On this date in 1975, the Yonkers rapper Jason Phillips, who is best known under his unique Moniker Jadakiss, was born. Al Qaeda Jada is just one degree short of a half century thsi year.
Known for his longstanding tenure in the game alongside his partners Sheek Louch and Styles P under the Bad Boy umbrella, Jadahas made a distinct mark of his own in Hip Hop which began with his first solo album. 2001’s Kiss The Game Goodbye became an instant hit, led by the party anthem “Knock Yourself Out” and the come up slogan for the hood, “We Gonna Make it”.
Jada was probably crowned the de facto King of New York after his stellar performance in Madison Square Garden in The L.O.X.’s VERZUZ win over Dipset.
Suprem born day shout out to Jada! Enjoy today and many more hereafter!!
Rapper/actor and member of the legendary Hip-Hop duo Outkast, Mr. Andre 3000 turns 49 today!
Andre Benjamin is known for his eclectic style and flows, from his start with the Dungeon Family to his movie roles in films like Idlewild and Jimi: All Is by My Side. He has become a household name as a solo artist as well as part of a legendary group and he continues to evolve with the times. Happy Birthday Mr. 3000 from TheSource.com!
Harlem rapper A$AP Rocky has finally been given a trial date in the shooting of A$AP Relli after pleading not guilty.
Rolling Stone has confirmed that Superior Court Judge Karla Kerlin set two preliminary hearing dates for June 28 and August 2, with the trial scheduled to begin on October 21. Rocky, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, was charged with two counts of assault with a semi-automatic firearm and faces up to 24 years in prison if found guilty.
Last year, a judge ruled that there was enough evidence for Mayers to stand trial over the charges.
Rocky allegedly shot his former friend and crew member A$AP Relli during a “heated argument” in Hollywood back in 2021. Relli claimed that the tension grew between the two after Rocky agreed to help one of the deceased crew members’ family, but reportedly never did.
Relli claims that A$AP Rocky arrived to a meeting in an L.A. hotel with multiple men, pointed a gun at his stomach and said: “I’ll kill you right now.” In his testimony he also says that he was shot shortly afterwards and claims Rocky shot him four times, including once in the hand before leaving the scene of the shooting.
A video shown in court during a preliminary hearing included audio of two gunshots around 10 p.m. PT on November 6, 2021, which is a major piece of the prosecution’s evidence of the shooting.
Relli is also suing Rocky and his attorney Joe Tacopina for defamation, accusing them of running a media campaign that says his entire testimony is fabricated.
On this day in Hip Hop history, “The Overweight Lover” Heavy D was born in Mandeville, Jamaica, in 1967. If he were alive today, he’d be 56 years old.
Heavy D, born Dwight Errington Myers, moved to Mount Vernon, New York, in the late 1970s. In the mid-1980s, Heavy D, DJ Eddie F,and dancers T-Roy and G-Wiz signed with Uptown Records and began their journey to fame and adoration as Heavy D & The Boyz. The group’s debut Living Large was released in 1987 and was a marginal success selling 300,000 copies.
The group began to rise in popularity, helping Heavy D to become a pop sensation. The success of the group’s second and third albums, Big Tyme and Peaceful Journey, allowed Heavy D to collaborate with artists like Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, B.B. King, and more. Through the start of the 1990s, Heavy D began making more and more appearances in music videos and on TV, and in films.
In the mid-1990s, Heavy D became the first rapper to run a record label when he became president of Uptown Records. Before becoming president, Heavy D was instrumental in hiring Sean Combs as an intern. He also convinced Andre Harrel to sign Jodeci. As president, Heavy D worked with and developed the boy band Soul for Real and was the executive producer and principal writer for the majority of their debut album. His success as an executive led to him becoming senior vice president of Universal Music.
Heavy D passed away on November 8, 2011, from complications caused by a blood clot in his leg. His final performance at the 2011 BET Hip Hop Awards was his first televised performance in 15 years. Heavy D’s legacy will live on forever in the work he created and the mark he left on the Hip Hop industry as a whole.
On this date in 2013, the media was in a frenzy around the death or the whereabout of Timothy Blair, a rapper from the Bronx who was better known as “Tim Dog”, who is most famously known for his West Coast diss track “Fuck Compton”. However, Tim Dog will now be forever etched in the history books of Hip Hop after being accused of Playing Dead, as described in Elizabeth Greenwood’s best seller about celebrities who are believed to still be alive.
On February 14, 2013, The Source exclusively revealed the death of Tim Dog, but just three months later, mainstream media such as MSNBC and even urban media such as Vice began to question the validity of The Source’s report and even accused “The Bible Of Hip Hop” of aiding Tim Dog in a death fraud scheme.
Tim Dog was wanted in several different jurisdictions around the world for defrauding women out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, so it was suspected that when his death was reported that it was only another one of his schemes to get out repaying one of his defrauded victims. After over a year of research by many different outlets, it was eventually revealed that Tim Dog died from a heart attack in his home in Fulton County, GA on February 14, 2013.
On this date in 2008, Governor David Paterson of New York gave a full and unconditional pardon to Hip Hop icon Ricky “Slick Rick” Walters for attempted murder and weapons convictions to help him avoid deportation.
In 1991, Slick Rick plead guilty to two counts of attempted murder and eight other illegal weapons charges for shooting his cousin and another man, leaving him to serve six years out of a ten-year sentence in a New York State Prison. He was released from prison in 1997 and discharged from parole supervision in 2000. Since then, Walters has been fighting deportation for his convictions.
“Mr. Walters has fully served the sentence imposed upon him for his convictions, had an exemplary disciplinary record while in prison and on parole, and has been living without incident in the community for more than 10 years,” Paterson said in a statement on May 23, 2008. “In that time, he has volunteered at youth outreach programs to counsel youth against violence, and has become a symbol of rehabilitation for many young people.”
Paterson urged immigration officials to grant 43-year-old Walters “relief from deportation” so he is not separated from his wife Mandy and their two teenage children.
Under federal law, legal immigrants of the United States convicted of an aggravated felony or a weapon offense must be deported. For certain offenses, deportation can be avoided by a Governor’s pardon, but for weapon offenses, a non-citizen must make an appeal before an immigration court.
On this day in Hip Hop history, Oakland rap duo The Luniz released their best selling single to date, “I Got 5 On It” from their debut album Operation: Stackola. Although the remainder of the group’s career was not one of much merit, this single was an international hit and is still considered a timeless track of the genre.
Over the years this song has become one of Hip Hop’s stoner anthems. Aside from its West Coast flavor and smoke filled video, the song itself is about a situation that any weed-smoke is familiar with. The record received a ridiculously positive commercial reception ranking #1 in Netherlands, #2 in Germany, #3 in the UK and #8 in the United States. The single also made top ten appearances on the charts of 10 other countries and was certified platinum in the year of its release selling 1,000,000 copies before October 31, 1995.
On this day in Hip Hop history, Eminem released his third, and most successful, studio album, The Marshall Mathers LP.
Executive produced by Dr. Dre and released under Aftermath/Interscope Records, this album sold 1.76 million copies in the first week alone, making it the fast selling album in music history (until 2015 when Adele‘s 25 smashed the record, selling 2.43 million). This success was set up well by Eminem’s previous release The Slim Shady LP, which shocked the world.
If you’ve ever listened to Eminem, you know how he rolls. If you’ve never listened to Eminem, this album may be the perfect amount of overwhelmingly violent and grotesque lyricism to either make you a life-long fan or turn to away forever (Slim Shady himself wouldn’t have it any other way). Eminem even kicks things off with a disclaimer warning any listener of what they’ve gotten themselves into listening to the album. Eminem touches subjects that a sensitive to the American public such as: depression, murder, rape, violence, suicide, mental disorder, drug abuse, homosexuality, and more. As beautifully painful as this album is, it is not for the faint of heart.
No album that speaks on what Eminem did on this project can be put out without ruffling feathers. The controversy that was met by this diamond certified album was monumental and set a precedent in Hip Hop for what you can and cannot say. Due to the ridiculous success of this project the backlash was international. Government officials across the globe had taken public stances against Eminem, his music, his supporters, and all that he stood for. US Senator Lynne Cheney was so up-in-arms against Eminem and his sponsors that she made an official statement against him saying,
“[Eminem is] promoting violence of the most degrading kind against women …[he is] a rap singer who advocates murder and rape.”
Ontario Attorney General Jim Flaherty attempted to keep Eminem from entering the country to perform at his October 26th, 2000 Toronto Skydome show saying,
“I personally don’t want anyone coming to Canada who will come here and advocate violence against women”.
Commercially, this is the most successful rap album of all time. The album is certified diamond in the selling 12.5 million copies in the United States alone. Overseas, the album went multiplatinum in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. It goes without saying that this album was also #1 on charts across the world. The album claimed top spot on music charts in three continents, appearing on charts in four. The album was nominated for two Grammy including Album of Year and Best Rap Album which it won.
The critical response to the album was just as outstanding as its sales. Eminem has been hailed as one of the holy trinity of biggest-selling rappers, the other two being 2Pac and Biggie of course. This album can be said to be the project that earned him his spot in that conversation. Regardless of how dark and twisted the lyrics may have been, the way they were put together was nearly flawless. Each bar spat was masterfully crafted. Slim Shady’s diction and syntax were unparalleled to anything out at the time. He balances both punch line concentrated rap and storytelling so well that this album is less of a compilation of songs and more of an autobiographical narrative describing what was going on in Em’s life at the time this album was written.
Following this project, Eminem went on to release two albums that were only marginally less successful that their predecessor before taking a five year hiatus from releasing music. In 2009 Eminem came back on the scene with three new albums over the next four years, none which were as successful as the first four. Nonetheless, Eminem is one of the greatest and the top selling rapper in the history of the genre. He deserves all accolades that he has been awarded. Take some time out today to listen to his greatest work.
On this date in 1987 in Hip Hop history, Brooklyn rapper Dana Dane dropped his highly anticipated LP Dana Dane With Fame on the Profile imprint. Dana was an original member of the legendary Kangol Crew, which consisted of himself, Omega The Heartbreaker and MC Ricky D, better known to the rap world as Slick Rick. This is why many who don’t know criticized Dane for what they thought was biting Slick Rick’s English accent, but this was actually the M.O. of the Kangol Crew.
The nine-track album wasn’t short on official singles, with the storytelling saga of bad dreams on “Nightmares”, the action-packed story of three stick up girls on the infamous “Delancey Street” and the radio popular single “Cinderfella Dana Dane”, which charted Number 11 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks.
Shout out to super producer Herby Luv Bug, Dana Dane, DJ Clark Kent and everyone else who was a part of making this a Hip Hop classic!
On this date in 1990, original Hit Squad member K-Solo dropped his debut album, Tell The World My Name, on Atlantic Records.
Produced primarily by PMD(Parrish Smith) of EPMD, Tell The World My Name was the launch of Solo’s hardcore delivery, which was his calling card on his introduction into the music biz on EPMD’s “Knick Knack Paddy Wack” off their Unfinished Business album. Solo’s signature spell-out style along with his uncanny storytelling abilities made his first album one of the tope drops of 1990.
Tracks that led the album’s momentum includes the alphabetic “Spellbound”, his prison to the booth saga on “Fugitive” and the timeless “Your Moms In My Business”, which was a catchphrase in teenage love situations of that era.
Salute to K-Solo, EPMD, DJ Scratch and even Al B.Sure for their contributions to this integral piece of Hip Hop history!
