Comprised of Bryan "Baby" Williams, Cash Money Records' co-founder, and Mannie Fresh, the label's in-house producer, Big Tymers incorporated substantial outside talent into their ranks and scored some huge hits in the process. Beginning with the duo's first release in 1998, How You Luv That? (re-released as How You Luv That?, Vol. 2 later that... [+] Read More

Yes No

MCs Babe-Face Kaos, Y-Tee, and Mister Man grew up in the West Indies (Y-Tee in Jamaica, Mister Man and Kaos in Trinidad), so reggae was a strong inspiration to their early years; hip-hop also figures in, however. All transplanted New Yorkers, they formed in 1992 when Mister Man saw Kaos perform. The two began collaborating, and after Mister Man... [+] Read More

Yes No

Destiny's Child rose to become one of the most popular female R&B groups of the late '90s, eventually rivaling even TLC in terms of blockbuster commercial success. Their accomplishments came in spite of several abrupt personnel changes, which were accompanied by heated, well-publicized feuds in the media and the courts. In fact, for a time,... [+] Read More

Yes No

The biggest hip-hop impresario of the mid-'90s, Sean Combs -- known as Puff Daddy both here and in the world of rap until his professional name change to P. Diddy -- created a multi-million dollar industry around Bad Boy Entertainment, with recordings by the Notorious B.I.G., Craig Mack, Faith Evans, 112, and Total, all produced and... [+] Read More

Yes No

After making her presence known on Junior M.A.F.I.A.'s debut album, Conspiracy, Lil' Kim launched a solo career in 1996 with the release of her first record, Hard Core. As the album's title implies, Kim was a rarity among female rappers -- one who not only concentrated on edgy hardcore rap but also explicit sexuality, two territories that had... [+] Read More

Yes No

One of the more curious entries into the early-2000s teen pop explosion, Lil' Romeo shot straight to the top of the Billboard charts with his first single at the unheard-of age of only 11. Alongside Lil' Bow Wow, Romeo proved that a substantial market existed for clean-cut preteen rappers with cute looks and PG-rated rhymes. Many of his biggest... [+] Read More

Yes No

Ludacris rode the early-2000s Dirty South explosion to widespread popularity, as his songs enjoyed an enormous embrace, mainly by urban media outlets but also MTV and pop radio. The Atlanta-based rapper went from local sensation to household name after Def Jam signed him to its Def Jam South subsidiary in 2000. In addition to connecting him with... [+] Read More

Yes No

Pharrell Williams didn't only help change the face of pop music during the late '90s and early 2000s. He also was one of the faces of pop music -- as a charismatic star who often stole the show when producing and/or guesting on other artists' hit singles. His presence was unfading, whether he was in front of a music video or behind a... [+] Read More

Yes No

Richard J, born Richard Mark Jansen on August , 21, 1989 in a small island of South-East Asia, Singapore as the second youngest of eight siblings. Mixed Race, Mum Portugese & Dad Malay, Richard was surrounded by a family who loved music. His mum, a singer back in her days was his main influence.

Richard was interested in art and... [+] Read More

Yes No

The story started on September 19th,1985 in Atlantic, New Jersey, Young B.I was born "Naiym Qairy Hickerson-Cooper". As a child and the early years of his life he was always into music. He first discovered he had the talent at the age of 8 when he record a freestyle to a song that was playing on the radio. From there he knew that he wanted to... [+] Read More

Yes No