S.F.C. stands for Soldiers for Christ – yeah, you guessed right, this is a Christian rap group. They were pioneers for Holy Hip Hop bringing authentic street rap with topics such as drugs, gang violence or immoral living. A nice album from start to finish – both in regards to scratching & sampling as well as rapping. Interludes aside you look at 40 Minutes of Illumination.
Dred Scott is an American Hip Hopper who was early on influenced by Jazz music but chose to be a rapper thanks to Run D.M.C. Nonetheless Jazz Music is an essiantial element in his music, combined with the Boom Bap Beats and his dope delivery it was something new compared to the rather smooth sounding Jazz Rap released up to 1994. An underrated and underappreciated record, don’t skip on this one!
The Artifacts are a Hip Hop Duo from Newark, New Jersey. Between A Rock And A Hard Place was released in 1994 and is regarded as a classic today. The album is consistent from start to finish and features Boom Bap that wants you to bob your head all day! Check it out, you won’t be disappointed.
A lot of people might know MC Solaar from Guru’s Jazzmatazz Vol. 1. But there is a lot more to him than just that. He was the first french MC to get popular. The fusion of jazz & funk samples combined with his smooth flow was just irresistible. A year after the release of his second album “Prose Combat”, he received an award for Best Male Singer of the Year at the 10th edition of the French “Victoires de la Musique” awards.
The Hip Hop Supergroup that pioneered Horrorcore. Horrorcore? Yeah, they’re talking about tough topics such as suicide, death, killing or psychopathy. The album was titled Niggamortis at first but was changed to 6 Feet Deep for a better reaction on the American market. Overseas, the album kept its original title and included a bonus track called Pass The Shovel. Ah btw – it was produced by Prince Paul…
Willie D was a member of the popular Southern Hip Hop group “Geto Boys”. In 1992 he left the Geto Boys to pursue his solo career. So in 1994 he released his third album. It’s very consistent and really rather sounds like a West Coast album than Rap from the South. The lyrics are hilarious when he talks about women and sex – but a few songs also cover conscious topics. Somethin’ Good? That’s up to you…
Outkast’s debut album “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik” was a seminal album for Southern Hip Hop. Produced by Organized Noise, the record features live instrumentation and musical elements from funk & soul genres. The sound is unique, the rapping is top notch – an underrated gem from the South. Git up, Git out and Git it!
