LL Cool J
No other rap artist seemed to embrace the spirit of the New Jack Era as willingly as LL Cool J did; his 1990 hit “Around The Way Girl” is probably the best example of R&B’s influence on Hip-Hop during that time period. When LL debuted in 1986, his style could be described as brash, pompous, and hard. Although his 1989 ‘Walking With A Panther’ album had been panned by critics (and especially urban audiences) for its Pop-oriented direction, but after teaming with New Jack Era producer Marley Marl, LL staged an unprecedented comeback with 1990’s ‘Mama Said Knock You Out’.
In sound, the album is a perfect blend of Hip-Hop music tempered with a refreshingly “urban” conscience. Other notable tracks on this album included “The Boomin’ System”, “Jingling Baby (remix)”, “6 Minutes Of Pleasure”, “Milky Cereal”, the title track, and “Eat ‘Em Up L Chill”. In particular, the single remixes of “6 Minutes” and “Eat Em Up” were extremely danceable, and received a lot of play at nightclubs and radio mixshows during their heyday. LL even danced in videos for “Around The Way Girl”, “Jingling Baby”, and “Strictly Business” – something that male suburban Hip-Hop fans probably weren’t particularly fond of.
By the end of 1992, LL Cool J had performed on many award shows (winning his first of two Grammys) and starred in two major motion pictures: “The Hard Way” and “Toys”. 1993 would see the release of LL’s ’14 Shots To The Dome’, but that album would be considered a critical disappointment compared to the album that followed, 1995’s ‘Mr. Smith’. After celebrating 10 years of his music with 1996’s ‘All World’, LL returned with 1997’s “’Phenomenon’, and then again in 2000 with ‘G.O.A.T’ (The Greatest Of All Time). LL’s new album will drop in 2002, and by all accounts it should be a blockbuster.
LL Cool J is the longest lasting successful rap artist of all time, and is currently building his credentials as a movie star, with roles in movies such as “In Too Deep” (1999) and “Rollerball” (2002).
LaQuan
...bio coming soon!
Lisa Lisa & The Cult Jam
Lisa Stansfield
...bio coming soon!
Love And Laughter
One song in the spring of 1991 called “I Surrender”. This U.K. based-group had promise, much in the same way as Soul II Soul demonstrated almost two years earlier. Information on this group is extremely hard to find.
Loose Ends
This U.K-based R&B collective were more of an 80s band than anything else, but in 1991 they released a single that made waves in North America entitled, “Don’t Be A Fool”. They also released songs such as “Hangin On A String” in the mid-1980s.
Maestro Fresh Wes
This Ontario-bred rapped took the Canadian music world by storm with his debut album, “Private Symphony”. Beginning with “Let Your Backbone Slide”, was Canada’s first official rap superstar. His second single “Drop the Needle” was just as good, and both of his songs were hip hop/dance classics to the fullest, which would be sure to rock a hip-hop club even today. To get a feeling of just how “hype” Maestro’s music was, just think of Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock’s “It Takes Two”.
Maestro’s third single and title track introduced a rapper with the ability to get soft and smooth like Big Daddy Kane. In the fall of 1991, Maestro returned with the “Conductin Thangs” album, and continued throughout the early 90s with decent jams, but none as great as his debut. By 1996, Maestro was a memory…
Main Source
...bio coming soon!
Mariah Carey
...bio coming soon!
Marky Mark & The Funky Bunch
Before Mark Whalberg became a major Hollywood actor after starring in the 1997 film 'Boogie Nights', he was New Kid Donnie Whalberg's pants-dropping, Calvin Klein sporting, rippled-ab having, rapping younger brother. In other words, he was the one and only Marky Mark. Instead of Danny Wood, Mark Whalberg was originally slated to be the fifth New Kid On The Block, but he turned that spot down. But in hindsight that didn't matter much, because in six years he would become all the rage as a rapper for a year or two.
Produced (and supported) by his big brother Donnie, Mark along with his long-time buddies Andy "Ashey Ace" Thomas, Scottie Gee, Hector (The Bootie Inspector), and D.J. T were collectively known as The Funky Bunch. Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch's first album, "Music For The People" was released the fall of 1991, anchored by two big hits: "Good Vibrations w/Loleatta Holloway" (Not to be confused with the Beach Boys version) and "Wildside". The album's third single was the moderately successful "Money". It was around this time that Marky Mark's modelling career with Calvin Klein began to really take off. During his heyday, Mark's signature stage move (which R&B star Usher continues) was to drop his pants at the end of the show.
In the fall of 1992 the group released their 2nd album, "You Gotta Believe" which after dissapointing sales became the group's final album. Mark then ditched his stage name and acted in films such as "The Basketball Diaries" and "Fear" before breaking through with "Boogie Nights". Since then, he was also featured in "Three Kings", "The Big Hit", "The Perfect Storm", and played the lead roles in "Planet Of The Apes" and "Rock Star".
Substantial portions of this bio submitted by Jabar Robbins
M.C. Brains
...bio coming soon!
M.C. J & Cool G
This duo from Halifax (one was a singer, one was a rapper) hit it big with “So Listen”, a pop/R&B rap joint that also had a remix that did just as well. They followed that up with a song called “Soft As Silk”, which was also a great song as well. This duo has the distinction of being the first Black act signed to Capitol Records in Canada. They have spoken at various conventions, and currently reside in Ontario. Radio station CKDU-FM in Halifax, Nova Scotia, was instrumental in their rise to fame during the New Jack era in Canada. MC J & Cool G often used the term "Double R&B" to describe their sound: Rap, Rhythm & Blues...
M.C. Hammer
Born and raised in Oakland, CA, Stanley Kirk Burrell had two passions -- dancing and baseball. When he was younger, he became a batboy for the Oakland A's. As he got older, he became facsinated with rap music and decided to cut his own record from scratch. With a loan from players for the Oakland A's, Stanley called himself M.C.Hammer (a nickname given to him due to his resemblance "Hammerin'" Hank Aaron) and eventually sold an astounding 60,000 copies of his homemade album, "Feel My Power" out of the trunk of his car.
The popularity of M.C. Hammer caught the eye of Capitol Records. After being turned down relentlessly by Hammer, Capitol finally him gave an offer he couldn't refuse. A multi-million dollar deal (which included a $750,000 signing bonus). As a favor, Capitol re-packaged "Feel My Power" as "Let's Get It Started" which went gold in 1989. Notable singles from this album included the title track, "Turn This Mutha Out", and the summer '89 remix of "They Put Me In The Mix (Hammer, Hammer)". That same year, Hammer hit the road with Guy, Heavy D. & The Boyz, and Kool Moe Dee.
After that, Hammer went back into the studio to record the biggest (and cleverly sample-heavy) album of his career, "Please Hammer Don't Hurt `Em". It became the biggest selling album in 1990. Powered by "You Can't Touch This", the MC Hammer hit parade continued with the sugary slow-jam "Have You Seen Her", the proto-Kirk Franklin sounding "Pray" (featuring a memorable sample of Prince's "When Doves Cry") and "Here Comes The Hammer".
Hammer began touring non-stop, and throughout 1990 thru 1991, Hammer was seemed to be everywhere, selling "British Knights" sneakers, his own doll, endorsing Taco Bell and KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken), winning awards left and right, and even producing his own cartoon show ("Hammerman"). Then in the fall of `91, Hammer decided to drop the M.C. moniker from his name and released his 3rd album, "Too Legit 2 Quit", which sold a respectable 5 million copies worldwide, but people were tired of Hammer's positive, squeaky-clean image. The "Addams Groove" single marked the end of the "blockbuster" portion of Hammer's career.
Editor's Note: It also didn't help matters much that by the fall of '91, the record-buying masses were growing increasingly hostile towards anything that remotely sounded like traditional dance/pop music; Hammer's feel-good sound virtually defined the 'pop music' of the New Jack Era.
In 1994, Hammer left Capitol, signed with Giant Records, and released the gangsta rap-sounding "The Funky Headhunter", featuring the moderate hits "It's All Good" (which has become a popular phrase since) and "Pumps And A Bump" (featuring Hammer's most aggressive sound yet, and a scandalous video to boot). It was around this time that Death Row Records expressed interest in having Hammer join the label, but Hammer never released an album with Death Row.
In late 1995, "Inside Out" was released (marking the first album where put the M.C. back into his name), however the album proved to be a commercial dissapointment. Hammer's luck took a turn for the worse when he filed for bankruptcy in `96. Although most people won't seem to admit it, M.C Hammer helped push the envelope for rap music to crossover to mainstream success. Hammer is now a minister and had recently released an album in 2001 called, "Active Duty".
*Substantial portions of this bio submitted by Jabar Robbins
Midnight Star
Known for mostly their 80s funk-influenced dance hits ("I'm Curious", "No Parking On The Dance Floor", etc), this co-ed group scored a minor hit with their single “Do It (One More Time)” in the summer of 1989. After that song, the group faded into obscurity.