Lyrics Born (a.k.a. Asia Born) is Tom Shimura (b. 1972), originally from Berkeley, California, though through his childhood he lived in Tokyo, Japan, and Salt Lake City, Utah. He began his hip hop career while at college at UC Davis, where he was a DJ at the college station KDVS. He is a founding member of the group of artists known as Quannum Projects. He is also one half of the group Latyrx with fellow MC Lateef The Truth Speaker.
Billy Cobham, born May 16, 1944 in Panama, is one of the world's most influential drummers, best known for his jazz fusion in the 1970s, with John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra, where he pioneered a powerful style of drumming with jazz, rock and funk influences. He is the first drummer to unseat Buddy Rich in the Down Beat music polls. Cobham has played and recorded with hundreds of top musicians, including Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, Larry Coryell, and Horace Silver; and is famous for his explosive, fast, spectacular playing.
Cut Chemist is the performing name of Lucas MacFadden, a solo turntablist. He is a former member of the funk Latin band Ozomatli, and of the underground rap group Jurassic 5. He became known through the Los Angeles-based rap group Unity Committee, and debuted on vinyl on the B-Side of Unity Committee's 1993 single, Unified Rebelution. The track, "Lesson 4: The Radio" was an ovation of Double Dee and Steinski's seminal hip-hop masterpieces, "Lessons 1-3."
There are two artists known as Vee. 1) At the youthful age of 18 years, Vee is already amazing people, with her song writing ability, vocal talent and her energetic, individual style of performing.
She is from Perth, Western Australia. 2) Vee also known as Valiant is an abstract producer based in Johannesburg South Africa, he is well noted for his abstract sounds often deploying Bass, Drums then Melody.
Coming straight from Los Angeles, The Antidotes are a breath of fresh air. Friends since high school, the group of 4, consisting of MarkFader, Phenomenon, Jo Well & Konscious K, have done shows with the likes of U-N-I, Blu, Souls Of Mischief, Ugly Duckling, Visionaries and many more artist. Priding themselves in their live shows, the group was even scouted by none other than Taboo from the Black Eyed Peas at Temple Bar in Santa Monica. The group just recently signed a deal with GoonTrax: Media Factory of Japan and dropped a new EP which was put online for free.
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.