Hip Hop's Defining Years Day 1

Here's my idea. I'm gonna list a specific year, and i want people to give me their thoughts on the year. Whether it be their personal connection to that year, the albums that define the year and how those albums rank to you, the climate of the culture, or anything else that that may be relevant to that year. Today's year is a Biggie and it doesn't get much Iller than 1994.

Gayest year ever.

I graduated high school that year and only heard Biggie on that Dolly My Baby remix so far. I remember they had listening booths at the store so I non chalantly decided to give the album a listen. Needless to say I bought it on tape right there on the spot.

1994 is also one the years imo with some of the most classic debut albums dropped in one year. You had Kast, Nas, MOP, Big Mike, Warren G, Jeru, O.C., Gravediggaz, Method Man, MC Eiht, and others drop that year.

10 of my fav albums of 1994 include:
The Diary
Somethin' Serious
Thug Life Vol. 1
Ready To Die
Illmatic
Regulate..G Funk Era
Things In The Hood
Southernplayalistic
Play Witcha Mama
Bootlegs & B-Sides

First of all, Pedro is a jackass that needs to learn his fucking history. I remember a certain southern group that debuted in 1994 who eventually became the highest selling rap group in history. They go by the name of OUTKAST. Before then, the only other Southern acts that had mainstream credibility were The Geto Boys and 2 Live Crew. Is it honestly still the gayest year ever? If you still think so than you're even dumber than I thought.

As for my thoughts on 1994, in my opinion it's the GREATEST year in hip-hop history. Not only did you see many classics released that year, but acts from all over the country were blowing up. And Kev, I ALSO graduated high school that year. Great Times!

I remember that the store "Nobody Beats The Wiz" opened up in the fall of 1993 in my town (the store is only 5 minutes away from me, and 15 mins walking distance. After it folded, it became Best Buy). I used to work at Subway a couple of times a week during my senior year, and just about every week I would go and buy a rap album.

During that time, I purchased the following.....

Illmatic
Ready To Die
Enter The 36 Chambers (released Fall 93)
Midnight Maurauders (released Fall 93)
Return Of The Boom Bap (released Fall 93)
Resurrection
Southernplayalisticadillacmusik
Hard To Earn
The Sun Rises To The East
The Diary
Tical
Funkdafied
Somethin Serious
Word....Life
6 Feet Deep
The Most Beautifullest Thing In This World
Regulate The G Funk Era

There's a lot more I'm sure.....

ALL of those above albums range between 4.5 and 5 stars IMO. I also feel that '94 is the year in which hip hop became a global phenomenon based on the fact that all 4 coasts had acts that blew up. Of all the music genres, only R&B was as dominant as hip-hop at the time.

1994 is my personal favorite year in hip-hop history based on everything I said above, with 1988 being a close second.

Great topic idea Terry.

4 coasts?

N3R0 wrote:

4 coasts?

I'm not sure if you're referring to the mid-west not being a coast or if you're referring to the midwest not blowing up during that time, but Creepin On Ah Come Up dropped on 1994, right?

KJ is mostly talking about 1993 and 1994.

For the record 1993 is the second gayest year ever. The south had the game on lock way before 1994.

Lionel Hutz wrote:

KJ is mostly talking about 1993 and 1994.

For the record 1993 is the second gayest year ever. The south had the game on lock way before 1994.

When did the south have the game "on lock" before then Pedro?? that right there sounds insane man...the south has had the game "on lock" during it's weakest years of existence which has been post 2001....


Anyway back to the topic 1994 was a GREAT year for hip-hop...it's in my top 5 years in hip-hop history probably number three IN MY OPINION with 1988 at number one and maybe 1991 number two..

1994 though is when Biggie's debut dropped....Nas's debut dropped (and I met Nas at Record Rama in the Bronx the day Illmatic dropped...as just a raw, hungry, 40 ounce loving emcee..signing copies of his debut and giving out an Illmatic poster to go along with the cd purchase and I'll never forget throwing that cd on in the car after just getting it and having to actually pull-over to just listen to it and soak it all in, and knowing pretty much right there that I was listening to hip-hop history)

Also Outkast's debut dropped.....Pete Rock and CL Smooth released The Main Ingredient....Heavy D and The Boyz released their last one as a group Nuttin But Love

Gangstarr-Hard To Earn
Jeru-The Sun Rises In The East
Common-Resurrection(his best effort in my opinion)
Method Man-Tical
Organized Konfusion-Stress
The Roots-Do You Want More??
Scarface-The Diary
Keith Murray-The Most Beautifullest Thing In The World
Digable Planets-Blowout Comb
Brand Nubian-Everything Is Everything
O.C.-Word...Life
Artifacts-Between A Rock And A Hard Place


and those are just a few of the gems that were released during that beautiful year in hip-hop history and culture...one of the greatest years EVER!

I thought that Roots album dropped in '95?

It did....

Boogiemonsters dropped in '94 too. Ill shit there...

The south ain't had shit on lock back then. I'm not saying that it didn't make dope music, but there's a difference between that and having the game on lock. The South didn't truly blow up until the late 90's, and didn't have shit on lock until the early to mid 2000's. Which BTW was the weakest decade in hip-hop history IMO.

Pedro doesn't like 1994 because his favs weren't blowin up back then, but it's whatever. Everybody with an open mind knows that 94 was a great year in hip-hop. As I stated above, all 4 regions (I said "coasts" by mistake but y'all know what I mean) had acts that blew up back then. The East had countless acts, most notably Biggie, Nas and Wu-Tang. The West also had countless acts, most notably Death Row. The South had Outkast and The Geto Boys, and the Midwest had Common and Da Brat (who became the first female solo artist to reach platinum status).

Bottom line, 1994 was one of hip-hop's most critically acclaimed AND commercially successful years which makes it one of the best. It's my personal favorite.

"Pedro doesn't like 1994 because his favs weren't blowin up back then, but it's whatever"

Didn't Souls On Ice drop in '94?

Shaun wrote:

"Pedro doesn't like 1994 because his favs weren't blowin up back then, but it's whatever"

Didn't Souls On Ice drop in '94?

Didn't Shaun DROP in 1994???

D.Powell wrote:

Shaun wrote:

"Pedro doesn't like 1994 because his favs weren't blowin up back then, but it's whatever"

Didn't Souls On Ice drop in '94?

Didn't Shaun DROP in 1994???

LMAO! I actually just spit out my Pepsi all over my keyboard. I'm glad i wasn't eating my customary fried chicken or i would have choked.

Haha. Perhaps I did. Right around the time Powell's second testicle dropped. He was known as single seed peanut back in the day.

LOL

1994 was a damn great year heres a list of some of my favorites

Illmatic
Sun Rises
Word...Life
Ready to Die
Tical
Stress The Extinction Agenda
Southerplayalistic
The Diary
6 Feet Deep

Now heres some people havent been mentioning:

Super Tight
We Come Strapped
Shyheim aka Rugged Child
Extra Prolific - Like it Should Be
Casual - Fear Itself
Scientifik - Criminal
MOP - To the Death

T. Myers wrote:

D.Powell wrote:

Shaun wrote:

"Pedro doesn't like 1994 because his favs weren't blowin up back then, but it's whatever"

Didn't Souls On Ice drop in '94?

Didn't Shaun DROP in 1994???

LMAO! I actually just spit out my Pepsi all over my keyboard. I'm glad i wasn't eating my customary fried chicken or i would have choked.

LMFAO! I don't know what's funnier. What Powell said or Terry's reaction to it!!

The albums that define 1994 for me are...

Outkast - Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik
Justice System - Rooftop Soundcheck
Digable Planets - Blowout Comb
Dred Scott - Breakin' Combs
The Coup - Genocide & Juice

...in that order

Shaun wrote:

I thought that Roots album dropped in '95?

Kopasetick wrote:

It did....

No, it did not. "Do You Want More?!!!!?????" dropped in 1994 regardless of what Wiki says. It says so on my cassette and CD.

KRob86 wrote:

Somethin' Serious

This would probably nab my #6 spot. Seriously Kev, probably the best album you ever rec'ed me. And one of my top 5 southern rap albums.

Alan wrote:

No, it did not. "Do You Want More?!!!!?????" dropped in 1994 regardless of what Wiki says. It says so on my cassette and CD.

True. I just looked at my disc. Says '94 on it...

Alan wrote:

Shaun wrote:

I thought that Roots album dropped in '95?

Kopasetick wrote:

It did....

No, it did not. "Do You Want More?!!!!?????" dropped in 1994 regardless of what Wiki says. It says so on my cassette and CD.

Wikipedia sucks ass. There's tons of inaccurate information on many of their articles.

Actually Seagram's Reality Check dropped in 1994.

Other dope 1994 albums that have withstood the test of time:


King T - IV Life
E-40 - Mail Man
8Ball & MJG - Outside Looking In
Odd Squad - Fadanuf for Everyone
Dru Down - Explicit Game
JT Bigga Figga - Playaz n the Game
MC Breed - Funkafied
Coolio - It Takes A Thief
Saafir - Boxcar Sessions
Tim Smooth - Straight Driving Em
Ant Banks - The Big Bad Ass
Spice 1 - Amerikkka's Nightmare
Celly Cel - Heat 4 Yo Azz