Ain't No Shame in My Game
Artist: Candyman

When a rapper does well in the R&B or pop markets, hip-hop's hardcore tends to view the artist with suspicion, however strong his or her rapping skills might be. That was exactly what happened to Candyman when "Knockin' Boots" (a catchy single that sampled Betty Wright's "Tonight Is the Night") enjoyed considerable crossover action. Some... Read More

2 Live Crew's Greatest Hits
Artist: 2 Live Crew
2nd II None
Artist: 2nd II None
Community Score: 8.00

Tha D and K.K. once confessed publicly that they were not capable of freestyling in the grand tradition of rap, so it would be quite reasonable if 2nd II None were not the most groundbreaking album in terms of its concepts and rhymes. And it is, in fact, lacking to some extent in those departments. On this debut album, the duo tended toward... Read More

Hard or Smooth
Artist: Wreckx-N-Effect
Community Score: 9.00

Together with "Baby Got Back," Wreckx-N-Effect's "Rump Shaker" helped to blur the line between decency and debauchery that, in the early '90s at least, was allegedly still intact. But unlike Sir Mix-A-Lot, who capitalized on his 1991 monster hit with a seemingly endless cache of goofy double entendres, lurid song ideas, and bombastic... Read More

Greatest Hits
Artist: TKA
Community Score: 9.00

In the 1980s and early '90s, TKA was the top male group in the genre termed "freestyle" and "Latin hip-hop." The latter is a definite misnomer, for this type of music isn't hip-hop per se, but rather dance music with hip-hop and Latin elements. Boasting such club smashes as "One Way Love," "Tears May Fall," "Scars of Love" and "Come Get My... Read More

F.U. Don't Take It Personal
Artist: Fu-Schnickens
Community Score: 9.00

Even before they made it to the record bins, three-man New York crew Fu-Schnickens created quite a buzz in the hip-hop community with the oddity of their group name. Once they dropped their debut album, F.U. Don't Take It Personal, their music turned out to be every bit as curious and intriguing. The music is inundated with kung fu movie... Read More

Prec.I.S.E.-Ly Done
Artist: Prec.I.S.E. MC

When a CD comes out on Luke Records and lists Luther Campbell as its executive producer, one tends to expect South Florida-style bass music. But despite the fact that Campbell signed the PreC.I.S.E. M.C. to his Luke label and serves as executive producer on her debut album, PreC.I.S.E.-ly Done, there isn't a trace of bass music to be found on... Read More

Mama Said Knock You Out
Artist: LL Cool J
Community Score: 8.08

Increasingly dismissed by hip-hop fans as an old-school relic and a slick pop sellout, LL Cool J rang in the '90s with Mama Said Knock You Out, a hard-edged artistic renaissance that became his biggest-selling album ever. Part of the credit is due to producer Marley Marl, whose thumping, bass-heavy sound helps LL reclaim the aggression of his... Read More

Cypress Hill
Artist: Cypress Hill
Community Score: 8.22

It's hard enough to transform an entire musical genre -- Cypress Hill's eponymous debut album revolutionized hip-hop in several respects. Although they weren't the first Latino rappers, nor the first to mix Spanish and English, they were the first to achieve a substantial following, thanks to their highly distinctive sound. Along with Beastie... Read More

Terror Squad
Artist: Terror Squad
Community Score: 8.12

Terror Squad spends much of their eponymous debut trading in gangsta clichés -- it only seems like there's been a hundred songs called "Pass the Glock" -- but beneath those rehashed themes lay some clever rhymes and music. Fat Joe and Big Punisher lead the group, which contains such promising rappers as Prospect and Cuban Link. The two... Read More