Who Is Young MC? Marvin Young, known as Young MC, is a British-American rapper who wrote Bust a Move (1989) — one of the most enduring crossover rap singles of the late 1980s — and also co-wrote Wild Thing and Funky Cold Medina for Tone Loc. His career is defined by the gap between his extraordinary contribution as a songwriter and his modest commercial standing as a solo artist. Quick Stats Career Overview Young MC grew up in Queens, New York, and studied economics

Who Is Canibus? Germaine Williams, known as Canibus, is a Jamaican-American rapper whose technical lyricism in the late 1990s made him one of the most anticipated debut artists in hip-hop. His beef with LL Cool J before his first album was released, and subsequent feuds and controversies, made him one of rap's most instructive studies in how to waste extraordinary talent. Quick Stats Career Overview Canibus first appeared on Wyclef Jean's Gone Till November remix in

Who Is Kevin Federline? Kevin Earl Federline, known as K-Fed, is a California dancer and backup performer who married Britney Spears in 2004 and subsequently released Playing with Fire (2006) — an album so comprehensively terrible that it received a 1/10 from us and is widely considered the worst rap album ever commercially released by a mainstream label. Quick Stats Career Overview Kevin Federline worked as a professional dancer and backup performer before meeting

Who Is Logic? Sir Robert Bryson Hall II, known as Logic, is a Maryland rapper who built one of the most loyal fanbases in rap through a combination of technical lyricism, personal storytelling about biracial identity and mental health, and an extraordinary work rate. 1-800-273-8255 (2017) — a suicide prevention anthem featuring Alessia Cara and Khalid — remains one of the most socially impactful mainstream rap singles of the 2010s. Quick Stats Career Overview Logic

Who Is Ja Rule? Jeffrey Atkins, known as Ja Rule, is a Queens rapper who was one of the most commercially successful artists in mainstream rap from 1999 to 2002, producing a series of R&B-rap crossover hits with Ashanti, Jennifer Lopez, and Mary J. Blige. His career was effectively ended by a sustained commercial and lyrical demolition campaign by 50 Cent, making him one of rap history's most dramatic falls from commercial dominance. Quick Stats Career Overview Ja R

Who Is Iggy Azalea? Amethyst Amelia Kelly, known as Iggy Azalea, is an Australian rapper who relocated to the United States at 16 and built a career that peaked spectacularly with Fancy (2014) — which spent seven weeks at #1 on the Hot 100 — before collapsing almost as quickly under a combination of cultural criticism, industry disputes, and follow-up albums that could not match the moment. Quick Stats Career Overview Iggy Azalea left Australia at 16 and spent years

Who Is MC Hammer? Stanley Kirk Burrell, known as MC Hammer, is an Oakland rapper who became the first rap artist to achieve genuine mainstream pop crossover success. Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em (1990) became the best-selling rap album of all time at that point, spending 21 weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 and eventually selling 10 million copies in the US alone. Quick Stats Career Overview MC Hammer began performing at Oakland A's games as a child, earning the nick

Who Is Vanilla Ice? Robert Van Winkle, known as Vanilla Ice, is a Dallas-born rapper who scored the first hip-hop song to top the US Billboard Hot 100 with Ice Ice Baby in 1990. His debut album To the Extreme became the fastest-selling rap album of all time. His rapid cultural rejection — fuelled by accusations of fabricated biography, 3rd Bass's mockery, and a general backlash against his commercial pop-rap approach — made him one of rap's most scrutinised cautionary tales

Who Is Diddy? Sean John Combs, known as Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Diddy, and Love, is a New York rapper, record executive, and producer who founded Bad Boy Records in 1993 and built one of the most commercially dominant rap labels of the 1990s. His production work with The Notorious B.I.G. defined the Bad Boy sound that dominated mainstream rap from 1994 to 1998. Quick Stats Career Overview Sean Combs founded Bad Boy Records in 1993 after being fired from Uptown Records

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 Lil Wayne? Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., known as Lil Wayne, is a New Orleans rapper who became the most dominant MC in American rap between 2004 and 2009. His mixtape output during that period — particularly Dedication 2 (2006) and Da Drought 3 (2007) — is considered the gold standard of the mixtape era, while Tha Carter III (2008) sold one million copies in its first week. Quick Stats Career Overview Lil Wayne was discovered by Birdman at age 9 and signed to C

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

Who Is Nas? Nasir Bin Olu Dara Jones, known as Nas, is a Queens rapper widely regarded as one of the greatest lyricists in hip-hop history. His 1994 debut Illmatic is universally considered one of the greatest rap albums ever made, setting a standard for New York street poetry that has defined the genre's critical standards for three decades. Quick Stats Career Overview Nas grew up in the Queensbridge Houses in Queens, New York, and first appeared on MC Serch's Retu

Who Is Drake? Aubrey Drake Graham, known simply as Drake, is a Toronto rapper, singer, and producer who became the dominant commercial force in rap from 2009 through the 2020s. He has the most Hot 100 entries of any artist in Billboard history, the most number-one albums of any rap artist, and has fundamentally shaped the sonic direction of mainstream hip-hop through his fusion of rap and R&B. Quick Stats Career Overview Drake began his career as an actor on the Can

Who Is Jay-Z? Shawn Corey Carter, known as Jay-Z, is a Brooklyn rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur who is widely regarded as one of the greatest MCs of all time. With 24 Grammy Awards, a net worth exceeding $2 billion, and a catalogue spanning three decades, Jay-Z reshaped both the artistry and business of hip-hop more than any single figure of his era. Quick Stats Career Overview Jay-Z co-founded Roc-A-Fella Records in 1995 and released Reasonable Doubt (199

Who Is Eminem? Marshall Bruce Mathers III, known as Eminem and Slim Shady, is a Detroit rapper widely regarded as the greatest technical MC in hip-hop history. He is the best-selling music artist of the 2000s in the US, with 220 million+ records sold worldwide and 15 Grammy Awards. His speed, wordplay, and autobiographical storytelling shaped two decades of rap lyricism. Quick Stats Career Overview Eminem grew up in working-class Detroit, battle rapping at the Hip H

Quick Verdict Cassidy was once considered one of the best pure battle rappers in the mainstream. Hotel was a genuine 2004 crossover hit. The debut album Split Personality debuted at number 4 on the Billboard 200. Then came a 2005 shooting incident, a 2006 vehicular manslaughter conviction, and time in prison. B.A.R.S. — Breathe And Rap Slowly — was his 2012 comeback album, recorded partly while incarcerated and released on a wave of goodwill from fans who had always known C

Quick Verdict A Bay Bay was one of 2007's most inescapable rap singles — a Shreveport, Louisiana snap-rap track built on an impossibly catchy hook that peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and briefly made Hurricane Chris the most talked-about new rapper from the South. The debut album Chapter 1: Hallelujah followed and gave the single a home. Unleashed arrived in 2009 as the follow-up and answered the fundamental question about Hurricane Chris: the answer was A Bay

Quick Verdict I Love College was 2009's frat-rap anthem — a Weezer-sampling, keg-standing, bottom-shelf-vodka-drinking celebration of higher education that charmed enough listeners to go platinum and become one of the year's most recognisable singles. Asher Roth seemed like a genuine commercial prospect. Asleep in the Bread Aisle, the debut album that accompanied it, received mixed reviews but demonstrated enough personality to generate real interest in what came next. What

Quick Verdict In 1999, at the height of his commercial success, Mase walked away from a multi-platinum rap career to become a pastor. Harlem World had gone four times platinum. He was one of the most commercially successful Bad Boy artists of the late 90s. He studied divinity, joined a church, and for four years said nothing about music. Welcome Back arrived in 2004 as his official return to rap. The reception was brutal. The album debuted at number 4 on the Billboard 200 w