Underground hip-hop (also commonly known as indie hip-hop or underground rap ) is an umbrella term for hip hop music that is outside the general commercial canon. It is typically associated with independent artists, signed to independent labels or no label at all. Underground hip hop is often characterized by socially conscious , positive, or anti-commercial lyrics. However, there is no unifying or universal theme – AllMusic suggests that it "has no sonic signifiers". "The Underground" also refers to the community of musicians, fans and others that support non-commercial, or independent music . Music scenes with strong ties to underground hip hop include alternative hip hop and conscious hip hop . Many artists who are considered "underground" today were not always so, and may have previously broken the Billboard charts .
20-544: William Paul Mitchell (born March 21, 1972), better known by the stage name of Large Professor (also Extra P. and Large Pro ), is an American rapper and music producer. Based in New York City, he is known as a founding member of the underground hip hop group Main Source and as a mentor and frequent collaborator of Nas . About.com ranked Large Professor at No. 13 on its Top 25 Hip-Hop Producers list. William Paul Mitchell
40-427: A number of tracks for Nas, Busta Rhymes , Masta Ace , The X-Ecutioners , Tragedy Khadafi , Big Daddy Kane , Mobb Deep , A Tribe Called Quest , and others during the 1990s. During this time he handled a significant amount of production on several projects for other artists. In 1993 he produced Akinyele's entire Vagina Diner album, which experienced some modest commercial success at the time of its release. Though
60-461: A while". The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show was a notable underground hip hop radio show that was broadcast on WKCR , and later WQHT , in New York City from 1990 until 1999. It featured rappers such as The Notorious B.I.G. , Big L , Jay-Z , and Eminem , as well as groups like Wu-Tang Clan , Mobb Deep , Onyx (hip hop group) and Fugees , all before they gained any popularity. In 1999, Prince Paul and Breeze Brewin' created one of
80-480: The Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 1991, Nas recorded a demo tape for Columbia Records , featuring the original version of "It Ain't Hard to Tell" named "Nas Will Prevail". This version is roughly 90 seconds longer, includes longer different verses, and has a more subdued, jazzier beat close to the album version. Pitchfork Media's included the song at number 28 on their Top 200 Tracks of the 90s . The music video
100-763: The Front Door" one of the most emotional records of his career, later saying "That's a deep record. At that time in life, I was eighteen years old. It was a kid with a pure heart, just writing, and putting his soul out there for the world." In 1992, their success allowed them to record " Fakin' the Funk ", a track on the White Men Can't Jump motion-picture soundtrack. Because of business differences, Large and Main Source quietly parted ways and Large went on to sign with Geffen Records . During and after his tenure with Main Source, he worked with Pete Rock & CL Smooth , and he produced
120-724: The Funky Homosapien , Roc Marciano , Danny Brown , Freestyle Fellowship , Hieroglyphics , Juggaknots , Jurassic 5 , Kool Keith , Little Brother, MF DOOM , Non Phixion , Planet Asia , RJD2 , MC TP, among many others. Additionally, many underground hip hop artists have been applauded for the artistic and poetic use of their lyrics, such as Aesop Rock , Aceyalone , Busdriver , Cage , CunninLynguists , Dessa , OhSo Kew, Doomtree , El-P , Eyedea & Abilities , Illogic , Onry Ozzborn , MF DOOM , Rob Sonic , billy woods , and Sage Francis , among others. Some underground artists produce music that celebrates
140-563: The Ghetto". To make "In the Ghetto", he sampled directly off of a cassette tape of sample ideas Paul C had made for Rakim. Main Source recorded one album with Large called Breaking Atoms , which was released in 1991. It included hits such as "Just Hangin' Out", " Looking at the Front Door ", and featured Nas ' first public appearance on a track called "Live at the Barbeque", along with Akinyele and Joe Fatal. Large Professor now considers "Looking at
160-426: The album did well at first, The Source later wrote an article criticizing the song "I Luh Huh", in which Akinyele considers pushing his pregnant girlfriend down the stairs as a form of abortion. The ensuing backlash for the controversial lyrics hurt the album's performance. Akinyele wrote a response in the next issue defending the song and pointing out that the violent ideas in the songs are just thoughts, and he ends
180-440: The book How to Rap are described as being both underground and politically or socially aware, these include – B. Dolan Brother Ali , Diabolic , Immortal Technique , Jedi Mind Tricks , Micranots , Mr. Lif , Murs , Little Brother , P.O.S Zion I and Madlib , among others. Underground artists with critically acclaimed albums include Atmosphere , Binary Star , Blu , Cannibal Ox , Company Flow , Del
200-450: The first rap opera albums, named A Prince Among Thieves . Rolling Stone gave the album a 4.5/5. In the late 1990s, progressive rap acts such as Black Star and Juggaknots helped inspire and shape the underground hip hop movement that would follow in subsequent decades. It Ain%27t Hard to Tell " It Ain't Hard to Tell " is the second single and last track from American rapper Nas ' debut album, Illmatic . Although
220-450: The fundamental elements or pillars of hip hop culture, such as Artifacts , Dilated Peoples , People Under the Stairs , and Fashawn , whose music "recalls hip-hop's golden age ". In hip hop's formative years, the vast majority of the genre was underground music, by definition. Although The Sugarhill Gang gained commercial success in 1979, most artists did not share such prominence until
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#1733093515621240-439: The mid-1980s. Ultramagnetic MCs ' debut album, Critical Beatdown (1988), is seen as one of the earliest examples of "underground hip hop". It was described that the album was characteristic of what would later be known as "Underground Hip Hop". New York underground rapper Kool Keith received notable success with his album Dr. Octagonecologyst , gaining more attention than any contemporary independent hip hop album "in quite
260-411: The most songs produced on the album. According to an interview with Busta Rhymes, the "Halftime" beat was originally intended for him. Though he liked the beat, he didn't end up using it and later regretted it after hearing "Halftime". While describing the making of the song in an interview Large Pro said, "I mean, we just wanted to put something gritty out there to the world, and those drums—that's what it
280-417: The singles " The Mad Scientist " and " I Juswannachill ". After several delays, the album was shelved and later released as a bootleg version in 2002. An official release of the album finally came out in 2009, thirteen years after its original intended release date. In 2001, Large Pro produced "You're da Man" and "Rewind" for Nas's Stillmatic album. He first played Nas the beat for "You're da Man" while Nas
300-532: The song by saying "Just cause I talk this shit don't get me wrong, Yo, I still luh hur." Large Professor also produced "Keep It Rollin'" on A Tribe Called Quest's Midnight Marauders not long after he left Main Source. This was a major moment in his career that helped him reach a new level of credibility and exposure as a solo artist. In 1994, Large Professor produced three of the ten songs on Nas's Illmatic (" Halftime ", " One Time 4 Your Mind ", and " It Ain't Hard to Tell "), making him tied with DJ Premier for
320-527: The track was technically the second single on the album, it was the first single to be released after the album was pressed in 1994. The first single, " Halftime ," was released two years prior to Illmatic ' s debut. "It Ain't Hard to Tell" was produced by Large Professor , and samples Michael Jackson 's 1983 hit single " Human Nature ", "N.T." by Kool & the Gang , " Long Red " by Mountain and "Slow Dance" by Stanley Clarke . The single reached number 91 on
340-452: Was at that time. It was that gritty, muffled out, because the Hip Hop that we grew up with… We grew up with park jam tapes and things like the fidelity of these tapes." He was so instrumental in the making of Illmatic that Nas wanted to give him an executive producer credit, but he refused. In 1996, Large Professor completed his debut solo album The LP for Geffen Records. It was promoted by
360-555: Was born in Harlem, Manhattan , New York City, and raised in Flushing, Queens , New York City, where he attended IS 237 and John Bowne High School . Large Professor started making his earliest beats with two turntables, a Casio SK-1 sampler, and pause-tape cassettes before his mentor Paul C taught him how to use an E-mu SP-1200 . During his pause tape phase he noted that some of his techniques were different than those of other producers. "I
380-472: Was trying to catch it from a different part of the record. I would catch it from the hi-hat when dudes were just catching it from the one kick. I would catch it from the third hi-hat and be flipping it." In 1989, he joined the group Main Source , which also included Toronto natives K-Cut and Sir Scratch. In 1990 Large produced three tracks for Eric B. & Rakim 's Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em , including "In
400-537: Was working on Nastradamus a few years prior. Nas chose the beat but decided to save it for a later project. Large Professor also used the same vocal sample from the chorus on the song "The Man" for his 1st Class album. On December 22, 2002, at a concert in Toronto, the original members of Main Source performed together for the first time in nearly 10 years. Underground hip hop Underground hip-hop encompasses several different styles of music. Numerous acts in
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