Respecta.is - The Ultimate Hip Hop Portal

One can't talk about classic 90s hip-hop without talking about Del The Funky Homosapien, one of the genre's more eccentric figures. Though he's primarily famous today for his guest appearances with Gorillaz & Handsome Boy Modeling School, Del has inspired new generations of alternative hip-hop artists with his humorous lyrics, and eclectically funky production values. It all began here with his 1991 album, I Wish My Brother George Was Here.

Del's debut has been heralded as a benchmark album for alternative hip-hop, bolstered by P-Funk inspired beats produced by Ice Cube, (Del's cousin) and featuring the underground hits "Dr. Bombay" and "Mistadobalina." (#9 on the 1992 Hot Rap Tracks chart.) Equal parts clever, thought-provoking, and goofy, I Wish My Brother George Was Here has been credited with injecting some humor and irreverence into the otherwise dour West Coast hip-hop culture of the 90s.

Traffic Entertainment Group is proud to re-issue this classic album from a classic era, so that new generations may be exposed to Del The Funky Homosapien's witty and innovative rhymes.

When the telluric rap from Boston's producer & MC Insight meets the aerials flow and production of Count Bass D, the result is "The Risk Takers". A 100% Hip-Hop album, created as a free exercise, where the only concern is to get the best of one's self, without constraint. Just music, but good music , this is the simple message implied by "The Risk Takers".

A direct music, instinctive, without emphasis, is the common denominator which has lead those artists all along their career. But the convergence doesn't stop here: both share a certain sense of independence and ability to produce and rap. "This album looked like an evidence for both of us, I knew the work of Insight , long before I met him. It's definitely a person who appeals to new perspectives which are going far beyond the music. He's the kind of man who is able to produce a killer beat and in the meantime program apps to make music on your iPhone. Our collaboration is born on this abundance of ideas." Says Count Bass D to portray Insight and the genesis of this album.

"The Risk Takers" celebrates the style of two MC's & Producers, in a mood of positive emulation. "The Risk Takers" doesn't care about mainstream as much as underground. "Those terms are both overworked. They are the reverses of the same piece. Underground is doing the same calculation than the mainstream with its scenes, tags, cliches. We wanted to escape from that. Escape from the revival Rap Jazzy as well as academic Boom Bap which copies the 95-96 years or the muscular ''white trash'' underground rap. For the last, it might have been difficult, since we are both black..."

So, exit the classic formulas, Count Bass D & Insight have favored a more subtle universe. The tracks are mixed and self-sufficient, showing on different strokes various atmospheres and moods. We can find here what made us thrill on the first Pharcyde or Deltron 3030. An innocence and a certain Hip-Hop classicism which paradoxically get the agreement of all and overtake the divides of the genre. Maybe this is what means having style and brio.

M.C. Shan is a pioneer and epic figure in Hip Hop history. The original Queensbridge MC, as a teen he was signed to Cold Chillin' Records and joined his cousin/producer/NYC radio personality, Marley Marl's legendary Juice Crew.

After releasing the classic 12"s "Beat Biter" and "Jane, Stop This Crazy Thing," Shan's debut album Down By Law dropped in 1987 on Cold Chillin'. Shan found himself a key player in the noted rivalry the 'Bridge Wars' between his Juice Crew and Boogie Down Productions. The feud was started when Shan and Marley released a song called "The Bridge" (a B-Side to "Beat Biter," itself an answer record directed at L.L. Cool J.) KRS-One/BDP responded with "South Bronx," and Shan & Marley replied with "Kill That Noise," giving Down By Law even more legs.

Shan's second album, Born To Be Wild, followed in 1988 and revealed a more B-Boy persona of Shan, with production once again by Marley Marl and boasting the title cut and the hit "Juice Crew Law." 1990's Play it Again, Shan displayed a more mature style, but it proved to be his last full length.

This collection culls all the above singles as well as the 12" vinyl only releases "Cocaine," "A Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Waste" off the Colors Soundtrack as well as the the super rare "Even If I Tore It," the B-Side of "Time For Us To Defend Ourselves."

The package is rounded off with exclusive previously unseen vintage photographs from the original Down By Law shoot by George DuBose.