103 on the Billboard 200 chart and #35 on the Top R&B/Hip Hop chart. Although sales may have not been on par with the hit albums of the time, Dilla’s work still received a momentous amount of praise and admiration on his phantom album.

The post Today In Hip Hop History: J Dilla’s First Posthumous LP ‘The Shining’ Was Released 16 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Today in Hip-Hop History: The Clipse’s Debut LP ‘Lord Willin’ Turns 20 Years Old!

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Two decades ago today, Terrence and Gene Thorton aka Pusha T and Malice put out Lord Willin’, The Clipse’s debut album that helped them solidify their spots within honorable mention of some of the best lyricists in the game.

Produced exclusively by the Neptunes on Pharrell Williams’ Star Trak imprint, the album displayed The Clipse’s microphone prowess, which helps the squares navigate through their cocaine-flooded street slang. Along with artists like Timbaland and Magoo, Missy Elliot, and Pharrell, The Clipse was an intricate part of establishing VA as one of the East Coast’s strongholds in Hip Hop, which made room for artists like Chris Brown and Wale to add on to the legacy.

Some of the most memorable gems from the Twin Thorton’s first album include “Cot Damn” featuring their Re-Up Gang affiliates Ab-Liva and Philly’s Roscoe P. Coldchain, “When The Last Time” with their Star Trak team members Kelis and Pharrell, and the infamous “Grindin’” with remixes featuring Noreaga, and another infamous duo, Lil Wayne and Birdman.

Salute to Pusha, No Malice, Pharrell, and the rest of the Star Trak team for pushing out this timeless classic!

The post Today in Hip-Hop History: The Clipse’s Debut LP ‘Lord Willin’ Turns 20 Years Old! appeared first on The Source.

Today in Hip-Hop History: T.I. Dropped His Second Album ‘Trap Muzik’ 19 Years Ago

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On this date in Hip Hop History, the self-proclaimed “King of the South” released his sophomore album aptly titled Trap Muzik on Atlantic Records in conjunction with Tip’s newly formed Grand Hustle Records.

This was a big improvement from T.I.’s I’m Serious debut release, with guest appearances from the likes of Jazzy Pha, 8 Ball & MJG, Bun B, and T.I’s “In-house” producer DJ Toomp executive producing the album. Hit singles such as “Rubber Band Man,” “Be Easy,” and “Let’s Get Away” led T.I. to his first certified platinum plaque.

Also, T.I. introduced the concept of the “trap” in the album, revealing, “It’s another outlook on the trap. Before, trappin’ was cool, but now trappin’ ain’t cool. It’s necessary for some, but no, it ain’t cool – even if you are a hustler. All the hustlers I know – sellin’ dope is the last thing they wanna do. If you a real hustler, you gon’ move on to bigger and better things.”

Salute to T.I., Jason Geter, DJ Toomp, and everyone else involved with this timeless piece of Hip Hop history!

The post Today in Hip-Hop History: T.I. Dropped His Second Album ‘Trap Muzik’ 19 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Today in Hip-Hop History: T.I. Dropped His Second Album ‘Trap Muzik’ 19 Years Ago

by
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On this date in Hip Hop History, the self-proclaimed “King of the South” released his sophomore album aptly titled Trap Muzik on Atlantic Records in conjunction with Tip’s newly formed Grand Hustle Records.

This was a big improvement from T.I.’s I’m Serious debut release, with guest appearances from the likes of Jazzy Pha, 8 Ball & MJG, Bun B, and T.I’s “In-house” producer DJ Toomp executive producing the album. Hit singles such as “Rubber Band Man,” “Be Easy,” and “Let’s Get Away” led T.I. to his first certified platinum plaque.

Also, T.I. introduced the concept of the “trap” in the album, revealing, “It’s another outlook on the trap. Before, trappin’ was cool, but now trappin’ ain’t cool. It’s necessary for some, but no, it ain’t cool – even if you are a hustler. All the hustlers I know – sellin’ dope is the last thing they wanna do. If you a real hustler, you gon’ move on to bigger and better things.”

Salute to T.I., Jason Geter, DJ Toomp, and everyone else involved with this timeless piece of Hip Hop history!

The post Today in Hip-Hop History: T.I. Dropped His Second Album ‘Trap Muzik’ 19 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.

Today In Hip Hop History: Mobb Deep Dropped Their Fourth LP ‘Murda Muzik’ 23 Years Ago

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On this day in 1999, Mobb Deep released their fourth LP, Murda Muzik. Coming after a three-year pause and numerous release date push-backs, Murda Muzik did everything but disappoint. Peaking at #3 on the Billboard 200 chart and shipping 1,000,000 copies in the year of its release prove that commercially this album was a success. The album also earned the #6 spot on the Canadian album charts.

Aside from its monetary success, the album was a hit. During a time in rap where Diddy and Master P were calling the shots, a project of this caliber came with much surprise and admiration. Havoc and Prodigy‘s stark realism and imagery depicting the darker side of the streets brought a necessary contrast to a game flooded with gold watch/diamond chain rap. Havoc’s style of production, although the majority unchanged from his previous work, was also a shift away from the norm of the ’99 to the 2000. This album has most definitely earned its respect and acclaim.

Rest in Peace to Prodigy and salute to Hav and the rest of the Mobb for this piece of Hip Hop history!

The post Today In Hip Hop History: Mobb Deep Dropped Their Fourth LP ‘Murda Muzik’ 23 Years Ago appeared first on The Source.