Douglas E. Davis (born September 17, 1966), better known by the stage name Doug E. Fresh, is an American rapper, record producer, and beat boxer, also known as the Human Beat Box. One of the earliest pioneers of beatboxing, Fresh is able to accurately imitate drum machines and various special effects using only his mouth, lips, gums, throat, and a microphone.

Although he began his recording career as a solo artist as one of the last artists on Enjoy Records and one of the first on Vintertainment Records (the same New York-based label owned by Vincent Davis that would later make a name of Hip-Hop artist Joeski Love and bring R&B icon Keith Sweat to ultimate fame), it was when he and a new team of DJs known as the Get Fresh Crew (Barry Bee and Chill Will) along with a newcomer named MC Ricky D (who would later achieve fame as Slick Rick) came to fledgling New Jersey-based Hip-Hop label Danya/Reality Records the following year and recorded "The Show" (which borrowed the melody of the Inspector Gadget theme by Shuki Levy), and "La Di Da Di", a tune that was completely voiced by MC Ricky D and backed by Doug E's beat boxing for the entire duration of the song. It was when both of these songs were released on a single (particularly 12" single) that broke him (and Slick Rick) into stardom. Both "The Show" and "La-Di-Da-Di" are considered two of the all-time greatest early hip hop classics and, as such, make up one of the first and only Hip-Hop singles to have two hit songs on the same record.

Richard Walters (born January 14, 1965), better known by his stage name Slick Rick, is a Grammy-nominated British American rapper. He has also been known as MC Ricky D and Rick the Ruler. He began his career in late 1983, in the hip hop genre, where he recorded a series of acclaimed recordings such as "La Di Da Di" and "Children's Story". Walters is best known for his storytelling innovations in this genre. His music has been frequently sampled and interpolated by other artists such as TLC, Black Star, The Notorious B.I.G. and Snoop Dogg, with many of these songs later becoming hit singles. Slick Rick rose to stardom in an era known to fans as the Golden age of hip hop.

Born and brought up in the south-west London suburb of Wimbledon, Walters later moved with his British Jamaican family to The Bronx in 1977 where he met Dana Dane with whom he later formed a hip hop duo known as the Kangol Crew. Walters received his characteristic eye patch after being blinded in the right eye by broken glass as an infant. Once he gained a degree of wealth, Walters earned a reputation for wearing the eye patch over his right eye, and a significant amount of gold and diamond jewelry.

Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. (born September 25, 1968), also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood. Smith has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards, two Academy Awards, and has won multiple Grammy Awards.

In the late 1980s, Smith achieved modest fame as a rapper under the name The Fresh Prince. In 1990, his popularity increased dramatically when he starred in the popular television series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The show ran for nearly six years (1990–1996) on NBC and has been syndicated consistently on various networks since then. In the mid-1990s, Smith moved from television to film, and ultimately starred in numerous blockbuster films. He is the only actor to have eight consecutive films gross over $100 million in the domestic box office and the only one to have eight consecutive films in which he starred open at #1 spot in the domestic box office tally.

John W. Bowman, Jr., better known by his stage name DJ Kool is an American rapper who, in the late 1990s, produced several popular rap singles. Born in 1959 in Washington, D.C., his influence from his years of working the go-go and rap circuits became apparent in his music. During the early- to mid-1980s, Kool worked as a warm-up DJ for Rare Essence, until he was picked up by CLR Records.

In 1996, he recorded his most successful track, "Let Me Clear My Throat," which was released on American Recordings. The track peaked at #8 in the UK Singles Chart in March 1997. The song prominently featured a sample of "The 900 Number" by DJ Mark the 45 King, (that song featured a sample from Marva Whitney's "Unwind Yourself", repeated over a breakbeat for six minutes). The song also began by sampling "Hollywood Swinging" by Kool and the Gang. The song is a recognizable dance floor-filler, and the track remains popular to this day^[update]. DJ Kool was featured on Mýa's 2006 single "Ayo!" from her 2008 album Liberation. He was also featured on two tracks on Will Smith's 2005 album Lost and Found.

Marcel Theo Hall (born April 8, 1964,Harlem, New York) better known by his stage name, Biz Markie, is an American rapper, beatboxer, DJ, comedian, singer, reality television personality, and commercial spokesperson. He is best known for his single "Just a Friend", an American Top 10 hit in 1989. In 2008, "Just a Friend" made #100 on VH1's list of the 100 greatest hip hop songs of all time.

Markie has been called "the Clown Prince of Hip Hop."

Biz Markie's career began on Long Island, New York in the early 1980s, where he established his reputation for beat-boxing and rapping. MC Shan and Roxanne Shante were part of Marley Marl's Cold Chillin' Records, and Biz beatboxed on Shante's underground hit "Def Fresh Crew" (1986). This lent credibility to his recording career and put Cold Chillin' on the map. In the same year, Biz Markie's debut single, "Make the Music With Your Mouth, Biz", was released on Prism Records. He released his debut album, Goin' Off, which attracted a fair amount of attention, largely due to the lead single, "Make the Music With Your Mouth, Biz". The album also featured the underground hit singles "Nobody Beats The Biz", "The Vapors" and "Pickin' Boogers".