Mach-Hommy’s First Ever Recorded Verse was Over “Verbal Intercourse”
Mach-Hommy, the elusive Haitian-American rapper, has been making waves in the hip hop world these past few years…
Mike WiLL Made-It Originally Made “Humble” for Gucci Mane
When it comes to Kendrick Lamar’s “Humble,” it’s hard to imagine anyone other than the Compton rapper spazzing…
Scarface’s Verse on “This Can’t Be Life” is Based on a True Story
Hip hop is a genre that’s notorious for its larger-than-life personalities and stories, but sometimes a verse comes…
Jay-Z Passed on the Beat for Big Pun’s “Still Not A Player”
In the world of hip hop, it’s not unusual for some of the biggest hits to come from…
Prodigy Taught Havoc How to Produce Beats
When you start talking about some of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, there’s one name…
A Tribe Called Quest Didn’t Make Any Money From “Can I Kick It?”
A Tribe Called Quest’s iconic track “Can I Kick It?” is a classic hip-hop track and a fan…
Tupac Thought Keith Murray Was Dissing Him On “I Shot Ya”
On the most overlooked feuds from the 1990s, a infamous decade for hip hop beefs, was between two…
Cappadonna Made his Recording Debut on Raekwon’s “Ice Cream”
Cappadonna may not be as well-known as some of his Wu-Tang Clan counterparts, but he is considered by…
The Roots’ “What They Do” Video Caused a Beef with Biggie
As one of the most iconic and enduring hip hop groups, The Roots have a reputation for their…
Rev. Run Started Out as a DJ for Kurtis Blow
When you hear the name Rev. Run, you might immediately think of the iconic hip hop group Run-D.M.C.…
MC Sha-Rock was the First Female Rapper in Hip Hop History
Women in hip-hop have always had to fight twice as hard to be heard, and it all started…
Spike Lee Asked Public Enemy to Make “Fight the Power” for ‘Do the Right Thing’
It’s hard to imagine the climax of Spike Lee’s seminal 1989 film, Do the Right Thing, without the…
Prodigy’s Grandfather Was the Famous Jazz Musician, Budd Johnson
Music runs in the blood of many of the greatest hip hop artists, and Mobb Deep’s Prodigy was…
Stetsasonic Was the First Hip Hop Band in History
The OG hip hop band that came straight outta Brooklyn during the early ’80s, Stetsasonic was comprised of…
‘People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm’ was the First Album to Receive The Source’s Five-Mics
In the world of hip hop, The Source magazine was once a major authority, and its coveted “five-mics”…
Lauryn Hill Was the First Rap Artist To Win Album Of The Year With ‘The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill’
In 1999, the world of hip hop and the music industry at large was forever changed when Lauryn…
Boldy James Recorded ‘Fair Exchange No Robbery’ in 96 Hours
Over the past couple of years, Boldy James has cemented himself as one of the best rappers in…
De La Soul Made ‘3 Feet High and Rising’ for $13,000
One of the greatest hip hop groups of all time, De La Soul established themselves as a cultural…
MF DOOM Made his Recording Debut on 3rd Bass’ “The Gas Face”
Before Daniel Dumile was MF DOOM, the masked hip hop supervillain and one of the most celebrated underground…
Blondie’s “Rapture” Was the First Billboard Hot 100 Number-One Single to Feature Rap Vocals
Decades before hip hop became a dominant commercial force that took over pop culture around the world, it…
Snoop Dogg Was With Biggie During the Recording of “Ten Crack Commandments”
Next time you listen to the first track off Big’s Life After Death, “Somebody’s Gotta Die,” pay attention…
Ice Cube Was Originally Part of a Rap Group Called Cru’ in Action! (C.I.A.)
Before Ice Cube had joined the world’s most dangerous group and changed the rap world with Straight Outta…
DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince Were the First Rap Artists to Win a Grammy Award
Hip hop has always had a contentious relationship with the Grammys. It dates back to when the first…
Raekwon on “Skew It on the Bar-B” was OutKast’s First Non-Dungeon Family Feature
When Antwan “Big Boi” Patton and André “André 3000” Benjamin were still two young rappers looking to get…
DJ Quik’s ‘Quik Is The Name’ Was Only Meant to be a Mixtape
When legendary West Coast rapper-producer DJ Quik dropped his debut album, Quik Is the Name, in January 1991,…
Big L’s “M.V.P.” Inspired Biggie’s “One More Chance / Stay with Me (Remix)”
If you were a rap fan back in 1995, particularly in New York, you would have heard the…
AZ Appears in the Video for Jay-Z’s “Dead Presidents”
Years before the Nas vs. Jay-Z beef would come to a boiling point, the Queensbridge’s partner-in-rhyme, AZ, would…
Pimp C Was Supposed to Feature on Jay-Z’s “A Week Ago”
Jay-Z has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to spotting rap trends. Owing to the…
Sugar Hill Records Was the First Hip Hop Record Label in History
The Fatback Band’s “King Tim III (Personality Jock)” was the first commercially released hip hop song when it…
‘Funky Technician’ Was DJ Premier’s First Production Outside of Gang Starr
Long before Nas made it popular for rappers to feature a line-up of A-list producers their albums, Lord…
The Sequence’s “Funk You Up” Was the First Rap Song to Feature a Hook
Hands up if you’re a diehard rap fan and you’ve never heard of The Sequence? I’ll be honest,…
Kendrick Lamar is the Rapper With the Most Grammy Nominations in a Single Night
Over the past 10 years since his major label debut with good kid, m.A.A.d city, Kendrick Lamar has…
The Clipse’s Debut Album ‘Exclusive Audio Footage’ Was Shelved
The legendary Clipse may not have the most expansive catalogue when it comes to hip hip duos (three…
‘It’s Almost Dry’ is Pusha T’s First Billboard 200 Number One Album
Dope boys worldwide are celebrating! With the release of his fourth studio album, It’s Almost Dry, the coke…
Kanye West’s “All of the Lights” Features 14 Other Artists
Released in 2010 after almost a year of self-imposed exile, Kanye’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was quickly…
Puffy Almost Signed Mobb Deep to Bad Boy Records
Before Prodigy and Havoc were official Queensbridge murderers terrorising rival rap crews and representing QB to the fullest,…
Jay-Z Had Planned to Retire After ‘Reasonable Doubt’
It’s crazy to think that a hip hop artist who now boasts a catalogue of 13 solo albums,…
Big Daddy Kane Used to Ghostwrite for Biz Markie
Big Daddy Kane is without doubt one of the most influential rappers of all time. Coming into the…
Future and Drake Recorded ‘What a Time to Be Alive’ in Atlanta Over 6 Days
In 2015, there were a lot of dope rappers doing their thing. From Kendrick Lamar dropping his highly…
Schoolly D’s “P.S.K. What Does It Mean?” Was the First Gangsta Rap Record
When it comes to the gangsta rap, there are a number of hip hop artists that you can…