underground rap

As a young kid growing up in San Jose, Chris Manak soon realized he needed an escape from the realities of suburban life in the Silicon Valley. The age of nine was his coming of age. This was the year he discovered sports (Pittsburgh Pirates), video games (Pac man), girls (Anita Balderama), and hip hop ("Rappers Delight"). Alongside partner Sweet Steve, young Chris fashioned primitive mix-tapes (using the pause button) and ran amok at the local roller rink.

Gift Of Gab (Tim Parker) and Chief Xcel (Xavier Mosley) met at John F. Kennedy High School in 1987 in Sacramento, California and formed the group in the early 1990s. They released their first recording, "Swan Lake", on solesides records. The Solesides Crew consisted of the duo, as well as other friends of theirs they had met at University of California - Davis, including DJ Shadow, Lyrics Born and Lateef The Truth Speaker. The single was an underground hit, but label trouble prevented the duo from immediately capitalizing on their fame.

Bumpy Knuckles, also known as Freddie Foxxx, (born James Campbell in 1969) is an American rapper from New York. He has a trademark rough and tough approach in his lyrics (as well as his lifestyle) which has endeared him to Hardcore hip hop lovers and yet made him infamous within the record industry. Foxxx released his first LP, Freddie Foxxx Is Here in (1989) through MCA Records. He soon parted ways with the label and became a member of Queen Latifah's Flavor Unit establishment.

Leafdog has been dabbling with wordplay for the best part of ten years. One third of underground heroes The Three Amigos and beat maker to the stars, the time has come for Leafdog to add his debut solo release to an already bulging back catalogue of crew releases, live plaudits, guest features and production credits. In a world where reinventing and re-evaluating everything has become standard practice, Leafdog is an example of an artist who remains dedicated to the principles that make underground hip hop one of the most exciting forms of musical expression on the planet.