Who Is Mase? Mason Betha, known as Mase or Ma$e, is a Harlem rapper who left a multi-platinum Bad Boy career in 1999 to become an ordained minister, returned in 2004 with Welcome Back, left again, returned again, and left again. His debut Harlem World (1997) went four times platinum. His career arc is one of rap's most unusual. Quick Stats Career Overview Mase emerged as a standout talent on Puff Daddy's No Way Out (1997) and his own Harlem World (1997), which went

Who Is Tyga? Micheal Ray Nguyen-Stevenson, known as Tyga, is a Compton-born rapper who scored his biggest commercial moment with Rack City (2012) — a DJ Mustard-produced club banger that went double platinum — and subsequently struggled to sustain that momentum across studio albums that critics consistently dismissed. Quick Stats Career Overview Tyga released his independent debut No Introduction (2008) on Decaydance before Lil Wayne signed him to Young Money/Cash M

Who Is Soulja Boy? DeAndre Cortez Way, known as Soulja Boy Tell 'Em, is an Atlanta rapper who became famous in 2007 through Crank That (Soulja Boy) — one of the first truly viral rap hits of the internet era, charting at #1 for seven weeks. He is widely credited as a pioneer of digital rap distribution and social media promotion, even as his music has been consistently criticised for minimal lyrical substance. Quick Stats Career Overview Soulja Boy independently upl

Who Is 50 Cent? Curtis James Jackson III, known as 50 Cent, is a New York rapper and businessman who exploded into mainstream rap in 2003 with Get Rich or Die Tryin' — one of the fastest-selling debut albums in history. He subsequently built one of the most diverse entertainment and business portfolios in rap, including G-Unit Records, Vitamin Water equity, and the Power TV franchise. Quick Stats Career Overview 50 Cent was shot nine times in 2000 and dropped by Col

Quick Verdict Illmatic arrived on April 19, 1994, when Nas was nineteen years old, and immediately established a standard of lyrical precision and production sophistication that the genre had not previously achieved at that concentrated level. At 39 minutes across nine tracks — the shortest major album in hip-hop history relative to its critical weight — it is the most perfectly sequenced rap album ever made: not a single second wasted, not a single verse that falls below t