Xzibit

Alvin Nathaniel Joiner (born September 18, 1974), better known by his alias Xzibit (pronounced "exhibit"), is an American rapper, actor, television host and record producer. He is known as the host of the MTV show Pimp My Ride, which brought him mainstream success. Before hosting the show, he achieved fame in the West Coast hip-hop scene as a rapper, debuting with his acclaimed At the Speed of Life and gathering chart success with his follow-up albums Restless, Man vs. Machine and Weapons of Mass Destruction, working with high-profile artists such as Eminem, Cypress Hill, Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Knoc-turn'al, Timbaland, Limp Bizkit, Alice Cooper, Game, 50 Cent and Within Temptation, as well as being one of the first rappers to work internationally, collaborating with overseas acts such as Russian rapper Timati, Raptile from Germany, Bliss N Eso from Australia and Adil Omar from Pakistan.

Early life

Born as Alvin Nathaniel Joiner on September 18, 1974 in Detroit, Michigan, Xzibit grew up with a single mother. His father left the family early to pursue a career as a preacher, forcing his mother to raise a young Alvin and his four siblings (an older sister and brother as well as a little brother and younger sister) alone. After her death he had to move in with his father. His father remarried and relocated to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Joiner lived in Albuquerque from age 10 to 17, and began writing rhymes. However, he had numerous run-ins with the law and ultimately ended up moving to California to live with his sister. It was here where he first began to rap and pursue a music career. He later reconciled with his father, who can be heard on his second studio album.

Nate Dogg

Nathaniel Dwayne Hale (August 19, 1969 – March 15, 2011), better known by his stage name Nate Dogg, was an American rapper, singer, and actor. He was known as one of the pioneers of West Coast hip hop. He was noted for his membership in rap trio 213 and his solo career in which he collaborated with Dr. Dre, Eminem, Warren G, Tupac Shakur, Westside Connection, Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent, Ludacris, Xzibit, and Shade Sheist on many hit releases. He released three solo albums, G-Funk Classics, Vol. 1 & 2 in 1998, Music and Me in 2001, and Nate Dogg as a bootlegged album in 2003 and on CD in 2014.

Nate Dogg died in 2011 in Long Beach, California, of complications from multiple strokes.

Early life

Nathaniel Dwayne Hale was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi on August 19, 1969. He moved to Long Beach, California when he was 14 following his parents' divorce. He was friends with rappers Warren G, RBX, and Daz Dillinger and cousin of Butch Cassidy, Snoop Dogg, and Lil' ½ Dead. He began singing as a child in the New Hope Baptist Church in Long Beach and Life Line Baptist Church in Clarksdale, Mississippi where his father Daniel Lee Hale was pastor and his mother Ruth Holmes was leading the choir. At the age of 17 he dropped out of high school in Long Beach and left home to join the US Marine Corps, serving for three years. He was an Ammunition specialist.

Hip hop

Hip hop or hip-hop is a sub-cultural movement that formed during the early 1970s by African-American and Puerto Rican youths residing in the South Bronx in New York City. It became popular outside of the African-American community in the late 1980s and by the 2000s became the most listened-to musical genre in the world. It is characterized by four distinct elements, all of which represent the different manifestations of the culture: rap music (oral), turntablism or DJing (aural), b-boying (physical) and graffiti art (visual). Even while it continues to develop globally in myriad styles, these four foundational elements provide coherence to hip hop culture. The term is often used in a restrictive fashion as synonymous only with the oral practice of rap music.

The origin of the hip hop culture stems from the block parties of the Ghetto Brothers, when they plugged in the amplifiers for their instruments and speakers into the lampposts on 163rd Street and Prospect Avenue and used music to break down racial barriers, and from DJ Kool Herc at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, where Herc mixed samples of existing records with his own shouts to the crowd and dancers. Kool Herc is credited as the "father" of hip hop. DJ Afrika Bambaataa of the hip hop collective Zulu Nation outlined the pillars of hip hop culture, to which he coined the terms: MCing or "Emceein", DJing or "Deejayin", B-boying and graffiti writing or "Aerosol Writin".

Snoop Dogg

Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper and actor from Long Beach, California. His music career began in 1992 when he was discovered by Dr. Dre of N.W.A and, as a result, was prominently featured throughout Dr. Dre's solo debut album, The Chronic (1992). He has since sold over 21 million albums in the United States and 35 million albums worldwide.

Snoop's debut album, Doggystyle, was released in 1993 under Death Row Records, debuting at number one on both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Selling almost a million copies in the first week of its release, Doggystyle became certified 4× platinum in 1994 and spawned several hit singles, including "What's My Name?" and "Gin & Juice". In 1994, Snoop released a soundtrack on Death Row Records for the short film Murder Was The Case, starring himself. His second album Tha Doggfather (1996), also debuted at number one on both charts with "Snoop's Upside Ya Head", as the lead single. The album was certified double platinum in 1997.

Young Buck

David Darnell Brown (born March 15, 1981), also known as Young Buck, is an American rapper, actor, entrepreneur, and producer. Buck is a former member of the hip hop group UTP Playas. As a music executive, he is president of his own record label, Ca$hville Records, and is currently a member of the hip hop group G-Unit. After being dismissed from the group back in 2008, Buck reunited with his former group members on June 1, 2014 at Hot 97's Summer Jam event.

Early life

Around the age of twelve, Brown began rapping because he was inspired by a Miami friend named Clay Cole. Jealous of his friend's talent, he wanted to beat him no matter what he had to give up. At the same time Clay Cole moved to Tallahassee in Florida, Brown began recording in a real studio. Shortly thereafter, he was given an opportunity to perform for Brian "Baby" Williams, co-founder of Cash Money Records. After several years on and off of Cash Money Records, Brown and fellow rapper Juvenile decided to leave the label for good in 2000 and go to UTP Records, where Brown stayed until 2003. One of his early appearances was on the song "Memphis," where he was featured along with Three 6 Mafia, Project Pat, and other southern rappers. His deal with UTP later led to a meeting with New York rapper 50 Cent, who later signed him to G-Unit Records, under Interscope Records.