Raymond Tyson, better known by his stage name Ray Luv, is an American Bay Area rapper from

Santa Rosa, California Santa Rosa (Spanish language, Spanish for "Rose of Lima, Saint Rose") is a city in and the county seat of Sonoma County, California, Sonoma County, in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay A ...

, United States, who is best known for his contribution to the Bay Area hip hop scene in the mid-1990s.

Biography

Raymond Tyson was born on April 15, 1972, in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, and was raised in

Career

Early in his career Ray Luv performed alongside

Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur (; born Lesane Parish Crooks; June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor, regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all tim ...

in the group Strictly Dope, a group based in

. In 1991, Ray was signed to the independent label Young Black Brotha Records by fellow friends

Mac Dre Andre Louis Hicks (July 5, 1970 – November 1, 2004), known artistically as Mac Dre, was an American rapper, record producer and songwriter from Vallejo, California. He was an instrumental figure in the emergence of hyphy, a cultural movement ...

and

Mac Mall Jamal Rocker (born June 14, 1975), known professionally as Mac Mall, is an American rapper from the San Francisco Bay Area who became known in the mid-late 1990s. Mac Mall signed with the record label, Young Black Brotha Records, and later came ...

. Ray Luv has stated that he got his name from Tupac Shakur. His first extended play ''Who Can Be Trusted?'' was released in 1993 by Young Black Brotha "Get Your Money On" from ''Trusted'' was popular on local radio at the time. That next year, Luv was featured on the ''

Above The Rim ''Above the Rim'' is a 1994 American sports drama film co-written and directed by Jeff Pollack in his directorial debut. The screenplay was written by Barry Michael Cooper, adapted from a story by Benny Medina. The film stars Duane Martin, ...

soundtrack''. ''Forever Hustlin'', released in 1995 by

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...

through the Bay Area label Young Black Brotha, was his major label debut; it reached #21 on the ''Billboard'' Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart. One of Ray Luv's biggest singles "Last Nite", music video was directed by

in 1994. He was longtime friends with

Tupac Tupac Amaru Shakur (; born Lesane Parish Crooks; June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor, regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all tim ...

and fellow

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose. The Association of Bay Area Governments ...

rappers,

and

. In 1997, Luv contributed to the Bay Area rap compilation, ''Best of Da Bay: A Series of Slaps'', from Young Black Brotha. Ray Luv is co-owner of the bay area favorite online video series ''Pushin' The Bay TV'', alongside the show's host Emcee T, a rapper who is also from

Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca *Santa Rosa, La Pampa * S ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Discography

Studio albums

Collaboration albums

*''Population Control'' with Crimeseen (2006)

Compilation albums

*''Black Wall Street'' with JT the Bigga Figga & Mac Mall (2003)

Extended plays

*''Who Can Be Trusted?'' (1993)

Singles

Guest appearances

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Luv, Ray 1972 births African-American male rappers 21st-century American male rappers 20th-century American male rappers Atlantic Records artists Living people People from Santa Rosa, California Rappers from the San Francisco Bay Area Gangsta rappers 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American musicians