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From Where
''From Where???'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop artist Mad Skillz. It was released on February 13, 1996, via Big Beat/Atlantic Records. Production was handled by Buckwild, Shawn J. Period, J Dilla, DJ Clark Kent, EZ Elpee, Large Professor, Nick Wiz, The Beatnuts, and Skillz himself, with Rob "Reef" Tewlow serving as executive producer. It features guest appearances from Kalonji The Immortal, Dr. Mindbenda, Javon The Medieval, Large Professor, Lil' Roc, Lonnie B and Q-Tip. The album peaked at number 154 on the ''Billboard'' 200, number 18 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and number 5 on the Heatseekers Albums chart in the United States. The album was praised for its strong lyrical content and production, however, suffered from low sales, possibly due to being released the same day as 2Pac's ''All Eyez on Me'' and the Fugees's '' The Score''. The singles "The Nod Factor" and "Move Ya Body" received moderate radio and video airplay. Track listing ;Sample credits ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Skillz (rapper)
Donnie Shaquan Lewis, (born June 2, 1974) also known as Skillz, or Mad Skillz is an American rapper known for his acclaimed 1996 album '' From Where???'', a reference to his origins in Virginia, not a New York City or Los Angeles rapper. He is also known for his yearly "Rap Ups," which he has done annually since 2002 (except in 2013). Skillz is also the creator of the web series "Hip Hop Confessions", a series of shows that gathers hip hop purists and hip hop lovers alike where they reveal something hip hop related that they have never told anyone. The show has featured Q-Tip, Peanut Butter Wolf, Kwamé and DJ Jazzy Jeff. Early life Lewis was born June 2, 1974, in Detroit, Michigan and after spending his early childhood in Fayetteville, North Carolina, he then moved to Richmond, Virginia, at a young age. He credits Run DMC for getting him involved in hip hop as a child. Career He first made a name for himself by finishing in second place (Losing to MC Supernatural) in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2Pac
Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the best-selling music artists, having sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Much of Shakur's music has been noted for addressing contemporary social issues that plagued inner cities, and he is considered a symbol of activism against inequality. Shakur was born in New York City to parents who were both political activists and Black Panther Party members. Raised by his mother, Afeni Shakur, he relocated to Baltimore in 1984 and to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1988. With the release of his debut album ''2Pacalypse Now'' in 1991, he became a central figure in West Coast hip hop for his conscious rap lyrics. Shakur achieved further critical and commercial success with his follow-up albums '' Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z...'' (1993) and '' M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roc Raida
Anthony Williams (May 17, 1972 – September 19, 2009), better known as Roc Raida or Grandmaster Roc Raida, was an American DJ, turntablist and producer. He was also a member of the DJ group the X-Ecutioners. He joined the X-Men in the late 1980s, but due to copyright reasons, the group later became known as the X-Ecutioners. The group released three studio albums, 1997's ''X-Pressions'', 2002's '' Built from Scratch'' and 2004's '' Revolutions''. In the 1990s he and MF Grimm were an emcee/DJ team, and his DJ contributions can be heard on MF Grimm's Scars & Memories compilation. In addition to his work with MF Grimm and the X-Ecutioners, Roc Raida released albums as a solo artist, his most famous being 2005's ''Rock Phenomenon'', a mash-up album he released with DJ Vlad that blended rock and hip hop, which won the Mash-Up Mixtape of the Year at the Justo Mixtape Awards. He also produced songs for artists including Ill Al Skratch, Showbiz and A.G., the Jungle Brothers, Mad S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
DJ Clark Kent
Rodolfo Franklin Sr. (born September 28, 1967), known professionally as Clark Kent or DJ Clark Kent, is an American hip hop record producer, DJ and music executive of Panamanian descent. His crew of DJs is called "The Supermen", and his DJ moniker is derived from the name of Superman's alter ego. Music career In the late 1980s, DJ Clark Kent was rapper Dana Dane's DJ. Around this time, Kent would DJ at clubs such as one just around the block from Downtown Records on West 26th Street in Manhattan which was a short-lived hip-hop hotbed with other DJs also performing there, such as Funkmaster Flex and Kid Capri. In 1989, he produced the remix for Troop's hit song "Spread My Wings." He later scored his first street hit with the Junior M.A.F.I.A. song "Player's Anthem" which featured The Notorious B.I.G. and was also the first record that Lil' Kim appeared on. The biggest hit he produced was "Loverboy" by Mariah Carey, which peaked at #2 in the US on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barry Eastmond
Barry James Eastmond is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and record producer. Eastmond is an adjunct professor at New York University Steinhardt Performing Arts Department in songwriting and is part of the NYU Summer Songwriting Workshop. Biography Eastmond was born in Brooklyn, New York on January 11, 1959. He is the youngest of three children of Wilfred and Eileen Eastmond. He is married to songwriter Maria Eastmond and they have two children, Melodie and Barry Jr. Eastmond started his musical career as pianist at the age of four. Between the ages of seven and ten, he received classical music training at the Juilliard School of Music's preparatory school. While in high school, Eastmond began playing in local top 40 and wedding bands in Brooklyn. Soon, he became a touring pianist and keyboardist for female R&B singers such as Melba Moore, Phyllis Hyman, Angela Bofill, and Chaka Khan, eventually becoming Moore, Hyman, and Bofill's musical director. At the same time, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jeffrey Osborne
Jeffrey Linton Osborne (born March 9, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and lyricist. He is the former drummer and lead singer of the American R&B/soul group L.T.D., with whom he began his musical career in 1970. Biography Early life and family Osborne was born in Providence, Rhode Island. Born the youngest of twelve children which consisted of five brothers and six sisters, Osborne's family was musically inclined. Some of Osborne's siblings went on to have music careers as well; his brother Billy Osborne was his band-mate in L.T.D. Osborne's father, Clarence "Legs" Osborne, was a popular trumpeter who played with Lionel Hampton, Count Basie, and Duke Ellington. Osborne's father died in 1961 when Osborne was thirteen. L.T.D. Osborne began his music career in 1970 becoming a member of the American soul band "Love Men Ltd.", who would later become known as L.T.D. The band recorded hit singles such as "(Every Time I Turn Around) Back in Love Again" (1977), "Concent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roy Ayers
Roy Ayers (born September 10, 1940) is an American funk, soul, and jazz composer, vibraphone player, and music producer. Ayers began his career as a post-bop jazz artist, releasing several albums with Atlantic Records, before his tenure at Polydor Records beginning in the 1970s, during which he helped pioneer jazz-funk. He is a key figure in the acid jazz movement, and has been dubbed "The Godfather of Neo Soul". He is best known for his compositions "Everybody Loves the Sunshine", "Searchin", and "Running Away". At one time, he was said to have more sampled hits by rappers than any other artist. Biography Early life Ayers was born on September 10, 1940, in Los Angeles. He grew up in a musical family, where his father played trombone and his mother played piano. At the age of five, he was given his first pair of vibraphone mallets by Lionel Hampton. The area of Los Angeles that Ayers grew up in, South Park (later known as South Central) was at the center of the Southern ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reynaldo Rey
Reynaldo Rey (born Harry Reynolds; January 27, 1940 – May 28, 2015) was an American actor, comedian, and television personality. Career Rey moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he taught for seven years and became a member of the Karamu House Theatre, world-renowned for its development of top-notch actors, directors and producers. There, he launched his career in comedy, going on the road with the O'Jays. He then moved to New York City, where he was invited to join the Harlem Theater Group. While a member of the group, he appeared in his first movie. From there he performed in Europe, Asia and Africa for two years. Rey has appeared in 52 movies, including ''Friday (1995 film), Friday'', ''House Party 3'', ''White Men Can't Jump'', ''A Rage in Harlem'', and ''Harlem Nights'', where he appeared with the likes of Redd Foxx (his mentor, for whom he often opened shows), Della Reese, Richard Pryor, Arsenio Hall, and Eddie Murphy. He also has 32 television shows to his credit, including BET' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johnny "Guitar" Watson
John Watson Jr. (February 3, 1935 – May 17, 1996), known professionally as Johnny "Guitar" Watson, was an American musician and singer-songwriter. A flamboyant showman and electric guitarist in the style of T-Bone Walker, his recording career spanned forty years, and encompassed rhythm and blues, funk and soul music. Watson recorded throughout the 1950s and 1960s with some success. His creative reinvention in the 1970s with funk overtones, saw Watson have hits with "Ain't That a Bitch" and "Superman Lover". His highest charting single was 1977's "A Real Mother for Ya". Early life Watson was born in Houston, Texas. His father John Sr. was a pianist, and taught his son the instrument. But young Watson was immediately attracted to the sound of the guitar, in particular the electric guitar as played by T-Bone Walker and Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown. His grandfather, a preacher, was also musical. "My grandfather used to sing while he'd play guitar in church, man," Watson reflect ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Psycho Les
The Beatnuts are an American hip hop group and production duo from New York City. Its current members are JuJu and Psycho Les. JuJu (born Jerry Tineo on December 14, 1968) is a Dominican American from Corona and Psycho Les (born Lester Fernandez on April 10, 1970) is a Colombian American from Jackson Heights, Queens. Although only peripheral members, they are routinely acknowledged by Q-Tip as being members of Native Tongues. The Beatnuts were originally a trio before Fashion (born Berntony Smalls on January 13, 1970), now known as Al' Tariq, left the group to start a solo career. V.I.C. (Groove Merchantz, Ghetto Pros) was also a member of The Beatnuts' production team for a while. History Origins JuJu and Psycho Les grew up in different communities in Queens, New York City. Psycho Les started producing beats and DJing at age 15 under aliases including DJ Les Jams and DJ Incredible. At a high school in Flushing, Queens, a friend DJ Loco Moe introduced Les to fellow producer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jay Dee
A jay is a member of a number of species of medium-sized, usually colorful and noisy, passerine birds in the Crow family, Corvidae. The evolutionary relationships between the jays and the magpies are rather complex. For example, the Eurasian magpie seems more closely related to the Eurasian jay than to the East Asian blue and green magpies, whereas the blue jay is not closely related to either. Systematics and species Jays are not a monophyletic group. Anatomical and molecular evidence indicates they can be divided into an American and an Old World lineage (the latter including the ground jays and the piapiac), while the grey jays of the genus ''Perisoreus'' form a group of their own.http://www.nrm.se/download/18.4e32c81078a8d9249800021299/Corvidae%5B1%5D.pdf PDF fulltext The black magpies, formerly believed to be related to jays, are classified as treepies. Old World ("brown") jays Grey jays American jays In culture Slang The word ''jay'' has an archaic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mad Skillz
Donnie Shaquan Lewis, (born June 2, 1974) also known as Skillz, or Mad Skillz is an American rapper known for his acclaimed 1996 album ''From Where???'', a reference to his origins in Virginia, not a New York City or Los Angeles rapper. He is also known for his yearly "Rap Ups," which he has done annually since 2002 (except in 2013). Skillz is also the creator of the web series "Hip Hop Confessions", a series of shows that gathers hip hop purists and hip hop lovers alike where they reveal something hip hop related that they have never told anyone. The show has featured Q-Tip, Peanut Butter Wolf, Kwamé and DJ Jazzy Jeff. Early life Lewis was born June 2, 1974, in Detroit, Michigan and after spending his early childhood in Fayetteville, North Carolina, he then moved to Richmond, Virginia, at a young age. He credits Run DMC for getting him involved in hip hop as a child. Career He first made a name for himself by finishing in second place (Losing to MC Supernatural) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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