Cypress Hill

Cypress Hill is an American hip hop group from South Gate, California. They have sold over 20 million albums worldwide and have multi-platinum and platinum albums. They are considered to be among the main progenitors of West Coast and 1990s hip hop. The group has been critically acclaimed for their first five albums.Edwards, Paul, 2009, '' How to Rap: The Art & Science of the Hip-Hop MC'', Chicago Review Press, p. 316. All of the group members advocate for medical and recreational use of cannabis in the United States. In 2019, Cypress Hill became the first hip hop group to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

History

Formation (1988)

Senen Reyes (also known as Sen Dog) and Ulpiano Sergio Reyes (also known as Mellow Man Ace) are brothers born in Pinar del Río, Cuba. In 1971, their family immigrated to the United States and initially lived in South Gate, California. In 1988, the two brothers teamed up with New York City native Lawrence Muggerud (also known as DJ Muggs, previously in a rap group named 7A3) and Louis Freese (also known as B-Real) to form a hip-hop group named DVX (Devastating Vocal Excellence). The band soon lost Mellow Man Ace to a solo career, and changed their name to Cypress Hill, after a street in South Gate.

Mainstream success with ''Cypress Hill'' and ''Black Sunday'', addition of Eric Bobo, and ''III: Temples of Boom'' (1989–1996)

After recording a demo in 1989, Cypress Hill signed a record deal with Ruffhouse Records. Their self-titled first album was released in August 1991. The lead single was the double A-side "The Phuncky Feel One"/"How I Could Just Kill a Man" which received heavy airplay on urban and college radio, most notably peaking at #1 on '' Billboard'' Hot Rap Tracks chart and at #77 on the Billboard Hot 100. The other two singles released from the album were "Hand on the Pump" and "Latin Lingo", the latter of which combined English and Spanish lyrics, a trait that was continued throughout their career. The success of these singles led ''Cypress Hill'' to sell two million copies in the U.S. alone, and it peaked at #31 on the Billboard 200 and was certified double platinum by the RIAA. In 1992, Cypress Hill's first contribution to a soundtrack was the song "Shoot 'Em Up" for the movie '' Juice''. The group made their first appearance at Lollapalooza on the side stage in 1992. It was the festival's second year of touring, and featured a diverse lineup of acts such as Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ice Cube, Lush, Tool, Stone Temple Pilots, among others. The trio also supported the ''Cypress Hill'' album by touring with the Beastie Boys, who were touring behind their third album '' Check Your Head''.

'' Black Sunday'', the group's second album, debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 in 1993, recording the highest Soundscan for a rap group up until that time. " Insane in the Brain" became a crossover hit, peaking at #19 on the Billboard Hot 100, at #16 on the Dance Club Songs chart, and at #1 on the Hot Rap Tracks chart. "Insane in the Brain" also garnered the group their first Grammy nomination. ''Black Sunday'' went triple platinum in the U.S. and sold about 3.26 million copies. Cypress Hill headlined the Soul Assassins tour with House of Pain and Funkdoobiest as support, then performed on a college tour with Rage Against the Machine and Seven Year Bitch. Also in 1993, Cypress Hill had two tracks on the '' Judgment Night'' soundtrack, teaming up with Pearl Jam (without vocalist Eddie Vedder) on the track "Real Thing" and Sonic Youth on "I Love You Mary Jane". The soundtrack was notable for intentionally creating collaborations between the rap/hip-hop and rock/metal genres, and as a result the soundtrack peaked at #17 on the Billboard 200 and was certified gold by the RIAA. On October 2, 1993, Cypress Hill performed on the comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'', broadcast by NBC. Prior to their performances, studio executives, label representatives, and the group's own associates constantly asked the trio to not smoke marijuana on-stage. DJ Muggs became irritated due to the constant inquisitions, and he subsequently lit a joint during the group's second song. Up until that point, it was extremely uncommon to see marijuana usage on a live televised broadcast. The incident prompted NBC to ban the group from returning on the show, a distinction shared only by six other artists.

The group later played at Woodstock 94, officially making percussionist Eric Bobo a member of the group during the performance. Eric Bobo was known as the son of Willie Bobo and as a touring member of the Beastie Boys, who Cypress Hill previously toured with in 1992. That same year, ''Rolling Stone'' named the group as the Best Rap Group in their music awards voted by critics and readers. Cypress Hill then played at Lollapalooza for two successive years, topping the bill in 1995. They also appeared on the " Homerpalooza" episode of ''The Simpsons''. The group received their second Grammy nomination in 1995 for "I Ain't Goin' Out Like That".

Cypress Hill's third album '' III: Temples of Boom'' was released in 1995 as it peaked at #3 on the Billboard 200 and at #3 on the Canadian Albums Chart. The album was certified platinum by the RIAA. "Throw Your Set in the Air" was the most successful single off the album, peaking at #45 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #11 on the Hot Rap Tracks charts. The single also earned Cypress Hill's third Grammy nomination. Shortly after the release of ''III: Temples of Boom'', Sen Dog became frustrated due to the rigorous touring schedule. Just prior to an overseas tour, he departed from the group unexpectedly. Cypress Hill continued their tours throughout 1995 and 1996, with Eric Bobo and also various guest vocalists covering Sen Dog's verses. Sen Dog later formed the rock band SX-10 to explore other musical genres. Later on in 1996, Cypress Hill appeared on the first Smokin' Grooves tour, featuring Ziggy Marley, The Fugees, Busta Rhymes, and A Tribe Called Quest. The group also released a nine track EP ''Unreleased and Revamped'' with rare mixes.

Focus on solo projects, ''IV'', crossover appeal with ''Skull & Bones'', and ''Stoned Raiders'' (1997–2002)

In 1997, the members focused on their solo careers. DJ Muggs released '' Soul Assassins: Chapter 1'', with features from Dr. Dre, KRS-One, Wyclef Jean, and Mobb Deep. B-Real appeared with Busta Rhymes, Coolio, LL Cool J, and Method Man on "Hit 'Em High" from the multi-platinum '' Space Jam Soundtrack''. He also appeared with RBX, Nas, and KRS-One on "East Coast Killer, West Coast Killer" from Dr. Dre's ''Dr. Dre Presents the Aftermath'' album, and contributed to an album entitled '' The Psycho Realm'' with the group of the same name. Sen Dog also released the ''Get Wood'' sampler as part of SX-10 on the label Flip Records. In addition, Eric Bobo contributed drums to various rock bands on their albums, such as 311 and Soulfly.

In early 1998, Sen Dog returned to Cypress Hill. He cited his therapist and also his creative collaborations with the band SX-10 as catalysts for his rejoining. The quartet then embarked on the third annual Smokin' Grooves tour with Public Enemy, Wyclef Jean, Busta Rhymes, and Gang Starr. Cypress Hill released '' IV'' in October 1998 which went gold in the U.S. and peaked at #11 on the Billboard 200. The lead single off the album was " Dr. Greenthumb", as it peaked at #11 on the Hot Rap Tracks chart. It also peaked at #70 on the Billboard Hot 100, their last appearance on the chart to date. In 1999, Cypress Hill helped with the PC first-person shooter video game '' Kingpin: Life of Crime''. Three of the band's songs from the 1998 ''IV'' album were in the game; "16 Men Till There's No Men Left", "Checkmate", and "Lightning Strikes". The group also did voice work for some of the game's characters. Also in 1999, the band released a greatest hits album in Spanish, '' Los Grandes Éxitos en Español''.

In 2000, Cypress Hill fused genres with their fifth album, '' Skull & Bones'', which consisted of two discs. The first disc ''Skull'' was composed of rap tracks while ''Bones'' explored further the group's forays into rock. The album peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200 and at #3 on the Canadian Albums Chart, and the album was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA. The first two singles were "(Rock) Superstar" for rock radio and " (Rap) Superstar" for urban radio. Both singles received heavy airplay on both rock and urban radio, enabling Cypress Hill to crossover again. "(Rock) Superstar" peaked at #18 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart and "(Rap) Superstar" peaked at #43 on the Hot Rap Tracks chart.

Due to the rock genre's prominent appearance on ''Skull & Bones'', Cypress Hill employed the members of Sen Dog's band SX-10 as backing musicians for the live shows. Cypress Hill supported ''Skull & Bones'' by initially playing a summer tour with Limp Bizkit and Cold called the Back 2 Basics Tour. The tour was controversial as it was sponsored by the file sharing service Napster. In addition, Napster enabled each show of the tour to be free to the fans, and no security guards were employed during the performances. After the tour's conclusion, the acts had not reported any disturbances. Towards the end of 2000, Cypress Hill and MxPx landed a slot opening for The Offspring on the Conspiracy of One Tour. The group also released '' Live at the Fillmore'', a concert disc recorded at San Francisco's The Fillmore in 2000. Cypress Hill continued their experimentation with rock on the ''Stoned Raiders'' album in 2001; however, its sales were a disappointment. The album peaked at #64 on the Billboard 200, the group's lowest position to that point. Also in 2001, the group made a cameo appearance as themselves in the film '' How High''. Cypress Hill then recorded the track "Just Another Victim" for WWF as a theme song for Tazz, borrowing elements from the 2000 single "(Rock) Superstar". The song would later be featured on the compilation ''WWF Forceable Entry'' in March 2002, which peaked at #3 on the Billboard 200 and was certified gold by the RIAA.

''Till Death Do Us Part'', DJ Muggs' hiatus, and extensive collaborations on ''Rise Up'' (2003–2012)

Cypress Hill released '' Till Death Do Us Part'' in March 2004 as it peaked at #21 on the Billboard 200. It featured appearances by Bob Marley's son Damian Marley, Prodigy of Mobb Deep, and producers The Alchemist and Fredwreck. The album represented a further departure from the group's signature sound. Reggae was a strong influence on its sound, especially on the lead single " What's Your Number?". The track featured Tim Armstrong of Rancid on guitar and backup vocals. It was based on the classic song " The Guns of Brixton" from The Clash's album ''London Calling''. "What's Your Number?" saw Cypress Hill crossover into the rock charts again, as the single peaked at #23 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.

Afterwards, DJ Muggs took a hiatus from the group to focus on other projects, such as Soul Assassins and his ''DJ Muggs vs.'' collaboration albums. In December 2005 another compilation album titled '' Greatest Hits From the Bong'' was released. It included nine hits from previous albums and two new tracks. In the summer of 2006, B-Real appeared on Snoop Dogg's single " Vato", which was produced by Pharrell Williams. The group's next album was tentatively scheduled for an early 2007 release, but it was pushed back numerous times. In 2007 Cypress Hill toured as a part of the Rock the Bells tour. They headlined with Public Enemy, Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, and a reunited Rage Against the Machine.

On July 25, 2008, Cypress Hill performed at a benefit concert at the House of Blues Chicago, where a majority of the proceeds went to the Chicago Alliance to End Homelessness. In August 2009, a new song by Cypress Hill titled "Get 'Em Up" was made available on iTunes. The song was also featured in the '' Madden NFL 2010'' video game. It was the first sampling of the group's then-upcoming album.

Cypress Hill's eighth studio album '' Rise Up'' featured contributions from Everlast, Tom Morello, Daron Malakian, Pitbull, Marc Anthony, and Mike Shinoda. Previously, the vast majority of the group's albums were produced by DJ Muggs; however, ''Rise Up'' instead featured a large array of guest features and producers, with DJ Muggs only appearing on two tracks. The album was released on Priority Records/EMI Entertainment, as the group was signed to the label by new creative chairman Snoop Dogg. ''Rise Up'' was released on April 20, 2010 and it peaked at #19 on the Billboard 200. The single " Rise Up" was featured at WWE's pay-per-view '' Elimination Chamber'' as the official theme song for the event. It also appeared in the trailer for the movie ''The Green Hornet''. "Rise Up" managed to peak at #20 on both the Modern Rock Tracks and Mainstream Rock Tracks charts. "Armada Latina", which featured Pitbull and Marc Anthony, was Cypress Hill's last song to chart in the U.S. to date, peaking at #25 on the Hot Rap Tracks chart.

Cypress Hill commenced its Rise Up tour in Philadelphia on April 10, 2010. In one particular instance, the group was supposed to stop in Tucson, Arizona but canceled the show in protest of the recent immigration legislation. At the Rock en Seine festival in Paris on August 27, 2010, they had said in an interview that they would anticipate the outcome of the legislation before returning. Also in 2010, Cypress Hill performed at the Reading and Leeds Festivals on August 28 at Leeds and August 29 at Reading. On June 5, 2012, Cypress Hill and dubstep artist Rusko released a collaborative EP entitled ''Cypress X Rusko''. DJ Muggs, who was still on a hiatus, and Eric Bobo were absent on the release. Also in 2012, Cypress Hill collaborated with Deadmau5 on his sixth studio album ''Album Title Goes Here

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