1950's-1960's

Sound systems become popular in Jamaica. This sound system culture is a precursor to modern hip-hop, even featuring deejays (emcees, in American slang) toasting over beats. the Soundsystem culture has survived outside of Jamaica. for example, i went to the Caribana Caribbean festival in Toronto and witnessed soundsystems live. also the soundsystem is a revered part of drum and bass culture in britain, with artists like Dillinja and Lemon D designing their own soundsystems and bass bins, as they did recently with Valve. british jungle musicians often make dubplates (dubplates are instantly produced, unreleased songs for play in clubs). Dubplates are another artifact from Jamaican soundsystem culture.

1969

The Amen break is created by The Winstons on the song Amen Brother. the Amen break is arguably the most-sampled sound ever.

1970

James Brown releases Funky Drummer. The Funky Drummer is arguably the most sampled sound ever.

1970's

• hip-hop is created in the Bronx, New York.
• This era of rap is the Old School.
• Hip-hop block parties occur all over New York City.
• DJ Kool Herc invents the breakbeat.

1977

Rock Steady Crew is formed. Crazy Legs of the RockSteady Crew once says something to the effect of "the term b-boy is being abused. Only breakdancers are b-boys."

1979

Sugarhill Gang releases Rapper's Delight, the first Top 40 hip-hop song.

Chic releases GOOD TIMES. not a rap song, but is heavily sampled by rappers, including Sugarhill Gang and Grandmaster Flash. chances are if you heard one of the most popular rap songs in the late seventies/early eighties, you were listening to a Good Times sample.

1980

Kurtis Blow releases the classic hit song The Breaks. Remember these are the breaks! break it up break it up break it up...! Kurtis Blow is widely regarded as rap music's first superstar.

1981

Run DMC releases their debut, self-titled album. They also release the song Sucker MC's, which becomes classic. The Wu-Tang Clan will later cover Sucker MC's. Rock Box is another classic from this album, and is one of the most popular rock/rap songs. Paul Schaffer performed Rock Box on the David Letterman show as a tribute during the week when deejay Jam Master Jay was murdered.

The classic song It's Like That was weirdly remixed into a house-music song in the late nineties by Jason Nevins.

1982

• Afrika Bambaataa releases Planet Rock. Bambaataa used a sample in the song from Trans Europe Express by the German group Kraftwerk. Planet Rock is a watershed moment in Black music, because after Planet Rock, a wide array of music styles will appear in different areas of the United States. Planet Rock REALLY makes an impact on Florida & Detroit, and inspires the Miami Bass, Detroit Techno, and Electro music genres... and songs such as Clear by Cybotron.
  
  
• the film Wild Style is released. unfortunately i haven't seen it yet. Wild Style is considered a classic hiphop movie, starring many famous acts.
• Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five release the classic hit single The Message, which is the first hiphop song with political commentary and not just about partying. The Message has evolved in a way that it is almost a religious moment in rap history, looked at as the spiritual center of the culture. This is evidenced by the numerous artists who choose to ape the song, such as Ice Cube and Puff Daddy. It's a constant reminder of the fact that rap can be important music, with important things to say.

1983

• Jazz legend Herbie Hancock releases Rockit, which becomes a smash hit. Rockit features hip-hop beats & scratching by Grand Mixer D.ST, an Afrika Bambaataa collaborator. Rockit features an incredible music video which is shown often on MTV. i heard Rockit soon after it was released and it is one of my alltime favorite songs.
  
  
• Grandmaster Flash and the Furious 5 release the classic hit single White Lines. The white lines referenced in the song are lines of cocaine... this was the 1980's, after all :-)

1984

Newcleus releases Jam On It, a smash hit. this is a very popular breakdancing song. it is both one of my favorite childhood songs and one of my all time favorites. it's memorable because of the WILD lyrical content (Newcleus beating Superman in an intergalactic rap battle lol), and also because space aliens rhyme in the song as well. haha

1985

LL Cool J (still a teenager- i believe he was 15 when this album came out) releases his debut album, Radio, on Def Jam records. it includes the classic song Rock the Bells.

1986

• lots of cousins played Run-DMC and other stuff at our family parties.
• Run DMC releases Raising Hell, beginning the hiphop Golden Age.
  
  The golden age of hip hop - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "The golden age of hip hop, derivative of old school hip hop, began with the popularity of Run-DMC's album Raising Hell in 1986 and ended with the popularity of G-Funk around 1993. It was characterized by ubiquitous soul and funk samples (ala James Brown and Curtis Mayfield) and Afrocentric lyrics. The golden age was overwhelmingly based in New York City. During the golden age of hip hop, rappers like Rakim, KRS-ONE, and Chuck D advanced the wordplay, delivery, and possible subject matter of rapping. Groups such as De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, and Leaders of the New School combined soul-laden production with positive messages as a reaction against the predominant gangster posturing of numerous 1980s rappers." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_golden_age_of_hip_hop
• The hiphop Golden Age begins, thus ending the Old School. everything from here on is considered New School. One of the most blatant references to the New School is the name of the group Leaders of the New School.
• Boogie Down Productions (KRS-one and Scott LaRock) releases their debut album, Criminal Minded. this is one of the first hiphop albums to show rappers with guns on the album cover.
• Slick Rick and Doug E Fresh create the classic song The Show.
• Run DMC & Aerosmith release Walk this Way, which is a smash hit, and is probably the first wildly successful example of the RockRap genre.
• Bronx versus Queens is a major beef, specifically between KRS-1 from Boogie Down Productions and MC Shan from Juice Crew/Queensbridge projects.
  
  The Bridge Wars - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "The track also went one step further by directly attacking MC Shan with lyrics like:
  Party people in the place to be, KRS-One attacks ,
  Ya got dropped off MCA cause the rhymes you wrote was wack,
  So you think that hip-hop had its start out in Queens(bridge),
  If you popped that junk up in the Bronx you might not live! "
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bridge_Wars
• Art of Noise releases Moments in Love. although this isn't a rap song and it was released by a British group, many rappers and hip-hop fans admire the song. rap deejays on local radio stations would play the song during commercial breaks. despite not being a true rap song, the beat is very similar to hip-hop. One of the weirdest, spookiest songs (and videos) i've ever heard. classic.

1987

• Scott LaRock of Boogie Down Productions is shot dead. KRS-one , in mourning, starts the Stop the Violence Movement and creates the supergroup song Self Destruction. Self Destruction features lyrics from Doug E Fresh, KRS-1, D-Nice, MC Lyte, Heavy D, Just-Ice, Public Enemy (Chuck D & Flavor Flav), Stetsasonic, Kool Moe Dee. see the lyrics here (check the bottom of the page).
• Jody Watley releases Friends. Friends features Eric B & Rakim. this is probably the first example of an R&B artist (Jody Watley) hooking up with a respected rap group (Eric B & Rakim). great song.
• MC Lyte, a female emcee from Brooklyn, releases her debut, Lyte as a Rock. The album contains good songs such as Paper Thin and 10% Dis. Classic.... UK junglist Roni Size will later sample Paper Thin in his classic song Music Box.

1988

• i received my first purchased cassette ever: Dj Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince- He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper. my mom bought it for me. i was 10 years old.
• EPMD releases Strictly Business on Sleeping Bag records. one of the songs- The Steve Martin- is dedicated to the comedian Steve Martin. lol
• the Audio Two (Milk Dee & Gizmo) releases the classic song Top Billin', on their album What More Can I Say? this drumbeat becomes SO famous that it is heard for many years. the chorus is a classic too: "Milk is chillin', Giz is chillin', what more can i say? Top Billin'. that's what we get. got it? good." Mary J Blige eventually uses this classic drum pattern in her first single, Real Love. trivia: i think Milk Dee & Gizmo are brothers of MC Lyte? also, their father Nat Robinson runs their independent record label, First Priority Music, which is also the record label for MC Lyte. a few years later, i end up buying a WARPED (physically damaged) vinyl record copy of What More Can I Say? from a schoolmate ... but still had fun with it :)
  
• Tougher than Leather is released by Run DMC. This album, and the previous one, Raising Hell, both usher in the Golden Age and mark the end of old school hip-hop. The music became faster, the lyrics became sharper, and the samples became more complex. Instead of simply looping a song (like Sugarhill Gang did with Chic's Good Times, for example), samples became chopped-up, layered and drawn from multiple sources. Jazz became more of an influence unlike before.

1989

• i received a few more cassette gifts from my family: DOC- No One Can Do It Better (produced by Dr Dre of NWA), and Heavy D & the Boyz- Big Tyme. The DOC album was one of the best of all time, and was entirely produced by Dr Dre. It's Funky Enough becomes a huge hit and is one of the most-sampled songs ever due to the DOC's distinct, booming voice that he would sadly lose later in a car crash.
  
  Notice that the DOC's album does not have any G-funk or synthesizers. Dr Dre would not invent this sound until The Chronic in 1992. Back in 1989, many California rappers drew influences from New York rappers, and as a result, California rappers placed an emphasis on "NY values": scratch, complex lyrics, drum machines, rare groove samples. In my opinion, this was a better sound for the West Coast than the post-Chronic sound that took over three years later.

• EPMD releases Unfinished Business on Sleeping Bag records.
• I bought a cassette called Eyes on This, which was MC Lyte's sophomore album. What an album. It's fantastic. Notable songs here include Cha Cha Cha, Stop Look Listen, and Cappuccino. Lyte is one of the greatest female emcees in rap at this point. Production on the album is handled by Lyte's brother(s), the Audio Two (Milk & Gizmo) and also by Grand Puba who will later emerge with the group Brand Nubian. The echoing chorus of Cappuccino (combined with Lyte's thoroughly distinctive voice) becomes widely known among fans... "why oh why do I need Cappuccino?"
  "why oh why do I need cappuccino? scar on my face but I'm not Al Pacino..." - Fab 5/ Heltah Skeltah/ Boot Camp Click-- Leflaur Leflah Eshkoshka, from 1995.

1990

• i went to my first concert: Bell Biv Devoe, Monie Love, Keith Sweat, Johnny Gill. Monie Love is one of the first British, female rappers. according to Wikipedia, Monie is also sister of the popular underground techno musician Dave Angel (note: Dave Angel rocks!). this concert was held in December 1990. i was 12 years old.
• i was in Boston when i bought my first EPMD cassette- Unfinished Business. EPMD quickly becomes one of my favorite groups.
  "favorite rap group in the world is EPMD" -- A Tribe Called Quest, Clap Your Hands
  
• Monie Love releases her debut album, Down to Earth. Her first single is the classic Monie in the Middle. Juvenile & the Hot Boys will rhyme many years later that they are "in the middle like Monie." Monie Love is one of the first British, female rappers.
• Bell Biv Devoe releases their Poison album. Bell Biv Devoe is a slimmed down version of the R&B group New Edition, and is more hiphop oriented than New Edition. Poison (the first single) becomes a classic song, and becomes a popular target for sampling (Big Daddy Kane- Taste of Chocolate outro, Terminator X- Homey Don't Play That, etc).
• Deee-lite releases Groove is in the Heart, featuring funk legend Bootsy Collins of Parliament/Funkadelic and a rhyme by Q-tip from A Tribe Called Quest. Groove is in the Heart is a smash hit and is an early example of a non-rap group collaborating with a respected rapper.
  
• Eric B & Rakim release Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em. this is a brilliant album, and is the first one i ever heard by Eric B & Rakim. around this time, i start noticing many people saying Rakim is the greatest emcee , ever.
• GETO BOYS GETO BOYS! they released their classic self-titled 1990 album. this was the first rap group from Texas i ever liked. this is an underground classic but it set the stage for their commercial breakthrough 2 years later, and their later popularity on the Office Space soundtrack. Do it Like A G.O. is the first Geto Boys video i ever saw and it features a memorable message to New York rappers: "everyone knows NY is where it began, so let the ego shit end!"
  

• EPMD released their best album, Business As Usual. the album features a couple of surprises: a collaboration with LL Cool J and two songs with an up-and-coming rapper discovered by Erick Sermon: Redman. Golddigger was the main hit song on this album.

1991

• Main Source (Large Professor, Sir Scratch, K-Kut) releases Breaking Atoms, one of the best hiphop albums ever. One song on the cassette is Live at the Barbecue, which features three guest vocalists: Nasty Nas, Akinyele, Joe Fatal. This is one of the first times i would ever hear Nas.
• UMC's (Ultimate Masters of Charisma. different from the Ultramagnetic MC's) releases Fruits of Nature. Fruits of Nature is one of the greatest albums ever. UMC's are one of the few rap groups to come from Staten Island. unfortunately they are signed to the doomed Wild Pitch record label, which will go out of business in a few years.
  
• a fun song is played on college radio, called Words From the Genius, by The Genius. The Genius would go on to later become The GZA, a founding member of Wu-Tang Clan.
• Nice & Smooth release Ain't a Damn Thing Changed. The album is good and spawns a few hit singles. HipHop Junkies is a hit single, and Nice & Smooth releases a version of it in English and then another version en Espanol. Nice & Smooth becomes the first rap group to release a hit single in both English and Spanish.
• WC & the MAAD Circle release Ain't a Damn Thang Changed. One of the members of this group is Coolio. WC goes on to form Westside Connection with Ice Cube, years later. Aint a Damn Thang Changed spawns an underground classic song- Dress Code.
• Del the Funkyhomosapien (Ice Cube's cousin) releases his debut album: I Wish my Brother George Was Here. This is the first Hieroglyphics album ever.
• Tim Dog releases Fuck Compton, the first single from his Penecillin On Wax album (which i enjoyed very much).
  
  Tim Dog - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "Fuck Compton was a huge underground hit and caused ripwaves in the Hip Hop scene at the time. It also enraged many rappers hailing from Compton and the Los Angeles area, sparking a flurry of retaliatory disses from Dr. Dre, DJ Quik, Snoop Dogg, and others."... "Another controversial track that Tim released was the Snoop Dogg diss "Bitch With A Perm" in which Tim let Snoop know how he felt about other rappers using the title "dog" in their names." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Dog
• The Genius releases Words from The Genius, on Cold Chillin' records. Genius would later become a founding member of Wu-Tang Clan, with his cousin Prince Rakeem/RZA.
  
• The Beatnuts release their debut: Intoxicated Demons, The EP, a very excellent cd. Their single Reign of the Tec becomes an underground hit, and maybe this song begins the tradition of famous Sadat X samples?
  
• Prince is rapping! i heard rumors around this time that Prince hated hiphop, but suddenly he appears on Gett Off rhyming his lyrics in a hiphop fashion. oddly, he's not too bad at it... great song. great remix too...
  
• Black Sheep score a major hit (and a great video) with The Choice is Yours. Black Sheep were one of my favorite groups at this time. Originally from North Carolina, they relocated to NYC and worked closely with Native Tongues. Surprisingly later the Sheep worked with Native Tongues (Queens/Long Island) less and became more active with DITC (Bronx), specifically Showbiz & AG and The Legion. The debut album from the Black Sheep had a very unique jazz sound and drew upon a wide variety of samples including Herb Alpert & Tijuana Brass and the S.O.S. Band. Prince Paul, A Tribe Called Quest, Violators, and Chi-ali all made guest appearances.

1992

• A British acid-jazz group, Brand New Heavies, releases a hiphop album called Heavy Rhyme Experience volume 1. the album has a number of top underground American rappers collaborating on songs with the Heavies providing the beats. it's a stunning, incredible album. guest stars include: Main Source, Ed OG & Bulldogs, Black Sheep, Pharcyde, Kool G Rap, Masta Ace, Gangstarr, Tiger, Jamalski, etc. i'm still waiting for volume 2! my interest in the Brand New Heavies deepens and soon they become one of my favorite non-rap groups. Ever since the Heavies started releasing music in the early 90's, it's rumored that rappers often admired their musicmaking, and always hoped to work with the Heavies one day... and now they got their chance.
  
• Redman drops his first album- Whut Thee Album. He immediately makes a splash with the hit singles Time 4 Sum Aksion, Tonight's the Night, and Blow Your Mind. Redman is a protégé of EPMD (Erick Sermon specifically), and is one of the first rappers to put New Jersey on the map, as he is from Newark AKA Brick City.
  
• rap music becomes big business beginning in the early 90's. Musicians like MC Hammer (Oakland), Vanilla Ice (Miami), NWA (Los Angeles) and Dr Dre (LA) all go platinum and get heavy airplay on MTV. all these groups make a lot of money while not adhering to the original goals (deejaying, b-boying/breakdancing, graffiti, emceeing) of the original (New York) rap community. There was a backlash from the east-coast rap community.
  
  Songs like Fakin' the Funk by Main Source and Crossover by EPMD allow NY artists (who were more talented than the popular groups, but did not sell as many albums) to complain about the popularity of these new groups. Two songs, I Used to Love H.E.R. & The Bitch In You were released by Common Sense in 1994, and this was a watershed moment in the deterioration of goodwill between underground east-coast and popular west-coast rappers. Despite Common's Chicago origins, he was embraced by many New York rappers including many Native Tongue affiliates: Beatnuts, De La Soul, Mos Def, etc.

• Showbiz & AG release their debut, Runaway Slave. i consider this one of the best and most underrated albums of all time. much like the Black Sheep, Show & AG had a very unique jazz sound. after this album's release, Showbiz would become one of the best producers in hip-hop, doing work for Krs-one and many others. Guest appearances on Runaway Slave were a who's who of Bronx/uptown rappers: Diamond D, The Legion, Big L, Kid Capri, Freddie Foxxx, Fat Joe, etc.

1993

• Wu-Tang Clan releases Protect Ya Neck late in the year. i hear bits and pieces of the song on college radio, late at night. i struggle for a way to hear it, even having a friend play it over the phone for me once. it's a very good song.
• Black Moon releases Enta Da Stage, a classic underground album. The production group Da Beatminerz produces the entire album, becoming famous for their jazzy/grimy/hazy sound. Black Moon and Wu-Tang make 1993 an exciting year, when New York rap produces very high-quality underground material that sounds different than ever before...
  
• 1993 is also known for being Year of the Hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics groups released several classics in '93, including Del's No Need for Alarm, and '93 'til Infinity by Souls of Mischief, an album some consider to be the best rap album ever... No Need for Alarm is a fantastic CD which finally sees Del the Funkyhomosapien (a former Lenchmob member) step aside from the funk-music-influence of his famous cousin Ice Cube of NWA... and now Del is free to explore a more jazzy, New-York style of rap, even though Del and all of Hiero is from Oakland California. Hieroglyphics is one of the best examples of California rappers who have been heavily influenced by the New York origins of rap.
  

Late 1993/1994

Wu-Tang Clan releases their debut album, Enter the Wu-Tang, 36 Chambers. it's so different from all other music at the time (it is more low-budget and simple) that i don't like the album at first. later, it grows on me and becomes one of my favorite albums ever. Wu signs a contract with LOUD/RCA records, which becomes known as one of the oddest contracts in hiphop history. RZA manages to broker a deal for the Clan, where they would be signed to produce albums as a group, as The Wu-Tang Clan... but individual members would be free to pursue contracts with other labels for their solo albums. This worked very successfully for Wu-Tang Clan, and later this style of deal became known as "The Wu-Tang Deal." aspiring rap groups from this point on sometimes would ask for "The Wu-Tang Deal" when in negotiations with their labels. trivia: the first lyric of the first verse on the album (not including the song's chorus) is: "GHOSTFACE!!!!!!" lol.

the evolution of the Clan is interesting because they are one of the rare cases of a collective becoming a supergroup not at the group's inception, but later , based on the successes of their individual members. In this way, Wu-Tang Clan is similar to the British pop group Genesis.

1994

• the first Wu-Tang solo album is released: Method Man- Tical. Bring the Pain is the first single and becomes a classic.
• Fugees release their first song, Boof Baf.
• Original Flavor releases Can I Get Open? my friends and i were fans of this song... and i didn't realize at the time that an unknown rapper named Jay-Z appears on a verse. this is the first time i would ever hear Jay-Z, although i didn't realize it at the time.
• UMC's release their 2nd album, Unleashed. it's a solid album but not as good as their debut.
• Pete Rock remixes the song Flow On for The Lords of the Underground. Pete Rock uses a sample from Prince's Ballad of Dorothy Parker for the remix, giving the song a distorted, watery sound. At this time, Pete Rock & DJ Premier are almost universally crowned as the top hiphop producers in underground circles, based on the huge amount of remix work they do. At the same time, mainstream media wrongly insists that Dr Dre is the top hiphop producer.
• Chicago emcee Common Sense (now known as Common) releases the single I Used to Love H.E.R... a really amazing song which was a thinly veiled metaphor for the demise of the Golden Age. Common's message was that ethnic pride and the pure New York style of rap was dying in 1994, in favor of the more marketable Dr Dre-influenced west coast rap. Along with the west coast style came increased gangsterism in rap, so unfortunately the focus was more on violence and not on music. West coast performers interpreted I Used to Love H.E.R. as a direct insult and so this song (along with Fuck Compton- see above) increased some of the east/west tensions of the time. I Used to Love H.E.R. also has an excellent music video ... I highly recommend it. This song scores major points for Common in New York, and suddenly he is accepted in some of the hottest New York rap circles... Common later makes an appearance on De La Soul's Stakes is High album, for example.
• The Beatnuts finally release their debut full-length CD. I never understood whether the album is simply titled The Beatnuts, or Street Level, as seen in a tiny little sign on the cover. This CD is their masterpiece.
  
• Jeru releases Come Clean, which becomes a massive underground hit. Dj Premier of Gangstarr made the very distinctive beat for Come Clean and goes on to create the beats on Jeru's entire debut Cd, The Sun Rises in the East. Jeru is a Gangstarr protégé and a member of the Gangstarr Foundation (Gangstarr Foundation = Gangstarr [ Guru & Premier] , Jeru, Dap, Nutcracker, Big Shug , and more). After Come Clean, people begin to recognize Premier for his production genius and soon Premier is one of the most in-demand rap producers. Some even say that Premier is the best hiphop producer, overall. Mainstream media often says that Dr Dre is the best rap producer but that is totally untrue. Premier, Large Professor and Pete Rock would be my choices.
• a rap supergroup named GRAVEDIGGAZ forms. Prince Paul & Fruitkwan from Stetsasonic/De La Soul, RZA - the leader of Wu-Tang Clan, and Too Poetic are members. They release the classic album 6 Feet Deep, also known as Niggamortis outside of the USA. R.I.P. Too Poetic later died of cancer in 2005. Gravediggaz were controversial at first because of their over-the-top black humor about subjects like torture and insanity.
  

1995

• Sam visits NYC and comes back with a few mixtapes. one mixtape is 95 Live by famous deejay Doowop. On 95 Live is a song by an unknown emcee named Jay-Z. this is the first time i actually heard a Jay-Z song and realized i was listening to Jay-Z (see last year). his song has the chorus "in my lifetime.... i need to see a whole lot of dough, i need a whole lot of dough." later i heard this song on Yahoo Music- it was titled "In My Lifetime Vol 1, Ski Street Remix."
• Ol' Dirty Bastard (ODB) releases Return to the 36 Chambers, the Dirty Version, becoming the 2nd Wu-Tang Clan member to release a solo album. i went to the mall and paid $18.00 + tax for this CD. the high price of this CD leaves a bad taste in my mouth. the CD is very odd, and i don't like it at first. eventually, it grows on me, and i like it a lot now. one of the album's tracks is Protect Ya Neck II, the Zoo, which features ODB's proteges the Brooklyn Zoo. rumors swirl, and people wonder aloud if Wu-Tang Clan has 300 members, since they use so many proteges and guest stars.
• in late 1995, Pharcyde releases Labcabincalifornia, their follow-up Cd. it's a masterpiece. hiphop producer extraordinaire Diamond D produces at least one track. this is one of the first times a west coast group asks an east coast producer (Diamond) for assistance... this starts a trend of east/west-coast collaboration.
  
• Japanese musician Towatei of Deeelite releases his solo debut Future Listening! the single Technova becomes a minor hit. Technova is later sampled by A Tribe Called Quest on the song Find a Way. Trivia: Towatei (who is also a graphic designer) did artwork & produced a track or two on the Jungle Brothers debut, Straight out the Jungle. Towa also later collaborates with Mos Def, Bizmarkie, and Charlie Brown of Leaders of the New School (Busta Rhymes' old group). Towatei's familiarity and collaborations with such prominent New York rappers almost makes him an unofficial member of Native Tongues...? hmm....
  
• the two finest Wu-Tang Clan Cd's are released: Gza/Genius- Liquid Swords... and Raekwon & Ghostface- Only Built for Cuban Linx N---s. i bought the cassingle for Raekwon's first release- Criminology/Glaciers of Ice, and it's shocking: RZA seems to have thrown all his production tricks out the window and started from scratch with a whole new, more sophisticated beatmaking style. Glaciers of Ice is one of the best hiphop songs i've ever heard, with its layered organ sound. Trivia: Rza is leader of Wu-Tang Clan. Rza also scored the music for Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill movies. in Kill Bill Volume 2, the movie Shogun Assassin is played, and the audible quote is instantly recognizable as one of the most famous samples used on Liquid Swords. Tarantino seemingly added this on purpose, as homage to the Wu-Tang Clan, and to the classic Liquid Swords album.
  
  On Raekwon's CD, the Wu-Tang singer named Blue Raspberry appears on several tracks, most notably on the classic Rainy Dayz. Blue Raspberry was later replaced in the Wu by a singer named Tekitha, although i've always preferred Blue Raspberry.
  
• i bought my first Dj Krush Cd: Meiso. Dj Krush is a japanese hiphop/triphop deejay and producer. the album is magnificent, featuring appearances by Dj Shadow, CL Smooth, The Roots, Gangstarr, and Futura2000.
  
• The British Invasion begins.
  
  in the mid-90s, a number of British hiphop & triphop groups produced a very different style of music. Here in the US, Puff Daddy and Biggie were peaking in popularity, making albums about parties, women, their love for guns, and then more women... while at the same time British groups like Portishead, Tricky, Massive Attack and Nightmares on Wax were making completely opposite sounds. The British sound was slow, moody, depressing, incoherent, but still interesting in its own way.
  
  
• Tricky also performed covers of classic rap songs. Here is his Black Steel video, which is a cover of the 1988 Public Enemy song Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos:
  
• Tricky and Massive Attack collaborated often, as in this video for the song Karmacoma:
  

1996

• • i went to a Pharcyde / Seventh House concert on my birthday.
  • Dj Shadow released the song "Why Hiphop Sucks in '96". it's a brilliant response to the increasing commercialism in rap culture and the lack of creativity in the most popular artists. ... and the song is only 40 seconds long :)
  • "QUEENS REPRESENT, BUY THE ALBUM WHEN I DROP IT..." well... i tried. and the album never came out. This is one of the more infamous quotes in rap history... Large Professor (also known as Extra P; former leader of the group Main Source) planned to release his album, called The LP, in 96 but something went wrong... he spoke this line on the Tribe Called Quest album called Midnight Marauders, and then i think he got dropped from his label, Geffen Records. i was only lucky enough to grab his first two singles, The Mad Scientist and Ijuswannachill. Both tracks were incredible. Luckily Extra P finally released his debut CD, 1st class, in 2005.
    
  • former Leaders of the New School frontman Busta Rhymes releases his first single WOO-HAH Got You All in Check! he took the title of the song from the lyrics of the Sugarhill Gang song 8th Wonder.
  • Puerto-Rican deejay Frankie Cutlass releases two killer singles: Boricuas on the Set and You and You and You. these two songs feature an all star cast of emcees including Sadat X, Redman, June Lover from GP Wu, Fat Joe, Doo Wop, and the Evil Twins: Ray Boogie and True God. this is my introduction to Frankie Cutlass , and also the first time i'll ever hear the word boricua (!). later on this year Cutlass will release the Cd called Politics and Bullshit, featuring these two singles, Bustarhymes, MOP, Mobb Deep , Kool G Rap, and more. this man has connections in the NY scene. the You and You and You cassingle features a really nice mambo remix.
    
  • i graduated from highschool. i had developed a reputation in highschool (amongst my small group of friends) for having a "hiphop hall of fame" wall in my house, seen here:
    
  • a junglist from London, Tek 9 of the duo 4 Hero, releases his solo debut- Its Not what You Think It Is!?!! Track 2 on Disc 1 is a hiphop song featuring Ish/Butterfly of Digable Planets on lyrics and Philadelphia's King Britt on beats. Tek 9 often works with Philadelphia people including King Britt, Ursula Rucker and Josh Wink. Josh Wink & King Britt run a Philadelphia-based record label together- Ovum Records. Its Not What you Think It Is IS MY FAVORITE CD OF ALL TIME!!! BUY IT NOW :)
    
  • De La Soul releases Stakes is High, a CD which is a radical departure from their usual lighthearted affairs. Stakes is High is a very serious album, with almost no skits and almost no laughs. It is a good Cd, still. The track Big Brother Beat includes Mos Def. This is one of Mos Def's earliest appearances on a Cd.

1997

• Brand New Heavies release Shelter. Their Sometimes single features a b-side remix with Q-tip from A Tribe Called Quest.
• a French pop group named Autour de Lucie releases a single called Chanson Sans Issue. The single features a few hiphop remixes, including a really impressive mix by Parisian deejay , Dj Cam. Cam scratches the hell out of the song, causing my friends and I to applaud his use of the turntables... at a time when scratching is disappearing from most mainstream rap music.
  
• Wu-Tang Clan releases Wu-Tang Forever, a double-cd album which receives mixed reviews. it's often said that Wu-Tang Forever would have been much better if they took all the best songs and simply put those tracks on one disc, instead of having 2 discs of filler.
• Killarmy releases their debut, Silent Weapons for Quiet Wars, on Wu-Tang Records. RZA's brother 9th Prince is the head of the group. there is a local connection too, as 4th Disciple and some other members of Killarmy are from Steubenville Ohio. they even give a shout out to Pittsburgh on the Cd. in my opinion, Silent Weapons is much better than Wu-Tang Forever, but didn't receive nearly the same amount of attention.
• RZA remixes the Björk song called Bachelorette... although it's a very mediocre remix in my opinion. it's also rumored that Björk records a bunch of tracks with the Wu-Tang Clan during a few weeks spent in New York City, where she now lives. Björk is a singer originally from Iceland.
  
• Massive Attack releases Mezzanine, a highly praised triphop album.

1998

• British jungle musician Goldie (a 4 Hero/Tek 9 protege) releases his 2nd album, Saturnzreturn. the song Digital is a collaboration between Krs-1 and Goldie... a significant pairing, combining the "king" of jungle music with the "king" of rap music. the back of the Digital single shows a cool map of North America and Europe, with Goldie's Metalheadz symbol on NYC and London. this is not Goldie's first hiphop effort. in the early 80's, while dividing his time between Miami and NYC, Goldie was a widely acclaimed graffiti artist, and he appeared in a hiphop/graffiti documentary with Afrika Bambaataa and 3D from triphop group Massive Attack.
  
• i bought my first Tony Touch mixtape. Tony Touch is a famous Puerto Rican/New York City deejay , a mixtape king, and is a member of the Rocksteady Crew. judging from this tracklist, the tape was from 1998.
  

1999

• in rural illinois, i went to a Hieroglyphics / Ugly Duckling concert. Del & Casual performed. i met Casual and Jay-Biz after the show. i bought a Heiro Oldies vol ii cassette (which i still play on occasion, in my car cassette deck), and a Casual VIP cd-single there, as well as a Hiero t-shirt. i bought these from Domino.
  
• in rural illinois , i went to a Quannum concert (DJ Shadow, Latyrx, Blackalicious)
• in rural illinois, i went to a Cibo Matto/Solex concert. Sean Lennon is part of Cibo Matto's band here. Cibo Matto are Japanese, female Beastie Boys proteges and will later appear on Prince Paul's Handsome Boy Modeling School CD with Mike D of the Beasties. also, Sean Lennon will later appear on Deltron 3030 with Del, Prince Paul and others.
• in rural Illinois, i see TWO Mixmaster Mike concerts. Mixmaster Mike is a former Invisibl Skratch Piklz member, and is currently deejay for the Beastie Boys.
  
• Tek 9 returns! He releases an all-hiphop followup CD called Simply. the more i listen to it, the more i like Simply. it's very good... oddly, several tracks on Simply feature Opio from Souls Of Mischief/Hieroglyphics on lyrics. this is a dream come true for me, my favorite british group working with my favorite american group... hmmm...
  
• Prince Paul and Dan "the Automator" Nakamura collaborate with many famous artists on the Handsome Boy Modeling School album. German techno/jungle artist Alec Empire from Berlin appears on the Handsome Boy cd with El-P from Company Flow, on the song Megaton B-boy 2000. Other Handsome Boy collaborators include Del the Funkyhomosapien from Hieroglyphics, De la Soul, Sean Lennon (yes, son of the Beatles' John Lennon), Cibo Matto, Beastie Boys, J-Live, Moloko, and more.
  

2000

• In rural illinois, i went to a Digital Underground/MOP concert.
• One of the best rap albums ever is released: Quasimoto- The Unseen. Quasimoto is also known as Madlib from the Likwit group Lootpack. (Likwit Crew = King Tee, Alkaholiks, Xzibit, Madlib, Lootpack, Quasimoto, Defari. they are a loosely-affiliated group of Los Angeles rappers who focus on lyrical skill and have a good relationship with the East Coast. for example, the Alkaholiks have gone on tour with both Wu-Tang Clan and Tribe Called Quest- two legendary New York groups. no east/west beef here.)
• Dj Krush, a japanese deejay, releases the mix cd Code 4109. Code 4109 is very very good, and features songs by Dres, The Black Sheep & The Legion, The 45 King, Dj Spinna, Esthero, Dj Cam, Kemuri Productions, Dj Hide, Dj Yas, etc. great Cd.
  

2001

in Pittsburgh, during the summer my friend and i see a Beatnuts/Greg Nice/Arsonists/Al' Tariq/Cuban Link concert. this was at Club Laga. i have a small write-up here. i ended up meeting Al' Tariq and the Arsonists. Al' Tariq (formerly known as Fashion) was the best rapper in Beatnuts and prominently featured on the Intoxicated Demons EP and the debut Street Level album, before he went "solo".

2003

June 4- in pittsburgh, i go to a Black Sheep/ Jungle Brothers/ Lone Catalysts/Ekil Asoon Quintet concert on Carson St, at the Rex Theatre, with my friend Stayce, a breakdancer i met. i get to meet Jungle Brothers and Black Sheep both! i spoke to Mike G, Afrika, Dres and Mista Lawnge. while speaking with Dj Mista Lawnge of Black Sheep, he says "A Tribe Called Quest is in the studio right now laying down new tracks..." Native Tongues are reunited maybe? this is the strongest evidence of a Native Tongue reunion i have seen in a while. this was one of the best concerts i've ever seen... Jungle Brothers were great, and Black Sheep were great... JB's even performed a few drum and bass tracks, which really got the crowd moving. i have never been to a rap concert where the entire crowd was dancing, but it happened here.

weirdly, Sam and i have tried to see Delasoul and Tribe unsuccessfully, several times in the past. i "won" Delasoul concert tickets from WPTS once, only to show up at the show and get barred at the door. then, Sam and i went to see Dela at Mr Small's fun house, but we got there just as Dela was performing their final song of the night. lol... now, at the JBeez/Blacksheep show, i finally made it to a Native Tongues concert, but 1) without Sam and 2) without Delasoul or Tribe being there. odd...

2006

i visited Ottawa. French Canadian expert turntablist A-Trak (former Scratch Pikl... Kanye West's concert deejay currently) & Mobb Deep will be in Ottawa this summer.

2007

Snoop Dogg releases his ode to eighties R&B: Sensual Seduction.

2008

i visited Korea and bought a Japanese rap mixtape called The Live by Dj Shimotaku, on the street near the Itaewon subway stop in Seoul. interesting to see a little bit of the Asian scene up close. the guy who sold me the mixtape saw me walking down the street and chased me, yelling "hip hop hip hop hip hop!"