TRR

Born in 1968 as Antonio Hardy, Big Daddy Kane grew up in Brooklyn, New York and began his hip hop music career in 1984. Along with his friend Biz Markie, he joined the group Juice Crew and began writing his own lyrics and beats to his songs. The group was based out of Queens and … Read more

Born Calvin Broadus, Jr in Long Beach, California, Snoop Dog has gone by several nicknames in the hip hop industry, including Snoop Doggy Dogg and Snoop Lion. He got his nickname Snoopy from his mother and stepfather, who thought he looked like the cartoon character as a child. He grew up in the Baptist church … Read more

South Korean rapper G-Dragon was born Jiyong Kwon in 1988. He started singing professionally at the young age of five when he was made part of a group called Little Lula. This earliest foray into music did not last long when the group’s contract was abruptly ended. So traumatic was the break from the group … Read more

Rapper Talib Kweli was born into an academic family in Brooklyn, New York. His mother is a professor at Medgar Evars College, and his father is an administrator at Adelphi University. He also has a brother who is a professor of Constitutional studies at Columbia Law School; this brother likewise acted as a clerk for … Read more

The nephew of actress/singer Ruth Brown, William Michael Griffith, Jr., known professionally as Rakim, was born in Wyandanch, New York in 1968. He is consistently ranked as one of the top 50 MCs of his generation, if not of all time. He previously performed as half of the duo Eric B. & Rakim before breaking … Read more