From East Point, GA to world domination, rap duo Outkast changed the way we look at southern Hip Hop. André “André 3000” Benjamin and Antwan “Big Boi” Patton created Outkast  as high school students in 1991. They released their debut album Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik in 1994. The single “Player’s Ball” reached number one on the Billboard. They then honed in on their sound to […]

Born: Kimberly Jones; New York, New York, 11 July 1977 Early in her career, Lil’ Kim, was one of the most distinctive female voices of hip hop in the late 1990s. Lil’ Kim’s explicit and sexuality lyrics made her an icon in an era that starved for feminine balance in a male dominated business. Lil’ Kim, […]

Kendrick Lamar is arguably the most influential hip-hop artist of the past 10 years. He’s a throwback in the sense that he doesn’t utilize social media frequently, and the importance that he puts in to each project he releases. “I just come from that era,” Lamar says, citing landmark 1990s LPs like DMX’s “It’s Dark […]

Wu-Tang Clan came to rise in 1993 with the release of their debut single “Protect Your Neck.” After being signed to legendary rap label Lound Records, the group released their classic debut album “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” to critical acclaim. To this day 36 Chambers is regarded as one of the greatest rap albums […]

Brad Jordan, better known as Scarface was born and raised in Houston, Texas, growing up in the South Acres neighborhood. Some of your favorite rappers have said that he is one of their favorite rappers of all time. Scarface started his Hip-Hop career as DJ Akshen (Action) and went on to sign with Rap-A-Lot Records. […]

Rapper Common stared his career as Common Sense in 1992. He released his debut album “Can I Borrow A Dollar” to critical and underground acclaim. After his 1994 album Resurrection, Common dropped the “Sense” from his name and reached new levels. Albums such as like “Be” and “Finding Forever” help Common reach the status as one […]

“You can’t ban the Snowman,” the phrase used to ring out in 2005. By then, Young Jeezy had emerged from the mixtape circuit in Atlanta as a star soon to break out even further. On “Dem Boyz,” the lead single from his one-off album with the group Boyz In The Hood, Jeezy batted leadoff. It’s […]

Follow The Beat On Twitter: In the short amount of time that Puerto Rican Bronx rapper Big Pun was with us, its safe to say he touched the world. Despite being overweight, it never stopped him from pursuing his rap career which prospered from 1997 until his death at age 28 in 2000. Big Pun […]

Follow The Beat On Twitter: Master P helped pave the way for a lot of rappers today. He made it cool to also be an entrepreneur in the 90’s and used his brand to make millions outside of music. He’s responsible for bringing No Limit Records and his hometown New Orleans to the front of the […]

Rick Ross, born William Roberts was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi and later relocated to Carol City, Florida. He had a pretty good High School football career and attended Albany State University on a football scholarship. Ross was initially signed to Suave House Record under the name. Teflon Da Don. His first major appearance was on […]

If you are under the age of 30, there really only has been one “female” rapper that has dominated the charts, the streams, and the airwaves, CONSISTENTLY, and that is Nicki Minaj. Man, I tell ya… God said he ain’t done showing off yet. Lol. Walked off stage to find out history was made yet […]