An early friend and collaborator with the boys from Organized Konfusion, O.C. appeared on the video for the duo's 1991 single "Fudge Pudge" and gained a record deal for his smooth, intelligent raps. Born in Brooklyn in 1973, Omar Credle moved to Queens when he was 11, moving into a house across the street from Pharoahe Monch. When Monch formed Organized Konfusion with Prince Poetry, O.C. kept in contact with the group and contributed a rap to "Fudge Pudge" from their self-titled debut. By 1994, O.C. had a deal of his own, though Wild Pitch Records had little money to promote his album debut, Word...Life. He refused to record again for the label and was dropped. He appeared on Organized Konfusion's second LP, Stress: The Extinction Agenda, and the Crooklyn soundtrack, but it was almost two years before O.C. was signed again, this time by the much more viable Payday Records (a subsidiary of PolyGram/EMI). O.C.'s second album, Jewelz, was released in August 1997. Bon Appetit appeared four years later.

John Bush, Rovi

Widely known initially for his work as a producer and MC with the rap group Main Source, Large Professor soon after became a full-time producer working with such acts as Big Daddy Kane and A Tribe Called Quest. Professor originally became involved in rap when he won a tryout held by Main Source members K-Cut and Sir Scratch in 1989. Contributing significantly to the creative direction of the group, Professor eventually broke with Main Source over creative differences. He then lent his hand to albums by some of rap's biggest names, including Eric B. & Rakim, Nas, and Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth. For his full-length solo debut, 2002's 1st Class, Large Professor called in favors from friends including Nas, Q-Tip, and Busta Rhymes. 2008's Main Source featured Big Noyd, AZ, and Styles P.

Steve Kurutz, Rovi

Part of Brooklyn's talented Boot Camp Clik, the powerful tandem of Smif-n-Wessun got their start on Black Moon's classic debut, Enta da Stage, in 1993. Rudeboy MCs Tek and Steele made their presence felt on the cuts "U da Man" and "Black Smif N' Wessun." In early 1994, the crew scored a massive underground hit with "Bucktown," a reference to their violence-plagued Bedford-Stuyvesant stomping grounds and "home of the original gun clappas."

Their debut LP, Dah Shinin', followed soon thereafter, unleashing more heavy artillery from the military-minded BCC. With a canvas of dark, gluttonous beats provided by the gifted Beatminerz production squad, the duo expanded the limits of harsh-sounding, neck-snapping hip-hop by adding a melodic element. The crew released their album during the heyday of one of the most influential independent hip-hop labels of the '90s, Nervous Wreck Records, which many other indies (Rawkus) have patterned themselves around. Their recording moniker alone, Smif-n-Wessun, implies violence, but the weaponry they deploy is also of the verbal variety. Tek and Steele both possess signature flows, the former a bit more straight-laced while the latter showcases West Indian influences. Dah Shinin' is a focused album with a sharp, compacted sound that still contains depth, albeit strictly from the dark side.

Forced to reincarnate themselves after a legal battle with the Smith and Wesson firearm company, the duo resurfaced in 1997 as Cocoa Brovaz, a reference to their heritage and also to their marijuana fixation. Their second album (and first as Cocoa Brovaz), 1998's The Rude Awakening, was a more sprawling and chaotic venture, as well as being a shade more frighteningly dark. Since 1998, the two partners have released a few singles, including "Super Brooklyn," which features a superbly innovative use of a sample from the old {*Super Mario Bros.} {!Nintendo} game.

Michael Di Bella, Rovi

In the mid-'90s, Sean Price, known then as Ruck, and partner Rock dropped their debut album, Nocturnal, as the rap outfit Heltah Skeltah during a time when East Coast hip-hop was delivering mainstream and underground classics left and right. Heltah Skeltah and the rest of their collective, the Boot Camp Clik, never enjoyed the popular success of East Coast acts Wu-Tang Clan or Mobb Deep, but they did receive that same critical acclaim. Source magazine nominated them for Best New Group of 1996. Price, however, was always cast as the sidekick half of the group on account of Rock's gritty and baritone voice despite the fact that they were both masterful lyricists.

By the time of their second release in 1998, Magnum Force, none of this mattered. The album did poorly as was the Boot Camp's record label, Duck Down Records. Priority Records dropped Duck Down from its distribution deal in 2000. Rock left Duck Down to pursue a solo career with DJ Lethal (of House of Pain and Limp Bizkit fame) and his new label, Lethal Dose Records; however, that project folded. Price found himself either in jail or back on the streets of Brooklyn, NY, hustling and selling crack in order to survive. After a few years of hard times, a serious girlfriend, and children, he began appearing on various mixtapes and other albums as a solo artist using his birth name, Sean Price. A notable guest appearance during this period was on "Rising to the Top," a duo with Dipset affiliate Agallah that was featured in the popular video game {*Grand Theft Auto III}.

A reinvigorated Duck Down Records obtained a new distribution deal with Navarre in May 2005 and announced their "Triple Threat" campaign, a three-album collaborative effort with rap collective the Justus League and their in-house producers, 9th Wonder and Khrysis. Monkey Barz, Price's solo debut and first installment of the campaign, was also released in May 2005, attaining very favorable reviews. Upon winning Independent Album of 2005 in both the Source and influential website AllHipHop.com, many began to consider Price to be the Boot Camp's star rapper -- a title usually given to Boot Camp leader Buckshot. His second solo album, Jesus Price Supastar (2007), was received just as favorably as the first, and even prompted some major-label interest in the veteran MC.

Cyril Cordor, Rovi

An alum of late-'80s/early-'90s golden age hip-hop, vicious Queensbridge lyricist Blaq Poet gradually slipped into his reputable underground status as the '90s and 2000s progressed onwards. Known then as MC Poet, he debuted in the mid-'80s with the ill-befitting dance-rap single "The Wopp Sensation." However, he regained ground when he embroiled himself in the Bronx-Queens feud between Boogie Down Productions and Marley Marl's Juice Crew, unleashing the KRS-One dis record, "Beat You Down," in 1987. A few years later, he teamed up with producer and turntablist DJ Hot Day to form the duo PHD; the two recorded for Tuff City, releasing the 12" "I'm Flipping" (1991) and the overindulgently violent and boastful album Without Warning (1991), which contained early guest raps by Queensbridge notables Havoc (of Mobb Deep) and Cormega.

Aside from another PHD single in 1995 on Tuff City, "The Grand P.O.," Poet retreated during the middle of the '90s, save for a few mixtape appearances here and there. But in the late '90s, he helped put together the five-person, all-Queensbridge rap group Screwball, who enjoyed beats from the likes of producer legends Pete Rock and DJ Premier. The group's label, Tommy Boy, had some issues with their rough-and-tumble rap music, especially considering their 1999 singles, "Who Shot Rudy?" (as in at-the-time New York mayor Rudy Giuliani) and "F.A.Y.B.A.N." (an acronym for "F*ck All Y'all B*tch Ass Ni**as"). Regardless, Tommy Boy issued Screwball's full-length debut, Y2K, in 2000. Since then, Poet frequently worked with DJ Premier and joined the roster of Premier's Year Round Records as a solo artist. A number of mixtapes and 12"s were issued before his first LP, Rewind: Deja Screw, hit shelves in 2006.

Cyril Cordor, Rovi

Rapper, DJ, and producer Pete Rock first emerged in 1991 as one half of a duo with C.L. Smooth, debuting with the All Souled Out EP. A hit LP, Mecca and the Soul Brother, followed before the two went their separate ways in the wake of 1994's The Main Ingredient, with Rock remaining a prolific studio presence prior to the release of his solo debut, Soul Survivor, on Loud/RCA four years later. Dropped from the label, he continued his career as an independent producer, and later signed to Rapster/BBE in 2001 for PeteStrumentals. Two years later, the label released a two-part compilation of mid-'90s LPs with Lost and Found. In 2004, Rock produced the sequel to his debut, Soul Survivor II, with features coming from Pharoahe Monch, Dead Prez, Talib Kweli, and former partner C.L. Smooth. During the next few years, Rock focused on producing for other artists, including Edo G and Ghostface Killah, releasing his next solo album, NY's Finest, in early 2008.

Jason Ankeny, Rovi

An earnest student of the early-'90s boom-bap technique, underground rap producer Marco Bruno, aka Marco Polo, was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario. Bit hard by the hip-hop bug, he enrolled into an audio engineering school in 1999, purchasing his first MPC with his student loans. Once he finished up school, he moved from Canada down to New York and lived in his friend's basement in Queens to get his career started. He began paying his dues as an unpaid intern at the Cutting Room recording studios in Manhattan, which eventually turned into an on-staff management position. He used to play his beats in the office while clientele like Talib Kweli, Fat Joe, and Inspectah Deck came through for recording sessions. One of those passersby, Masta Ace, liked what he heard and added one of Polo's productions ("Do It Man") to his 2004 effort A Long Hot Summer. The song opened up many more opportunities for him, and soon he became an in-house producer for N.Y. indie Soulspazm. He was landing beats for several noteworthy hip-hop artists, including Supernatural, Jean Grae, Immortal Technique, the Boot Camp Clik, and California MC Rasco, who released Polo's first beat CD, Canned Goods, on his Pockets Linted imprint in 2005. When Soulspazm had a falling out with its distributor, the company lined up another joint venture with Rawkus Records. Rawkus championed the ambitious beat-maker and his 2007 production album, Port Authority. With his smooth textures and back-to-basics approach, Polo aptly chose veteran MCs like Kool G Rap, Large Professor, O.C., and Masta Ace to grace various tracks for the LP.

Cyril Cordor, Rovi

With an impressive resume in rap that includes membership in the legendary Juice Crew (along with Marley Marl, MC Shan, Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Roxanne Shante, and Craig G) and a verse on the 1988 classic posse cut "The Symphony," Brooklyn's Masta Ace is truly an underappreciated rap veteran and underground luminary. Two years after "The Symphony," Ace released his debut album Take a Look Around on rap's version of the Motown label, Cold Chillin' Records. While not a huge commercial success the album spawned a hit single and video for "Me and the Biz" which popped up on many popular rap video shows in the late '90s for nostalgia's sake. The album has Marley Marl's keen production aura all over it and also features a guest appearance from the Biz himself. After three years on the hush, Ace returned to the fold in 1993 this time with his crew as Masta Ace Incorporated (Lord Digga and Paula Perry) and dropped Slaughtahouse. The album broke new ground by taking the synthesized West Coast Sound and filtering it through an East Coast mentality. The memorable "Born to Roll," with its tweaked Moog/Kraftwerk bass line, brought Ace some serious commercial attention. In 2000, De La Soul used this classic beat on a remix of "All Good" featuring Chaka Khan. The album also produced a few hits for undergrounders including "Jeep Ass Niguhz" and "Style Wars." The album is highly notable for its cross-coast compatibility. In 1995 Masta Ace Incorporated dropped Sittin' on Chrome, a continuation of the themes on Slaughtahouse and owning an even slicker sound. Using the Isley Brothers' much-sampled "For the Love of You" for the track "I.N.C. Ride" may have offended some of Ace's loyal fans but the song's catchy vibe made it a hit. Sittin' on Chrome is another album chock-full of Jeep beats that doesn't relinquish its standing with underground tastes. "B Side" and "4 the Mind" featuring the Cella Dwellas are also crucial jams. Ace has been known to release sleeper singles that cannot be found on his albums; one of the rarest, 1996's "Ya Hardcore," is a bumping indictment of studio gangsters and thug rap neophytes. The talented survivor in the rap game released a variety of singles in 2000 including "Hellbound," a duet with Eminem marking his 12-plus years of experience in the rap biz. The Disposable Arts album from 2001 was a well-received protest against watered-down rap with some hints that the rapper was retiring. It was all a red herring as he returned in 2004 with the conceptual album A Long Hot Summer. A year later he formed the eMC with rappers Wordsworth, Punchline, and Stricklin.

Michael Di Bella, Rovi

As a member of Brand Nubian, Sadat X (born Derek Murphy) was one of the key MCs who related messages inspired by the Five Percent Nation. Two years after Brand Nubian's third album, Everything Is Everything, he made his solo debut with Wild Cowboys, which built on his lyrical reputation on top of tough, jazz-inflected arrangements. The album, featuring production from Diamond D and Buckwild, was a solid solo debut that didn't quite scale the heights of his legacy with Brand Nubian. No Better Way, also released in 1996, improved on the debut and was produced by a cast that opened up to include da Beatminerz and Pete Rock. Sadat teamed back up with Brand Nubian for 1998's Foundation, but he didn't appear again as a solo artist until The State of New York vs. Derek Murphy, an EP released on Relativity in 2000. With a full-time job as a special-education teacher, it took five years before his next album, 2005's Experience & Education, was released, but 2006 saw another full-length, Black October, which was recorded while Sadat X awaited the possibility of prison time for carrying a loaded gun.

Andy Kellman, Rovi

A founding member of New York's D.I.T.C. (Diggin' in the Crates Crew), A.G. made his first appearance on Lord Finesse's debut album, Funky Technician, in 1990. Teaming up with partner Showbiz in 1991, the duo released their first EP, Party Groove/Soul Clap, and were subsequently signed to Payday Records. A.G. stuck with Showbiz, releasing three albums in the early to mid-'90s, and appeared on plenty of D.I.T.C.-related albums, among others. His first solo effort, entitled The Dirty Version, was released on Silvadom Records in 1999. Get Dirty Radio followed seven years later.

Brad Mills, Rovi

Although his status within Boston's rap underground is legendary, hardcore underground rapper Big Shug is widely known for his long-time affiliation with hip-hop duo Gang Starr and its producer-half, DJ Premier. Deemed top general of the Gang Starr Foundation collective, Big Shug's unrelenting flow and predisposition for menacing rhymes -- personified by his massive and imposing physique -- were best captured in his classic verses on Gang Starr cuts "F.A.L.A" (from 1994's Hard to Earn) and "The Militia" (from 1998's Moment of Truth). Born Cary Guy, the hardcore rapper spent much of his early life in Boston's Mattapan (known locally as "Murdapan") section. Because his mother abandoned his family and his father grappled with alcoholism, Guy had to fend for himself on the streets. The friendship that he eventually made with Gang Starr's MC, Guru, is actually where the origins of Gang Starr lie. Shug stimulated Guru's interest to rhyme in somewhat of a mentoring capacity. However, too embedded in Boston's underbelly of violence and drugs, Shug wound up incarcerated, and Guru moved to New York, taking the Gang Starr name to form one of hip-hop's most innovative groups with DJ Premier. When Shug was let out, he was very inspired by Gang Starr's success. Guru and Premier showed their respects by including him on each of their albums, beginning with Hard to Earn in 1994. Throughout the '90s, Shug recorded a few DJ Premier-produced 12"s for Payday and Chrysalis, but his first full-length record, Who's Hard (2005), didn't appear until well over a decade of being a seasoned veteran. Actually, many of the album's tracks were some of those ten-year-old recordings. In 2007, he signed onto indie rap powerhouse Babygrande to release his follow-up effort, Streetchamp. Unlike the previous album, Shug only took a few beats from DJ Premier, handing most of the production work over to Canadian up-and-comer MoSS.

Cyril Cordor, Rovi

A member of the Wu-Tang family, DJ/producer Mathematics (aka DJ Allah Mathematics) is the man the group members turn to when they want that classic Wu sound, and he is rumored to have drawn the original "W" logo. Born Norman Porter in south-side Jamaica, Queens, Mathematics was exposed to hip-hop culture at an early age. His older brother brought home mixtapes of Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, Treacherous Three, Cold Crush Brothers, and others jamming at area block parties. There were no double tape decks at the time, so Mathematics and his brother made copies by pushing two boom boxes together, one playing and one recording.

The future producer originally thought of himself as an MC and imitated Spoonie Gee, Melle Mel, Kool Moe Dee, and other favorites, but a realization that it was the DJ who controlled the tempo and flow changed everything. Influenced by early greats like Grandmaster Flash, Grand Wizard Theodore, and DJ Charlie Chase, he started DJing block parties in the '80s while his brother hooked him up with future Wu-Tang member GZA. GZA was working with the Cold Chillin' label and needed a DJ, but this was only the beginning of Mathematics' Wu-Tang association.

GZA's family lived around the corner from Mathematics, and one day GZA called the young DJ to go to Queens and watch his cousin shoot a video. The video was for "Ooh I Love You Rakeem" by Prince Rakeem, and Mathematics was shocked to find out Prince Rakeem was actually an old friend, RZA. Over time, RZA taught Mathematics all he knew about production, like how to use samplers and how important it is to have your own voice. At the time, the copyright rules for sampling stated that if you kept a sample under three seconds you didn't have to get label clearance. To avoid seeking clearance, Mathematics sped up old soul records and created a sound that has since become widely imitated. "Wu Banga 101" from Ghostface Killah's Supreme Clientele, "Rules" from the Wu's Iron Flag, and uncredited work on "Must Be Bobby" from RZA's Digital Bullet are some of Mathematics' major contributions to the Wu world.

In 2003, Mathematics released his first full-length, Love, Hell or Right on his own Quewisha Records label in conjunction with High Times Records. He has also released his own mix CD (available through his website), drawn the artwork for GZA's Liquid Swords album, and written the theme and additional music for Wanda Sykes' television show, Wanda at Large.

David Jeffries, Rovi

Speaking out against what he saw as a decline in rap during the mid-'90s, Jeru the Damaja came to the fore as a self-proclaimed prophet and the savior of hip-hop, much as KRS-One had done almost ten years before. Jeru first appeared as a guest on Gang Starr's Daily Operation album, and his own deal with Payday/ffrr appeared soon after, resulting in 1994's The Sun Rises in the East. Though he made few friends in the rap world -- given his outspoken criticism of such popular figures as the Fugees and Sean "Puffy" Combs -- he proved a vital force in the emergence of the new rap consciousness of the late '90s.

Raised Kendrick Jeru Davis in Brooklyn, the Damaja began writing rhymes at the age of ten. At high school, he met Guru and DJ Premier of Gang Starr, and first guested on Gang Starr's "I'm the Man," from the 1992 album Daily Operation. Jeru toured with the group during 1993 and released his solo debut, Come Clean, for Gang Starr's Illkids label. The single became an underground sensation and led to his contract with Payday Records. He recorded The Sun Rises in the East with DJ Premier producing, and released the album in 1994. Though the album was well-received, Jeru got some flak for the song "Da Bichez" -- though he explicitly stated that most girls did not fit into the category. During 1994, he appeared on Digable Planets' second album (Blowout Comb) and recorded his follow-up, Wrath of the Math, with DJ Premier and Guru once again helping out with production. The independent record Heroz4hire followed in early 2000, and his protégé, Afu-Ra, debuted in 2000 with Body of the Life Force. Jeru kept a surprisingly low profile thereafter, though he did appear on a stellar track from Groove Armada's 2001 album Goodbye Country (Hello Nightclub). Two years later, another solo album, Divine Design, was released, but it wasn't until 2007 that Jeru made another record, Still Rising.

John Bush, Rovi

Making sure the parental advisory sticker will never become obsolete, Lord Finesse broke into the rap game as yet another hardcore rapper. After gaining a following in his native New York, Finesse cut Funky Technician, an excellent debut for Wild Pitch Records. He then signed a management deal with Ice-T's Rhyme Syndicate Management and recorded his 1991 major-label debut, Return of the Funky Man, for Giant. When his rapping career didn't explode, Finesse began producing and has since become a competent studio player, producing albums by Notorious B.I.G. and Noreaga.

Steve Kurutz, Rovi

Hip-hop duo Lil' Dap and Melachi -- collectively known as Group Home -- surfaced in 1995 on a compilation called Guru Presents Ill Kids Records, which was released around the same time as their debut album, Livin' Proof. In spite of Guru's championing the duo, Group Home remained silent for a few years, finally reappearing in 1999 with the album A Tear for the Ghetto, which featured cameos from Guru, Steph Lova, and the Jerky Boys.

Steve Huey, Rovi