Yasiin Bey, best known by his stage name Mos Def, is an American hip hop recording artist, actor and activist from Brooklyn, New York City, New York. Best known for his music, Mos Def embarked on his hip hop career in 1994, alongside his siblings in the short-lived rap group Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. He subsequently formed the duo Black Star, alongside fellow Brooklyn-based rapper Talib Kweli, and they released their eponymous debut album in 1998. He was featured on the roster of Rawkus Records and in 1999 released his solo debut, Black on Both Sides. His debut was followed by The New Danger, True Magic and The Ecstatic. The editors at About.com listed him as the 14th greatest emcee of all time on their "50 greatest MC's of our time" list.
Prior to his career in music, Mos Def first entered public life as a child actor, having played roles in television movies, sitcoms, and theater.

Talib Kweli Greene is an American hip hop recording artist, entrepreneur, and social activist. He is the son of professional educators. In 2011, Kweli founded Javotti Media, which is self-defined as: "a platform for independent thinkers and doers." Kweli earned recognition early on through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper, Yasiin Bey, formerly known as Mos Def, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's musical career continued with solo success including collaborations with producers Kanye West, Just Blaze, and Pharrell Williams. Kweli has supported new artists J. Cole, Jay Electronica, Kendrick Lamar, and NIKO IS.

The Roots is an American hip hop group, formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots are known for a jazzy and eclectic approach to hip-hop featuring live musical instruments. Malik B., Leonard "Hub" Hubbard, and Josh Abrams were added to the band.
Since its first independent album-length release the band has released 10 studio albums, two EPs, two collaboration albums, and also collaborated on recordings and in live shows with a wide variety of artists in many musical genres. The Roots served as the house band on NBC's Late Night with Jimmy Fallon from 2009 to 2014, and in the same role on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon since 2014. The Roots' work has consistently been met with critical acclaim. About.com ranked the band #7 on its list of the 25 Best Hip-Hop Groups of All-Time, calling them "Hip-hop's first legitimate band."

Reflection Eternal is an American hip hop duo composed of emcee Talib Kweli and producer Hi-Tek. They released their first album, Train of Thought, in 2000. They have since released a mixtape, The RE: Union, in late December 2009, and their second album Revolutions Per Minute was released May 18, 2010.

Kamaal Ibn John Fareed, better known by his stage name Q-Tip, is an American rapper, singer, actor, record producer and DJ. He embarked on his music career as part of the critically acclaimed East Coast hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. John Bush of AllMusic called him "the best rapper/producer in hip-hop history," while editors of About.com placed him #17 on their list of the Top 25 Hip-Hop Producers, as well as placing him #38 on their list of the Top 50 MCs of Our Time. In 2012, The Source ranked him #20 on their list of the Top 50 Lyricists of All Time.

Nasir Bin Olu Dara Jones, better known by his stage name Nas, is an American rapper, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. The son of jazz musician Olu Dara, Nas has released eight consecutive platinum and multi-platinum albums and has sold over 25,000,000 records worldwide. He is also an entrepreneur through his own record label; he serves as associate publisher of Mass Appeal magazine and is the owner of a Fila sneaker store. He is currently signed to Mass Appeal Records.
His musical career began in 1991, as a featured artist on Main Source's "Live at the Barbeque". His debut album Illmatic received universal acclaim from both critics and the hip-hop community and is frequently ranked as the greatest hip hop album of all time. Nas' follow-up It Was Written debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, stayed on top for four consecutive weeks, went double platinum in two months, and made Nas internationally known. From 2001-05, Nas was involved in a highly publicised feud with fellow New York rapper Jay Z. Nas signed to Def Jam in 2006. In 2010, he released Distant Relatives, a collaboration album with reggae musician Damian Marley, donating all royalties to charities active in Africa.

Little Brother was an American hip hop group from Durham, North Carolina that consists of rappers Phonte and Big Pooh and DJ/producer 9th Wonder. The group produced four acclaimed studio albums and six mixtapes during their nine-year existence.
Little Brother was highly regarded among fans and critics.

A Tribe Called Quest is an American hip-hop group formed in 1985 and originally composed of MC and producer Q-Tip, MC Phife Dawg and DJ and producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, MC Jarobi White, left the group in 1991 after the release of their debut album. He continued to contribute to the band sporadically before rejoining for their 2006 reunion. Along with De La Soul, the group was a central part of the Native Tongues, and enjoyed the most commercial success out of all the groups to emerge from that collective. The group released six albums between 1990 and 2016. The band broke up in 1998 after releasing their fifth album. In 2006, the group reunited and toured the United States. In 2016, they released their sixth album, which was still incomplete when Phife Dawg died suddenly in March 2016, and was completed by the other members after his death.
The group is regarded as a pioneer of alternative hip-hop music, having helped to pave the way for many innovative artists.

Black Star is an American hip hop duo formed in 1997, from Brooklyn, New York City, New York. The duo is composed of rappers Yasiin Bey and Talib Kweli. They released a number of singles and one album, Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star on August 26, 1998. The record received critical acclaim, but only moderate commercial success. Since then the duo has worked together intermittently on soundtracks and other projects.

Wasalu Muhammad Jaco, better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco, is an American rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his debut album, Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor. He also performs as the frontman of rock band Japanese Cartoon under his real name. As an entrepreneur, Fiasco is the chief executive officer of 1st and 15th Entertainment.
Raised in Chicago, Jaco developed an interest in hip hop after initially disliking the genre for its use of vulgarity and misogyny. After adopting the name Lupe Fiasco and recording songs in his father's basement, 19-year-old Fiasco joined a group called Da Pak. The group disbanded shortly after its inception, and Fiasco soon met rapper Jay-Z who helped him sign a record deal with Atlantic Records. In September 2006, Fiasco released his debut album Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor on the label, which received three Grammy nominations. He released his second album, Lupe Fiasco's The Cool, in December 2007. The lead single "Superstar" became his first top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

Tony Cottrell, better known as Hi-Tek, is an American rapper and record producer from Cincinnati, Ohio. He is best known for his work with Talib Kweli on their Reflection Eternal album and on Black Star. His father is singer Willie Cottrell of the Willie Cottrell Band whom Hi-Tek featured on his second release Hi-Teknology 2.

Dexter Raymond Mills, Jr., better known by his stage name Consequence, is an American hip hop recording artist from Queens, New York City, New York. Consequence debuted in 1996, appearing several times on A Tribe Called Quest's fourth album Beats, Rhymes, and Life, as he is the cousin of foreman Q-Tip. In March 2007, he released his debut album Don't Quit Your Day Job!, under Columbia Records and Kanye West's GOOD Music. Consequence left GOOD Music in 2011, on bad terms, after being signed with the label since 2005. He and West later reconciled, despite Consequence speaking ill of West. Consequence subsequently launched his own record label, Band Camp Records, following his departure from GOOD Music.

Troy Donald Jamerson, better known by his stage name Pharoahe Monch, is an American rapper from Queens, New York. He is known for his complex lyrics, complex delivery, and internal and multisyllabic rhyme schemes.

Camp Lo is an American hip hop duo, formed in 1995, which hails from The Bronx, New York. The duo consists of rappers Sonny Cheeba and Geechi Suede, both of Muslim upbringing. The duo is perhaps best known for their 1997 hit, "Luchini AKA This Is It."

Clipse is an American hip hop duo, formed by brothers Gene "Malice" Thornton and Terrence "Pusha T" Thornton, in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. The group was affiliated with the production team The Neptunes, and in 2001 signed to their imprint Star Trak Entertainment.

Dennis Coles, better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and prominent member of the Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of Enter the Wu-Tang, the members went on to pursue solo careers to varying levels of success. Ghostface Killah debuted his solo-career with Ironman in 1996, which was well received by music critics. He has continued his success over the following years with critically acclaimed albums such as Supreme Clientele and Fishscale. His stage name was taken from one of the characters in the 1979 kung fu film Mystery of Chessboxing. He is the founder of his own label Starks Enterprises.
Ghostface Killah is critically acclaimed for his loud, fast-paced flow, and his emotional stream-of-consciousness narratives containing cryptic slang and non-sequiturs. In 2006, MTV included him on their honorable mention list of The Greatest MCs of All Time, while the editors of About.com placed him on their list of the Top 50 MCs of Our Time, calling him "one of the most imaginative storytellers of our time." Q magazine called him "rap's finest storyteller."