- published: 07 Oct 2009
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Terror Squad Records is a hip hop record label founded by Fat Joe in The Bronx, New York. The label has been distributed by Atlantic Records, and Imperial Records and now E1 Music (formerly Koch Records).
Fat Joe decided to form Terror Squad Entertainment after he began to associate himself with Big Pun, which was around 1992. Early on, Fat Joe used the label for mixtape releases until he struck up a distribution deal with Relativity Records in 1993. The deal with Relativity led to the release of Fat Joe's debut album Represent in 1993. The label got plenty of exposure in New York with the release of Joe's hit single "Flow Joe". In 1994, he signed Big Pun, Prospect, and Cuban Link to the label. In 1995, Terror Squad would release Fat Joe's second album Jealous One's Envy. Soon after Fat Joe would begin his search for a new distributing label.
After seeing the success of the Terror Squad label and Fat Joe being disappointed with the album sales at Relativity, Fat Joe would move the label into the Atlantic Records umbrella. In 1998, Terror Squad debuted as a group on the track "The Hidden Hand" from Fat Joe's album Don Cartagena. In 1998, Big Pun's debut album Capital Punishment was released through Loud Records, and Fat Joe released Don Cartagena, which debuted at number 7 on the Billboard 200 chart. In 1999, Terror Squad released its debut album The Album. The album was somewhat successful and made a legit name for the group and the label. In 2000, Big Pun died, and his album Yeeeah Baby was released posthumously that year.
Jeffrey Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule or Mockaveli, is an American rapper, singer, and actor from Queens, New York City.
Born in Hollis, Queens, he began his career in the group Cash Money Click and debuted in 1999 with Venni Vetti Vecci and its single "Holla Holla". From 2000 to 2004, Ja Rule had several hits that made the top 20 of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, including "Between Me and You" with Christina Milian, "I'm Real (Murder Remix)" with Jennifer Lopez, "Always on Time" with Ashanti, "Mesmerize" also with Ashanti, and "Wonderful" with R. Kelly and Ashanti. During the 2000s, Ja Rule was signed to The Inc. Records, which was formerly known as Murder Inc. and was led by Irv Gotti. Ja Rule has sold over 30 million records worldwide and was the fastest selling rapper in 2001[citation needed]. He is also known for some well-publicized feuds with other rappers (in-particular 50 Cent and Eminem).
Atkins was born in the Queens borough of New York City. He was raised as a Jehovah's Witness by his mother, health care worker Debra Atkins, and grandparents. At the age of five his sister died from breathing complications, leaving him as an only child. He attended Public School 134 in Hollis, a school he has described as having a predominantly black student body. He has said got into many fights at the school because of his small size, so his mother transferred him to Middle School 172 in Glen Oaks, which he has described as a "white school".
Jonathan Smith (born January 27, 1971), better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, music producer, entrepreneur, and international DJ who was a member of the group Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz. Lil Jon formed the group in 1997, and the group released several albums between then and 2004. He then went solo and released a new album in 2010 called Crunk Rock.
Lil' Jon was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Frederick Douglass High School.
After working as a DJ for Atlanta night clubs, he started working for So So Def Recordings between 1993 and 2000. The group signed to the Atlanta-based Mirror Image Records and were distributed by Ichiban Records. In 1997, Lil' Jon & the East Side Boyz debuted with Get Crunk, Who U Wit: Da Album. It included singles "Who U Wit?" and "Shawty Freak a Lil' Sumthin'", the latter of which came out in 1998. Both singles charted on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart at No. 70 and No. 62 respectively. In 2000 Jon took part in starting up his own label BME Recordings and signed a distribution agreement with Norcross, Georgia based Southern Music Distribution. There he released his break through album titled We Still Crunk. Among the tracks on that project was the hit single "I Like Dem Girlz", which reached No. 55 on the R&B chart and No. 3 on the Hot Rap Tracks chart.