The Sugar Hill/Electro Funk Era (1980-1983)
The Sugar Hill label's first record was "Rapper's Delight" (1979) by The Sugarhill Gang, which was also the first Top 40 hip hop single. Afterwards The Sequence, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, Funky Four Plus One, Crash Crew, Treacherous Three, and the West Street Mob, joined the label.
In 1982, Bronx based producer Afrika Bambaataa released the seminal track "Planet Rock", which contained elements of Kraftwerk's "Trans-Europe Express" (from the album of the same name) and "Numbers" (from Kraftwerk's 1981 Computer World album)"Planet Rock" is widely regarded as a turning point in the electro genre.1982, proved a prolific year in electro with releases by artists including Planet Patrol, Warp 9, Man Parrish, Tyrone Brunson and The Jonzun Crew. In 1983, Hashim created the influential electro funk tune "Al-Naafiysh (The Soul)" which became Cutting Record's first release in November 1983. At the time Hashim was influenced by Man Parrish's "Hip Hop, Be Bop". Also in 1983, Herbie Hancock, in collaboration with Grand Mixer D.ST, released the hit single "Rockit". Notable Artists:Melle Mell,Newcleus,Egyptian Lover.
The Golden Age/New School Era (1984-1986)
The era of when all aspects of hip-hop(rapping, dancing, DJing, concerts,etc.) were equally popular.
The new school of hip hop was a movement in hip hop music starting 1983–84 with the early records of Run-D.M.C. and LL Cool J. Like the hip hop preceding it, it came predominately from New York City. The new school was initially characterized in form by drum machine led minimalism, often tinged with elements of rock. It was notable for taunts and boasts about rapping, and socio-political commentary, both delivered in an aggressive, self-assertive style. In image as in song its artists projected a tough, cool, street b-boy attitude. New school artists made shorter songs that could more easily gain radio play, and more cohesive LPs than their old school counterparts. By 1986 their releases began to establish the hip hop album as a fixture of the mainstream. Against this, Run-D.M.C., The Beastie Boys and the label Def Jam were "consciously hardcore", "a reaction against the populist trend in hip hop at the time", and "an explosive emergence of an underground alternative". Run-D.M.C.'s 1983 two-song release "It's like That"/"Sucker MCs" "completely changed hip-hop" "rendering everything that preceded it distinctly old school with one fell swoop. Run-D.M.C. wore street clothes, tracksuits, sneakers, one even wore glasses. Their only possible concession to an image extraneous to that of kids on the street was the stylistic flourish of black fedoras atop their heads. This stood in sharp contrast to the popular artists of the time, who had variously bedecked themselves with feathers, suede boots, jerri curls, and red or even pink leather suits.
Russell Simmons; he ran Rush Artist Management, now Rush Communications, which as well as handling Run-D.M.C., managed the Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Whodini. Simmons also co-owned Def Jam Recordings, an important new school label, with Rick Rubin. Simmons rose with Def Jam to become one of the biggest moguls in rap, while Rubin claimed credit for introducing radio-friendly brevity and song structure to hip hop. Def Jam's first 12-inch release was the minimalist drum machine breakdown "I Need A Beat" by LL Cool J (1984). Perhaps rock fan Rubin's natural protégés were the Beastie Boys, sampling AC/DC on their Rock Hard EP on Def Jam in 1984, and recording a Run-D.M.C. outtake and a heavy metal parody on their hugely commercially successful debut album Licensed To Ill (Def Jam, 1986). Notable Artists: Fat Boys, UTFO, Doug E. Fresh & The Get Fresh Crew
The Hype Era (1987-1989)
The days of high-top fades, James Brown loops, fat gold chains and matching sweatsuit / sneaker outfits.
The Juice Crew was a hip hop collective of largely Queensbridge-based artists in the mid- to late-1980s. Founded by producer Marley Marl and radio DJ Mr. Magic and housed by Tyrone William's Cold Chillin' Records, the Juice Crew would introduce New School artists Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Roxanne Shanté and Kool G Rap. The crew produced many answer records - as well as the "posse cut", The Symphony (song).
Philly hip-hop was prominent during this time with artists DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Steady B,Three Times Dope being wave of Philadelphia-area emcees to gain notoriety in the mid to late 1980s.
Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor and the group Salt-n-Pepa (then known as Super Nature) recorded a response to Doug E. Fresh & The Get Fresh Crew's "The Show" called "The Show Stoppa." Hurby would also go on to produce Dana Dane, Sweet Tee, Kwamé, and others.
Notable Artists: Slick Rick,EPMD,Heavy D & The Boyz,Eric B. & Rakim
Political/Conscious Era (1988-1990)
Break out your beads,dashikis and african medallions.
Political hip hop (also political rap) is a sub-genre of hip hop music that developed in the 1980s. Inspired by 1970s political preachers such as The Last Poets and Gil Scott-Heron, Public Enemy were the first political hip hop group.Conscious hip hop or socially conscious hip-hop is a sub-genre of hip hop that challenges the dominant cultural, political, philosophical, and economic consensus. Like several cases within many genres of music,the umbrella term was originally coined by audiences and music critics rather than the actual artists themselves. It is not necessarily overtly political, but it discusses social issues and conflicts. Themes of conscious hip hop include afrocentricity, religion, aversion to crime & violence, culture, the economy, or simple depictions the struggles of ordinary people. Conscious hip hop aims to subtly inform the public about social issues and having them form their own opinions instead of aggressively forcing ideas and demanding actions from them.
The Native Tongues is a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s hip-hop artists known for their positive-minded, good-natured Afrocentric lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and later jazz-influenced beats. Its principal members are the Jungle Brothers, De La Soul, and A Tribe Called Quest. The collective was also closely tied to the Universal Zulu Nation.
The Stop the Violence Movement was begun by rapper KRS-One in 1989 in response to violence in the hip hop and African American communities.
In 1988, during a concert by Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy, a young fan was killed in a fight. The killing occurred shortly after Scott La Rock, a founding member of Boogie Down Productions, was killed in a shooting. KRS-One responded to these deaths by forming the Stop the Violence Movement to advance a vision of hip hop that would restore what he called hip hop's original principles to the music industry. Composed of some of the biggest stars in contemporary East Coast hip hop, the movement released a single, "Self Destruction", in 1989, with all proceeds going to the National Urban League.
Notable Artists: X-Clan,Queen Latifah,Brand Nubian
Gangsta Rap/Horn Era(1990-1993)
Gangsta rap is a subgenre of hip hop music that was popularized in the later part of the 1980s by groups like N.W.A. After the national attention that Ice-T and N.W.A attracted in the late 1980s and early 1990s, gangsta rap became the most commercially lucrative subgenre of hip hop.
In the early 1990s, former N.W.A member Ice Cube would further influence gangsta rap with his hardcore, socio-political solo albums, which suggested the potential of gangsta rap as a political medium to give voice to inner-city youth. N.W.A's second album, Efil4zaggin (1991) (released after Ice Cube's departure from the group), broke ground as the first gangsta rap album to reach #1 on the Billboard pop charts.
Aside from N.W.A. and Ice T, Too Short (from Oakland, California), Kid Frost, and the South Gate-based Latino group Cypress Hill were pioneering West Coast rappers. Above the Law also played an important role in the gangsta rap movement, as their 1990 debut album Livin' Like Hustlers, as well as their guest appearance on N.W.A's 1991 Efil4zaggin, foreshadowing the dominance of the genre in 1990s starting with Dr. Dre's The Chronic.
Houston, Texas rap group, the Geto Boys came out around the late 80s and highly influenced by N.W.A, made songs with similar themes which included songs with crime and violence even predating Mafioso rap music with the song "Scarface" centered around selling cocaine and killing rival gang members. The Geto Boys are also known for being the first rap group to sample from the movie Scarface, which became the staple for lots of mafioso rappers to sample from.
Stetsasonic, A Tribe Called Quest, Pete Rock & CL Smooth and Gang Starr played a major role in the merging of elements from jazz into hip hop music (also known as jazz rap). Jazz rap is a sub-genre of hip hop that incorporates jazz influences, developed in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The lyrics are often based on political consciousness, Afrocentricity, and general positivism.
Musically, the rhythms have been typically those of hip hop rather than jazz, over which are placed repetitive phrases of jazz instrumentation: trumpet, double bass, etc. The amount of improvisation varies between artists: some groups improvise lyrics and solos, while many of them do not. A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul and Digable Planets are pioneers of the jazz rap genre.
Notable Artists: Compton's Most Wanted,Scarface,Dream Warriors
Boom Bap/G-Funk Era (1993-1996)
In hip-hop music, boom bap is a style of record production. "Boom bap" is an onomatopoeia for the drum sounds prominent in boom bap. It is usually recognized by an acoustic drum loop/break and a chopped up sample style that became widely used in the early 90's as opposed to the old school type synth beats. t is associated with producers from New York City in the late 1980s and early 1990s, such as DJ Premier, Pete Rock, KRS-One, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, EPMD, Marley Marl, Large Professor, Prince Paul and RZA's classic Wu-Tang sounding style.
During this period, several New York City rappers rising from the local underground scene, began releasing noteworthy albums in the early and mid nineties. Black Moon's 1993 debut, Enta Da Stage, was one of the first major recordings to emerge from New York's hardcore hip hop scene. The album has been credited with helping spark trends that would later come to characterize this period in East Coast hip hop. Nas's 1994 debut album Illmatic has also been noted as a creative high point of the East Coast hip hop scene, and featured production from such renowned New York-based producers as Large Professor, Pete Rock and DJ Premier.[5] Meanwhile, The Wu-Tang Clan and Mobb Deep became pillars in New York's hardcore hip hop scene, achieving widespread critical acclaim for their landmark albums, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993) and The Infamous (1995) and spawning legions of imitators . Along with Wu-Tang Clan, Nas and Mobb Deep all but invented 90s New York rap. Those three...designed the manner and style in which New York artists would address...rap’s hottest topics: drugs and violence.
G-funk, or gangsta-funk, is a sub-genre of hip hop music that emerged from West Coast gangsta rap in the early 1990s.
G-funk, given its name by Laylaw from Lawhouse Production, became the most popular genre of hip hop in the early 1990s. Although G-funk originated in Los Angeles, the sub-genre drew a large amount of influence from the earlier Bay Area-based sound known as Mobb music of the mid- to late 1980s, pioneered by Oakland rappers like Too Short. Too Short had experimented with looping sounds from classic P-Funk records over bass-heavy tracks during this period. However, unlike Bay Area Mobb music, Southern California-born G-funk used more portamento synthesizers and less live instrumentation. Too Short's lazy, drawl-heavy delivery was also a major influence on later G-funk rappers like Snoop Dogg.
When Dre's 1992 Death Row Records debut The Chronic was released, the album was immensely successful, and consequently made G-funk the most popular sub-genre of hip hop. Another early G-funk pioneer, also from Compton, was rapper and producer DJ Quik, who was already using P-Funk instrumentals as early as 1991 in his debut album Quik Is the Name, though his most recognizable G-funk album would be 1995's Safe & Sound and also Battlecat, whose aesthetic is a progression from the early-'90s G-Funk sound pioneered by the group Above the Law, characterized by fat synth bass lines and soulful keys. Other well known singers that used G-funk were Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Tupac Shakur, Nate Dogg, Mac Dre, Spice 1, BG Knocc Out, Dresta, Rappin' 4-Tay and Warren G. Warren G's first album was called Regulate...G Funk Era, which featured Nate Dogg - who is known as the king of g-funk.
Notable Artists: Snoop Doggy Dogg,M.O.P.,Redman
The Bling Era (1997-1999)
Starting in the mid- to late 1990s, hip-hop culture embraced some major designers and established a new connection with classic fashion. Brands such as Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger all gained an economic boost from tapping into hip hop culture and gave up very little in return. Moving into the new millennium, hip hop fashion consisted of baggy shirts, jeans, and jerseys.
In early 1997, Puff Daddy had begun recording his own solo debut album. The first single, "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down," peaked at number one on the rap, R&B, and pop charts that spring. In response to Biggie’s death, the label rush-released a Puff Daddy tribute song, "I'll Be Missing You", which featured Biggie's widow, Faith Evans, and Bad Boy's R&B singing group 112. The single topped the charts for eleven weeks and became the hasty second single from Combs’ album, No Way Out, which was released in the summer and sold seven million copies. Mase, Combs’ newest protégé, in the meantime was immediately thrust into the void that Biggie left. His own debut album, Harlem World, also released the same year, would go 4x platinum. Due to the successive successes of Life After Death, No Way Out and Harlem World, by the end of 1997, Bad Boy as a label and brand name had hit a commercial peak. During this time, the label began to promote its latest signing—the Yonkers-based act, The L.O.X., who had been prominently featured on various Bad Boy releases that year.
In 1997, Master P's No Limit records had gained momentum with bestselling, if not critically acclaimed, releases from TRU (Tru 2 Da Game), Mia X's Unlady Like, which went gold despite producing no hit singles, and Mystikal's platinum-selling Unpredictable.
As No Limit's popularity and mainstream coverage increased, so did its roster. In addition to incumbents like Silkk the Shocker, C-Murder, Big Ed, Mia X and Mystikal, Master P kept busy by adding individual producers DJ Daryl, Randy Jefferson, K-Lou, Dez, Carlos Stephens aka C as well as his main production team Beats by the Pound, along with rappers Mac, Mercedes, Soulja Slim, Full Blooded, Fiend, Magic, Skull Duggery, 2-4-1, R&B quartet Sons of Funk, kiddie duo Lil Soldiers, Short Circuit, Oakland-based pair Steady Mobb'n, plus Ghetto Commission, Prime Suspects, and the Gambino Family, nearly all of whom would put out records in 1998. Master P's own release that year, MP Da Last Don, which featured him on a lenticular cover, reached number one on the Billboard 200 after moving 495,000 copies in its first week, and sold 4 million units overall, making it the best-selling album of his career.
At the peak of its popularity, No Limit became notorious for producing lengthy albums that consisted of up to 20 tracks and featured numerous cameo appearances by other No Limit artists (Fiend's 1998 release, There's One in Every Family, for instance, contained fifteen), in addition to the cheap packaging of its CDs in cases that consisted mostly of cardboard stock and a small amount of plastic, as well as spearheading the movement of garish Pen & Pixel-designed album covers.
In 1998, Cash Money Records signed a $30 million pressing and distribution with $3 million advance contract with Universal, entitling the label to 85% of its royalties, 50% of its publishing revenues and ownership of all masters.
Lil Wayne started as a member of the Hot Boyz and would become the label's best selling artist.
After the deal Cash Money records would reach success it hadn't come close to previously. The release of Juvenile's 1998 album 400 Degreez, which was certified 4X Platinum by the RIAA, solidified Cash Money as a powerful label in the national hip-hop scene. Later albums in 1999 such as the Hot Boys' Guerrilla Warfare, B.G.'s Chopper City in the Ghetto, and Lil Wayne's Tha Block Is Hot also saw great chart success and furthered the label's reputation. These albums contained major Billboard hits such as Juvenile's "Back That Azz Up" (#19 on the Billboard Hot 100), B.G.'s "Bling Bling" (#36), and the Hot Boys' "I Need a Hot Girl" (#65). All of Cash Money's albums and singles in this period were solely produced by the label's in-house producer, Mannie Fresh.
Notable Artists: Jay-Z,Foxy Brown,The Lox
History Of Southern Hip-Hop
http://www.bgol.us/forum/index.php?threads/history-of-southern-hip-hop.774907/
The Sugar Hill label's first record was "Rapper's Delight" (1979) by The Sugarhill Gang, which was also the first Top 40 hip hop single. Afterwards The Sequence, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, Funky Four Plus One, Crash Crew, Treacherous Three, and the West Street Mob, joined the label.
In 1982, Bronx based producer Afrika Bambaataa released the seminal track "Planet Rock", which contained elements of Kraftwerk's "Trans-Europe Express" (from the album of the same name) and "Numbers" (from Kraftwerk's 1981 Computer World album)"Planet Rock" is widely regarded as a turning point in the electro genre.1982, proved a prolific year in electro with releases by artists including Planet Patrol, Warp 9, Man Parrish, Tyrone Brunson and The Jonzun Crew. In 1983, Hashim created the influential electro funk tune "Al-Naafiysh (The Soul)" which became Cutting Record's first release in November 1983. At the time Hashim was influenced by Man Parrish's "Hip Hop, Be Bop". Also in 1983, Herbie Hancock, in collaboration with Grand Mixer D.ST, released the hit single "Rockit". Notable Artists:Melle Mell,Newcleus,Egyptian Lover.
The Golden Age/New School Era (1984-1986)
The era of when all aspects of hip-hop(rapping, dancing, DJing, concerts,etc.) were equally popular.
The new school of hip hop was a movement in hip hop music starting 1983–84 with the early records of Run-D.M.C. and LL Cool J. Like the hip hop preceding it, it came predominately from New York City. The new school was initially characterized in form by drum machine led minimalism, often tinged with elements of rock. It was notable for taunts and boasts about rapping, and socio-political commentary, both delivered in an aggressive, self-assertive style. In image as in song its artists projected a tough, cool, street b-boy attitude. New school artists made shorter songs that could more easily gain radio play, and more cohesive LPs than their old school counterparts. By 1986 their releases began to establish the hip hop album as a fixture of the mainstream. Against this, Run-D.M.C., The Beastie Boys and the label Def Jam were "consciously hardcore", "a reaction against the populist trend in hip hop at the time", and "an explosive emergence of an underground alternative". Run-D.M.C.'s 1983 two-song release "It's like That"/"Sucker MCs" "completely changed hip-hop" "rendering everything that preceded it distinctly old school with one fell swoop. Run-D.M.C. wore street clothes, tracksuits, sneakers, one even wore glasses. Their only possible concession to an image extraneous to that of kids on the street was the stylistic flourish of black fedoras atop their heads. This stood in sharp contrast to the popular artists of the time, who had variously bedecked themselves with feathers, suede boots, jerri curls, and red or even pink leather suits.
Russell Simmons; he ran Rush Artist Management, now Rush Communications, which as well as handling Run-D.M.C., managed the Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Whodini. Simmons also co-owned Def Jam Recordings, an important new school label, with Rick Rubin. Simmons rose with Def Jam to become one of the biggest moguls in rap, while Rubin claimed credit for introducing radio-friendly brevity and song structure to hip hop. Def Jam's first 12-inch release was the minimalist drum machine breakdown "I Need A Beat" by LL Cool J (1984). Perhaps rock fan Rubin's natural protégés were the Beastie Boys, sampling AC/DC on their Rock Hard EP on Def Jam in 1984, and recording a Run-D.M.C. outtake and a heavy metal parody on their hugely commercially successful debut album Licensed To Ill (Def Jam, 1986). Notable Artists: Fat Boys, UTFO, Doug E. Fresh & The Get Fresh Crew
The Hype Era (1987-1989)
The days of high-top fades, James Brown loops, fat gold chains and matching sweatsuit / sneaker outfits.
The Juice Crew was a hip hop collective of largely Queensbridge-based artists in the mid- to late-1980s. Founded by producer Marley Marl and radio DJ Mr. Magic and housed by Tyrone William's Cold Chillin' Records, the Juice Crew would introduce New School artists Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Roxanne Shanté and Kool G Rap. The crew produced many answer records - as well as the "posse cut", The Symphony (song).
Philly hip-hop was prominent during this time with artists DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Steady B,Three Times Dope being wave of Philadelphia-area emcees to gain notoriety in the mid to late 1980s.
Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor and the group Salt-n-Pepa (then known as Super Nature) recorded a response to Doug E. Fresh & The Get Fresh Crew's "The Show" called "The Show Stoppa." Hurby would also go on to produce Dana Dane, Sweet Tee, Kwamé, and others.
Notable Artists: Slick Rick,EPMD,Heavy D & The Boyz,Eric B. & Rakim
Political/Conscious Era (1988-1990)
Break out your beads,dashikis and african medallions.
Political hip hop (also political rap) is a sub-genre of hip hop music that developed in the 1980s. Inspired by 1970s political preachers such as The Last Poets and Gil Scott-Heron, Public Enemy were the first political hip hop group.Conscious hip hop or socially conscious hip-hop is a sub-genre of hip hop that challenges the dominant cultural, political, philosophical, and economic consensus. Like several cases within many genres of music,the umbrella term was originally coined by audiences and music critics rather than the actual artists themselves. It is not necessarily overtly political, but it discusses social issues and conflicts. Themes of conscious hip hop include afrocentricity, religion, aversion to crime & violence, culture, the economy, or simple depictions the struggles of ordinary people. Conscious hip hop aims to subtly inform the public about social issues and having them form their own opinions instead of aggressively forcing ideas and demanding actions from them.
The Native Tongues is a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s hip-hop artists known for their positive-minded, good-natured Afrocentric lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and later jazz-influenced beats. Its principal members are the Jungle Brothers, De La Soul, and A Tribe Called Quest. The collective was also closely tied to the Universal Zulu Nation.
The Stop the Violence Movement was begun by rapper KRS-One in 1989 in response to violence in the hip hop and African American communities.
In 1988, during a concert by Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy, a young fan was killed in a fight. The killing occurred shortly after Scott La Rock, a founding member of Boogie Down Productions, was killed in a shooting. KRS-One responded to these deaths by forming the Stop the Violence Movement to advance a vision of hip hop that would restore what he called hip hop's original principles to the music industry. Composed of some of the biggest stars in contemporary East Coast hip hop, the movement released a single, "Self Destruction", in 1989, with all proceeds going to the National Urban League.
Notable Artists: X-Clan,Queen Latifah,Brand Nubian
Gangsta Rap/Horn Era(1990-1993)
Gangsta rap is a subgenre of hip hop music that was popularized in the later part of the 1980s by groups like N.W.A. After the national attention that Ice-T and N.W.A attracted in the late 1980s and early 1990s, gangsta rap became the most commercially lucrative subgenre of hip hop.
In the early 1990s, former N.W.A member Ice Cube would further influence gangsta rap with his hardcore, socio-political solo albums, which suggested the potential of gangsta rap as a political medium to give voice to inner-city youth. N.W.A's second album, Efil4zaggin (1991) (released after Ice Cube's departure from the group), broke ground as the first gangsta rap album to reach #1 on the Billboard pop charts.
Aside from N.W.A. and Ice T, Too Short (from Oakland, California), Kid Frost, and the South Gate-based Latino group Cypress Hill were pioneering West Coast rappers. Above the Law also played an important role in the gangsta rap movement, as their 1990 debut album Livin' Like Hustlers, as well as their guest appearance on N.W.A's 1991 Efil4zaggin, foreshadowing the dominance of the genre in 1990s starting with Dr. Dre's The Chronic.
Houston, Texas rap group, the Geto Boys came out around the late 80s and highly influenced by N.W.A, made songs with similar themes which included songs with crime and violence even predating Mafioso rap music with the song "Scarface" centered around selling cocaine and killing rival gang members. The Geto Boys are also known for being the first rap group to sample from the movie Scarface, which became the staple for lots of mafioso rappers to sample from.
Stetsasonic, A Tribe Called Quest, Pete Rock & CL Smooth and Gang Starr played a major role in the merging of elements from jazz into hip hop music (also known as jazz rap). Jazz rap is a sub-genre of hip hop that incorporates jazz influences, developed in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The lyrics are often based on political consciousness, Afrocentricity, and general positivism.
Musically, the rhythms have been typically those of hip hop rather than jazz, over which are placed repetitive phrases of jazz instrumentation: trumpet, double bass, etc. The amount of improvisation varies between artists: some groups improvise lyrics and solos, while many of them do not. A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul and Digable Planets are pioneers of the jazz rap genre.
Notable Artists: Compton's Most Wanted,Scarface,Dream Warriors
Boom Bap/G-Funk Era (1993-1996)
In hip-hop music, boom bap is a style of record production. "Boom bap" is an onomatopoeia for the drum sounds prominent in boom bap. It is usually recognized by an acoustic drum loop/break and a chopped up sample style that became widely used in the early 90's as opposed to the old school type synth beats. t is associated with producers from New York City in the late 1980s and early 1990s, such as DJ Premier, Pete Rock, KRS-One, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, EPMD, Marley Marl, Large Professor, Prince Paul and RZA's classic Wu-Tang sounding style.
During this period, several New York City rappers rising from the local underground scene, began releasing noteworthy albums in the early and mid nineties. Black Moon's 1993 debut, Enta Da Stage, was one of the first major recordings to emerge from New York's hardcore hip hop scene. The album has been credited with helping spark trends that would later come to characterize this period in East Coast hip hop. Nas's 1994 debut album Illmatic has also been noted as a creative high point of the East Coast hip hop scene, and featured production from such renowned New York-based producers as Large Professor, Pete Rock and DJ Premier.[5] Meanwhile, The Wu-Tang Clan and Mobb Deep became pillars in New York's hardcore hip hop scene, achieving widespread critical acclaim for their landmark albums, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993) and The Infamous (1995) and spawning legions of imitators . Along with Wu-Tang Clan, Nas and Mobb Deep all but invented 90s New York rap. Those three...designed the manner and style in which New York artists would address...rap’s hottest topics: drugs and violence.
G-funk, or gangsta-funk, is a sub-genre of hip hop music that emerged from West Coast gangsta rap in the early 1990s.
G-funk, given its name by Laylaw from Lawhouse Production, became the most popular genre of hip hop in the early 1990s. Although G-funk originated in Los Angeles, the sub-genre drew a large amount of influence from the earlier Bay Area-based sound known as Mobb music of the mid- to late 1980s, pioneered by Oakland rappers like Too Short. Too Short had experimented with looping sounds from classic P-Funk records over bass-heavy tracks during this period. However, unlike Bay Area Mobb music, Southern California-born G-funk used more portamento synthesizers and less live instrumentation. Too Short's lazy, drawl-heavy delivery was also a major influence on later G-funk rappers like Snoop Dogg.
When Dre's 1992 Death Row Records debut The Chronic was released, the album was immensely successful, and consequently made G-funk the most popular sub-genre of hip hop. Another early G-funk pioneer, also from Compton, was rapper and producer DJ Quik, who was already using P-Funk instrumentals as early as 1991 in his debut album Quik Is the Name, though his most recognizable G-funk album would be 1995's Safe & Sound and also Battlecat, whose aesthetic is a progression from the early-'90s G-Funk sound pioneered by the group Above the Law, characterized by fat synth bass lines and soulful keys. Other well known singers that used G-funk were Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Tupac Shakur, Nate Dogg, Mac Dre, Spice 1, BG Knocc Out, Dresta, Rappin' 4-Tay and Warren G. Warren G's first album was called Regulate...G Funk Era, which featured Nate Dogg - who is known as the king of g-funk.
Notable Artists: Snoop Doggy Dogg,M.O.P.,Redman
The Bling Era (1997-1999)
Starting in the mid- to late 1990s, hip-hop culture embraced some major designers and established a new connection with classic fashion. Brands such as Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger all gained an economic boost from tapping into hip hop culture and gave up very little in return. Moving into the new millennium, hip hop fashion consisted of baggy shirts, jeans, and jerseys.
In early 1997, Puff Daddy had begun recording his own solo debut album. The first single, "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down," peaked at number one on the rap, R&B, and pop charts that spring. In response to Biggie’s death, the label rush-released a Puff Daddy tribute song, "I'll Be Missing You", which featured Biggie's widow, Faith Evans, and Bad Boy's R&B singing group 112. The single topped the charts for eleven weeks and became the hasty second single from Combs’ album, No Way Out, which was released in the summer and sold seven million copies. Mase, Combs’ newest protégé, in the meantime was immediately thrust into the void that Biggie left. His own debut album, Harlem World, also released the same year, would go 4x platinum. Due to the successive successes of Life After Death, No Way Out and Harlem World, by the end of 1997, Bad Boy as a label and brand name had hit a commercial peak. During this time, the label began to promote its latest signing—the Yonkers-based act, The L.O.X., who had been prominently featured on various Bad Boy releases that year.
In 1997, Master P's No Limit records had gained momentum with bestselling, if not critically acclaimed, releases from TRU (Tru 2 Da Game), Mia X's Unlady Like, which went gold despite producing no hit singles, and Mystikal's platinum-selling Unpredictable.
As No Limit's popularity and mainstream coverage increased, so did its roster. In addition to incumbents like Silkk the Shocker, C-Murder, Big Ed, Mia X and Mystikal, Master P kept busy by adding individual producers DJ Daryl, Randy Jefferson, K-Lou, Dez, Carlos Stephens aka C as well as his main production team Beats by the Pound, along with rappers Mac, Mercedes, Soulja Slim, Full Blooded, Fiend, Magic, Skull Duggery, 2-4-1, R&B quartet Sons of Funk, kiddie duo Lil Soldiers, Short Circuit, Oakland-based pair Steady Mobb'n, plus Ghetto Commission, Prime Suspects, and the Gambino Family, nearly all of whom would put out records in 1998. Master P's own release that year, MP Da Last Don, which featured him on a lenticular cover, reached number one on the Billboard 200 after moving 495,000 copies in its first week, and sold 4 million units overall, making it the best-selling album of his career.
At the peak of its popularity, No Limit became notorious for producing lengthy albums that consisted of up to 20 tracks and featured numerous cameo appearances by other No Limit artists (Fiend's 1998 release, There's One in Every Family, for instance, contained fifteen), in addition to the cheap packaging of its CDs in cases that consisted mostly of cardboard stock and a small amount of plastic, as well as spearheading the movement of garish Pen & Pixel-designed album covers.
In 1998, Cash Money Records signed a $30 million pressing and distribution with $3 million advance contract with Universal, entitling the label to 85% of its royalties, 50% of its publishing revenues and ownership of all masters.
Lil Wayne started as a member of the Hot Boyz and would become the label's best selling artist.
After the deal Cash Money records would reach success it hadn't come close to previously. The release of Juvenile's 1998 album 400 Degreez, which was certified 4X Platinum by the RIAA, solidified Cash Money as a powerful label in the national hip-hop scene. Later albums in 1999 such as the Hot Boys' Guerrilla Warfare, B.G.'s Chopper City in the Ghetto, and Lil Wayne's Tha Block Is Hot also saw great chart success and furthered the label's reputation. These albums contained major Billboard hits such as Juvenile's "Back That Azz Up" (#19 on the Billboard Hot 100), B.G.'s "Bling Bling" (#36), and the Hot Boys' "I Need a Hot Girl" (#65). All of Cash Money's albums and singles in this period were solely produced by the label's in-house producer, Mannie Fresh.
Notable Artists: Jay-Z,Foxy Brown,The Lox
History Of Southern Hip-Hop
http://www.bgol.us/forum/index.php?threads/history-of-southern-hip-hop.774907/
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I wonder what their deal looks like now compared to this one.
