Del the Funky Homosapien is an alternative hip-hop artist. Del was born Teren Delvon Jones, August 12, 1972, in Oakland, California. Del was part of his cousin Ice Cube’s backing band Da Lench Mob and made his first solo album, I Wish My Brother George Was Here, with support from his cousin in 1991. Critics and fans had mixed opinions about the album, many feeling that Del’s and Cube’s styles weren't an ideal match.
Arrested Development is an afrocentric hip-hop group, founded by Speech and Headliner as a positive, alternative to the gangsta rap popular in the early 1990s. It took the group three years, five months and two days to be offered a record deal. Hence the name of the first album was 3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days in the Life Of..., which produced several hit tracks. These included "Tennessee", "People Everyday", and "Mr. Wendal", which hit the top ten. The group won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album and Best New Artist, and were also Band of the Year by Rolling Stone magazine.
Born Rakaa Taylor in Los Angeles, California, Rakaa (aka Iriscience) is a hip-hop MC, and one third of the renown west-coast underground crew Dilated Peoples. In 2010 he released his first solo album, Crown Of Thorns. Aside from rapping, Rakaa's passions run deep: stretching from visual arts to training Gracie Jiu-Jitsu to traveling the world as a highly sought after Host and MC, all in his spare time.
Prince Paul (born Paul Huston) is a legendary DJ and hip hop producer. Prince Paul is known for having a very unorthodox, but mostly well-received sense of humor. Musically, he was one of the driving forces of what was to become known as alternative rap, by using surprising samples and quirky humour. Originally a member of Stetsasonic, he produced De La Soul's 1989 debut album 3 Feet High and Rising (It was on this album that Prince Paul invented the hip hop skit which has a long-standing and pervasive tradition on Hip hop albums to this day).
Dominic Hunn (born on August 22, 1984 in Los Angeles, California), better known by his stage name Dom Kennedy, is a West Coast rapper from Leimert Park, Los Angeles, California. Since 2008, Kennedy has released 5 mixtapes, most notably his 2010 critically acclaimed mixtape From The Westside With Love DOM. KENNEDY graced the streets of Los Angeles in 2008 with the release of his debut project, entitled 25th Hour. The Leimert Park native made a name for himself by performing at various events and venues including the popular Sneaker Pimps Tour and the world famous House of Blues.
Residing in the boogie down Bronx, Rob has been devoted to music since he was a kid, maintaining a deep connection to it in multiple forms (The Beatles, The Stones, Melle Mel, Run DMC, Kraftwerk, The Soul Sonic Force, The Talking Heads, Zeppelin, BDP, Public Enemy, Muddy Waters, UltraMagnetic MC
The Cool Kids are a hip hop duo based in Chicago, Illinois consisting of Antoine "Sir Michael Rocks" Reed and Evan "Chuck Inglish" Ingersoll (originally from Mount Clemens, MI). They are signed to the independent Chocolate Industries via their own label C.A.K.E. Recordings. After meeting in 2005, and releasing three mixtapes onto the internet through their MySpace page, they released their debut EP The Bake Sale in 2008.
Melissa Arnette Elliott (born July 1, 1971 in Portsmouth, Virginia), better known by her stage name Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott, is an American Grammy Award winning rapper, singer, producer, actress and former member of the R&B group Sista. With sales of over seven million in the United States alone she is the only female rapper to have six albums certified platinum by the RIAA and has worked extensively as a producer for many other artists along with her childhood friend Timbaland.
De La Soul is a massively influential hip hop group, hailing from Amityville, New York, United States. They are best known for their eclectic sampling and quirky, surreal lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz hop subgenre. They are the best known of the early alternative hip-hop acts. The members are Kelvin Mercer (Posdnuos, Mercenary, Plug Wonder Why, Plug One), David Jude Jolicœur (Trugoy the Dove, Dave, Plug Two) and Vincent Mason (Pasemaster Mase, Maseo, Plug Three).
The Pharcyde is a West Coast underground/alternative hip hop group. The group was formed in 1991 in South Los Angeles, California, United States, where the group's members grew up. The group was one of the most well known of the first wave of alternative hip-hop acts. The original members of the group are "Slimkid3" (Tre Hardson), "Fatlip" (Derrick Stewart), "Imani" (Emandu Wilcox) and "Bootie Brown" (Romye Robinson). The group is best known for their hit singles "Passing Me By" (which crossed over to alternative rock radio) and "Runnin'", and their debut album Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde.