OutKast celebrate 'Stankonia' in 2000

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Vote Now: Which 2000 Album Will You Have On Repeat This Year?

From OutKast's Atlanta hip-hop classic to Coldplay's debut alt-rock masterpiece to Britney Spears' bubblegum pop perfection, Y2K was filled with big albums. Which one will get you through the turn of the new decade?

Ana Monroy Yglesias

GRAMMYs/Mar 7, 2020 - 05:20 am

Fortunately for us, the widely rumored Y2K computer meltdown never happened. Instead, in the year 2000, the world enjoyed an influx of now-classic albums that are—gasp—turning 20 this year. From D'Angelo's sultry sophomore effort, Voodoo, to OutKast's Atlanta hip-hop classic Stankonia to Coldplay's debut alt-rock masterpiece Parachutes and Britney Spears' bubblegum pop perfection of Oops!... I Did It Again, Y2K was filled with big albums turning 20 this year.

There was also Sleater-Kinney's socially charged All Hands On The Bad One, U2's anthemic, hit-filled All That You Can't Leave Behind and Nelly's fire debut, Country Grammar. British dance music icon Fatboy Slim also dropped his third studio album, Halfway Between The Gutter And The Stars, Radiohead got moody and ambient with Kid A and Madonna's Music, her eighth full-length, earned her another No. 1 album, among other albums we're still spinning.

We want to know: Which album will you be blasting to get you through the turn of this new decade? Let us know in the poll below, and read on to revisit each project.

All Hands On The Bad One was Washington riot grrrl group Sleater-Kinney's fifth album, filled with driving guitar licks and feminist power. They only released one of its 13 tracks as a single—"You're No Rock n' Roll Fun"—whose tongue-in-cheek lyrics are still to this day the ideal flip-off to any and all haters.

Read: Femme It Forward Reveals Slate Of 2020 Artists & Events: Missy Elliott, Brandy, Tinashe, SWV, More

Ahead of the iconic Irish rock act's 10th studio album, All That You Can't Leave Behind, U2 released the uplifting arena-ready (and triple GRAMMY-winning) "Beautiful Day." The lead single charted in multiple countries and got the music world excited for the album, including a new generation of fans. The album spawned more U2 classics, including "Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of," "Walk On" and "Elevation," the latter of which got new life—and harder guitar riffs—in 2002 in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.

The successful LP earned the group a total of seven GRAMMY wins across the 43rd and 44th GRAMMY Awards, including Best Rock Album and Record Of The Year (for "Rock On").

In the summer of 2000, a young St. Louis rapper called Nelly dropped his epic debut album, Country Grammar. It was a huge success, hitting No. 1 on the Billboard 200, Top Rap Albums and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Months earlier, his first-ever single, the unforgettable, chart-topping "Country Grammar (Hot Sh*t)" took the world by storm, setting the album drop up well. Interspersed with skits featuring Cedric the Entertainer, the LP also touted another instant classic hit single, "Ride Wit Me."

Both of the singles were nominated for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 43rd and 44th GRAMMY Awards, respectively. The project also earned him his first Best Rap Album nod.

In the heyday of the VH1 and MTV music video cycle, Christopher Walken was a regular, as the star of U.K. electro king Fatboy Slim's irreverent "Weapon Of Choice" visual. The GRAMMY-winning, Spike Jonze-directed music video technically came out in 2001 as the third single from his third studio album, Halfway Between The Gutter And The Stars. That song features vocals from funk legend Bootsy Collins, while "Love Life" and "Demons" feature neo-soul powerhouse Macy Gray. The album is also rich with samples, from Bill Withers, James Brown, KRS-One and more, mixing vintage vinyl soul with dancefloor-ready flourishes and break-beats.

"Weapon Of Choice" took home Best Short Form Music Video at the 2002 GRAMMYS, the LP earned a nod for Best Alternative Music Album, as no dance/electronic album category existed yet.

After the massive success of 1997's GRAMMY-winning OK Computer and its single "Karma Police," Thom Yorke and the motley British rock band known as Radiohead did things a little differently on Kid A. As with the prior album, they once again co-produced it with Nigel Godrich, this time adding glitchy synths and dark, emotive electronic drums. Instead of promoting the project with singles or videos, the album was made available to stream online—pre-streaming services—three weeks before its release, earning over 400,000 streams and later debuting at No. 1.

Their innovation paid off, as the album would win them their second golden gramophone, for Best Alternative Music Album. Standout tracks from Kid A include "Everything In Its Right Place," How To Disappear Completely" and "Idioteque."

By 2000, Madonna was already a pop and fashion icon several times over, first making her mark with her self-titled 1983 debut album, spawning hits "Lucky Star," "Borderline," "Burning Up" and "Holiday." On Music, her eighth LP, she earned her fourth No. 1 album on the Billboard 200, 11 years since her last (1989's Like A Prayer). The catchy title track and lead single also earned her No. Ones across the globe on both pop and dance charts. The album art and music video's glamorous cowboy chic gave the world another shade of Madonna, with outfits we still want to rock today.

The album and title track earned the Queen Of Pop three more GRAMMY nominations at the 2001 show (she already had five wins by then), including Best Pop Vocal Album and Record Of The Year. One of its other singles, "Don't Tell Me," snagged another nod the following year, for Best Music Video.

On Oops!... I Did It Again, an 18-year-old Britney Spears had solidified her role as reigning pop princess. Her confident sophomore album followed in the bubblegum pop perfection of her hit debut the year prior, spawning more hits with "Oops!... I Did It Again," "Stronger" and "Lucky." She also served up a breathy cover of Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" on the album, which gave her a second No. 1 album on the Billboard 200.

Both the album and the title track earned Spears two more GRAMMY nominations at the 2001 GRAMMYs (she snagged her first two the year before, including for Best New Artist). She was up against Madonna in both categories in 2001, Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

Back in the early 2000s, British pop/rock juggernauts Coldplay were an alt-rock favorite. With the release of their haunting debut album, Parachutes, in 2000 their acclaim and fan-base swiftly grew. Full of atmospheric instrumentation pierced by Chris Martin's rich vocals, the album features classic singles "Don't Panic," "Shiver," "Yellow" and "Trouble."

With the successful debut, they earned their first two GRAMMYs nominations at the 44th GRAMMYs, one of which resulted in a Best Alternative Music Album win.

On Halloween 2000, Atlanta hip-hop heroes OutKast released their majorly ice-cool fourth album, Stankonia. The sprawling, funky album from the powerhouse duo comprising Big Boi and Andre 3000 included massive hits/hip-hop classics "So Fresh, So Clean," "Ms. Jackson" and "B.O.B." It saw success on both the all-genre and hip-hop charts, hitting No. 2 on both the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.

The iconic album earned the pair five GRAMMY nominations at the 2002 GRAMMYs, two of which resulted in golden gramophones: Best Rap Album and Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group for "Ms. Jackson."

Read: OutKast Examine Their Southern Experience On 'Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik'

Five years after his 1995 debut album, Brown Sugar, D'Angelo gave the world the gift of the sultry, funky Voodoo. Recording in the famed Electric Lady Studios in New York, the powerhouse vocalist collaborated with a cast of fellow soulful musicians including Lauryn Hill, Raphael Saadiq and Questlove. The 12th track on the sexy, expansive sophomore effort, "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" saw success as a single, partly thanks to its steamy video. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, knocking Santana's Supernatural from the top spot.

Caroline Rose Talks New Album 'Superstar' & Our "Sadistic" Wish To See Celebrities Fall From Grace

Rico Wade at The Dungeon II Studios in Atlanta, Georgia in 2002.

Photo: Julia Beverly/Getty Images

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Remembering Producer Rico Wade, Helped Define The Sound Of Southern Hip-Hop

Rico Wade, legendary producer and one-third of Organized Noize, who helped forge the sound of Atlanta hip-hop and propelled artists like OutKast, Ludacris, and TLC to fame, has died at 52.

Nina Frazier

GRAMMYs/Apr 17, 2024 - 08:08 pm

Hip-hop has lost another legend. Rico Wade, an integral part of the bedrock of Southern hip-hop, the godfather of modern Atlanta rap, and one-third of the production crew Organized Noize with Patrick "Sleepy" Brown and Ray Murray, has died. He was 52.

Wade was a force that helped launch the careers of OutKast, Goodie Mob, Ludacris, and Future, and produced and co-wrote hits for artists including TLC's "Waterfalls," as part of a mid-'90s Southern hip-hop renaissance. The epicenter of this revolution was the Dungeon, his mother's basement in East Point, Georgia. The location built a reputation as a haven for Dungeon Family artists like André "André 3000" Benjamin and Antwan "Big Boi" Patton among a generation of ATL creatives formulating their own flavor of Southern rap.

"We're deeply saddened by the passing of Rico Wade, one of Atlanta’s most prolific music producers," said Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. "Rico's influential contributions to the Atlanta music scene beginning in the 1990s helped foster the rise of some of hip-hop’s most prominent artists and played a pivotal role in shaping the genre as we know it today. Our hearts go out to his family, friends, and all those whose lives he influenced.”

Wade was nominated for two GRAMMYs during his lifetime including Record Of The Year for TLC's "Waterfalls" and Album Of The Year for OutKast's Stankonia.

“Rico left an indelible mark on music and culture around the world and for that, the South will always have something to say,” said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens in an issued statement echoing the famous battle cry of André 3000's 1995 Source Awards Best New Artist acceptance speech.

It's been more than 30 years since OutKast dropped their first-ever single "Player's Ball" in 1993 and on that track Wade's voice is the first. He sets the tone for the legendary duo's entire career and Southern hip-hop at the same time with the introduction: "Man, the scene was so thick/ Lowriders, '77 Sevilles, El Dogs/ Nothin' but them 'Lacs/ All the players, all the hustlers/ I'm talkin' 'bout a Black man heaven here/ You know what I'm sayin'?"

"Rico Wade brought us to his house studio, where I heard the most interesting music production I'd ever heard from Atlanta," André 3000 told the Recording Academy in a 2019 interview reflecting on his experience working on OutKast's debut album Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik. "It was Rico, Ray, and Sleepy's vision to make sure [OutKast would put] Southern lifestyle first. I was just playing my part the best I could."

Outkast's Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik would go on to sell 500,000 records and became certified platinum within a year. "When we were working on the OutKast vibe, even though there were two members in the group, we all considered ourselves OutKast at the time — including all of Organized Noize and the Goodie Mob members who appeared on the album," Murray told the Recording Academy in 2019.

Organized Noize signed a publishing deal with L.A. Reid and Babyface's label LaFace Records in 1993, setting the foundation for their work on OutKast's seminal "Player's Ball" single. It was a lasting connection that would serve the rest of Wade's career.

Wade would continue to work with Reid during Reid's tenure as chairman and CEO of Epic Records from 2013 to 2017, building a hub for hip-hop artists at the label including Wade's cousin, Atlanta rapper Future. Future would become the first artist ever on the Billboard charts to debut back-to-back albums at No. 1 with his 2017 release HNDRXX. In March, Future and Metro Boomin jointly released another No.1 album, We Don’t Trust You.

Wade nurtured Future's talents through his Dungeon connects. The two didn't meet until Future was well into his teens, but once they did Wade quickly put his cousin's clear drive and talent to use, introducing him to the Dungeon Family and bringing him into the studio to work on in-house production projects including Ludacris' "Blueberry Yum Yum" (Red Light District), which earned Future a songwriting credit in 2004.

“That's how he ended up writing the record for Ludacris, becoming part of a group that could make music, and getting a record deal,” Wade told Complex in 2013. “It showed him that the music industry money is real."

Inspired by his cousin, Future studied the industry through the in-roads made by Wade. “I took everything I learned from him and applied it to my everyday craft from being in the studio,” Future told Complex. "Just knowing how to feel records so I know how to make songs and write for people to keep around and go to the next level.” His devotion to Wade's tutelage and legacy is apparent in the Olde English script tattooed across his arms that matches Wade's own markings — "DUNGEON" appears on the right and "FAMILY" on the left.

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Killer Mike, a constant collaborator who worked with Wade on his latest album Michael which swept the 2024 GRAMMYs rap categories with three wins for Best Rap Album, Best Rap Song, and Best Rap Performance, announced Wade's passing in an Instagram post on Sunday. "I don't have the words to express my deep and profound sense of loss. I am Praying for your wife and Children. I am praying for the Wade family. I am praying for us all," Killer Mike wrote. "I deeply appreciate your acceptance into The Dungeon Family, mentorship, Friendship and Brotherhood. Idk where I would be without ya'll."

How 1994 Changed The Game For Hip-Hop

Sleater-Kinney's Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker play instruments and sing under red lights during a performance on the set of the Jimmy Fallon Show.

Sleater-Kinney perform on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on March 15.

Photo: Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty Images

interview

On 'Little Rope,' Sleater-Kinney Still Wear Their Hearts On Their Sleeves

Sleater-Kinney's latest album delves into profound vulnerability, crafted in the wake of personal loss and global upheaval. 'Little Rope' showcases the band's enduring spirit, close friendship, and the approach that's kept them relevant over time.

Chloe Sarmiento

GRAMMYs/Apr 10, 2024 - 03:29 pm

Using lively, raw instrumentals as a vehicle for emotional catharsis, Sleater-Kinney’s Little Rope takes the lead as one of their most vulnerable projects to date.

The "Dig Me Out" singers approach their 11th studio album with a fresh perspective, influenced by their experiences during the pandemic. Despite the departure of drummer Janet Weiss in 2019, the band maintains their iconic post-riot grrrl take on rock music. Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker infuse Little Rope with reflective lyrics and raw energy, mirroring their personal growth and resilience.

While working on the album one day, Brownstein received a call with news that nobody ever wants to hear, nor expects. She had been informed that her mother and stepfather had been involved in a fatal car accident while on vacation in Italy. Faced with grief and a sense of unfamiliarity, the band turned to something that always brought them comfort: making music. Little Rope was born.

Despite such a tragic, major life change and trying to make it through a global pandemic, Sleater-Kinney’s motive remains consistent.

"We hope to find people where they're at," Tucker explains to GRAMMY.com. "And it seems like we have, in each stage of someone’s life."

After hosting a GRAMMY U SoundChecks event with the Pacific Northwest Chapter of GRAMMY U, Sleater-Kinney sat down with GRAMMY.com to talk about their perspective on the ever-changing industry and the legendary bands they pull inspiration from.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

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It has been almost 30 years since you all released your first album. In what ways has Sleater-Kinney changed since then and what has stayed consistent?

Corin Tucker: We still try to write songs that are emotional and that reach people. Our songwriting has developed over the years and I think we have different methodologies for writing. But, really the most important point of a song is that it makes people feel something. We still try to judge what we do by the same metric as we did 30 years ago.

Carrie Brownstein: One thing we set out to do is to have a unique sound and I think we created a sonic language with each other that we've tried to maintain, but also push the narrative forward and challenge ourselves with each album. That's been consistent from the beginning, we never — even in the early years — wanted one album to sound like the last one. Things change and the industry changes. We just try to stay true to ourselves, but also adapt.

Are there any of your early projects that you feel still resonate to this day?

Corin Tucker: The funny thing about streaming is that people are finding some of those older songs and really getting into them. We found out at the end of last year that people were really into one or two songs off of our very first self-titled record. A really nice thing about having your music available digitally is that it's available to everyone all over the world.

Path of Wellness (2021) was self-produced, as it was made during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic and Little Rope (2024) was produced by GRAMMY-winning producer John Congleton. What was it like going from a self-produced project to having John on the next project? Was there a certain reason you chose to work with John?

Carrie Brownstein: Self-producing for us was very anomalous. We've always worked with producers and one of the reasons is to just have an outside perspective — somebody to come in and be the tiebreaker or to just bounce ideas off of. So, it was kind of a no-brainer to return to a producer after the solitary of the pandemic.

We have always been fans of John Congleton's work. We come from similar backgrounds and have been in talks to work with him for a while. Fortunately for this album, it worked out and we felt like these songs would be really well served by his productions.

Could you tell us a little bit about your dynamic as a music duo? When writing songs, do you both try to work on them 50/50 or is it on-and-off, where one of you may take the lead for certain songs? And what was this collaboration like specifically with Little Rope?

Corin Tucker: Our goal is always to make the song as strong as it can be. We’ve worked together long enough to know that that's the most important thing. Sometimes a song is more an idea of one or the other, and you need to wait until they’ve fleshed it out to come in with your parts. We have a bunch of different modalities and we just try to keep the conversation going. It's a lot about communication – it's an ongoing constant conversation between the two of us on where the song is at and what we think it might need.

Can you share any standout memories or experiences from when you were writing Little Rope?

Carrie Brownstein: My friend has an apartment in Downtown Portland and he was out of town. So, he let us use the space as a writing studio. And neither of us live in Downtown Portland, so it was interesting to be in this highrise in Portland looking out over the city — sort of being in conversation with the city and changing the landscape in which we were writing was nice to have.

As Pacific Northwest natives, how do you see your Pacific Northwest roots stick out in your music?

Corin Tucker: A lot of the sounds from the historic bands you can hear in our music. You can hear Nirvana, you can hear the Fastbacks, so you can hear so many of those Pacific Northwest musicians. They were bands that we grew up with and bands that we still try and emulate with what we do.

I feel like a good number of Sleater-Kinney fans have stayed fans and grown with you all over the years. What about your music and your brand do you think resonates with people even in different stages of their lives, and how did you foster this dynamic?

Carrie Brownstein: Sleater-Kinney’s a very earnest band. We wear our hearts on our sleeves and I think our audience appreciates that rawness and vulnerability. It's emotional music.

We have a lot of younger and newer fans. I think they relate to the emotionality and the honesty in the music, so that’s what we try to stick with.

You have said that The Showbox is one of your favorite venues to play at in Seattle. How does it feel being back at The Showbox for two sold-out shows?

Carrie Brownstein: We really enjoy the intimacy of a smaller venue, allowing the fans to get a little closer to the stage and feeling more connected with them. It's just nice to feel a sense of history, a through line with our career and our relationship with the city. We're really excited to be here.

I’m curious to know how your fans reacted to Little Rope. Have you noticed any common reactions to the project? Or any particular responses that have stood out?

Corin Tucker: People really relate to the emotion in the music. We've gotten a lot of people saying that it helped them through a hard time. Having that impact on people is pretty special when they feel like it's okay to be emotional and process things with music.

Lastly, you have the rest of your international tour to go, but what else is coming up for Sleater-Kinney?

Corin Tucker: We're very excited to play shows internationally. There may be some cool stuff coming up that maybe hasn't been announced yet, but we're looking forward to more touring.

Carrie Brownstein: For an album cycle, it's almost two years and so, for the most part it will be, it'll be touring and then we'll write something else.

8 Bands Keeping The Riot Grrrl Spirit Alive

Notorious B.I.G. in Brooklyn, 1994

Photo: Clarence Davis/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

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How 1994 Changed The Game For Hip-Hop

With debuts from major artists including Biggie and Outkast, to the apex of boom bap, the dominance of multi-producer albums, and the arrival of the South as an epicenter of hip-hop, 1994 was one of the most important years in the culture's history.

Shawn Setaro

GRAMMYs/Feb 13, 2024 - 05:22 pm

While significant attention was devoted to the celebration of hip-hop in 2023 — an acknowledgement of what is widely acknowledged as its 50th anniversary — another important anniversary in hip-hop is happening this year as well. Specifically, it’s been 30 years since 1994, when a new generation entered the music industry and set the genre on a course that in many ways continues until today.

There are many ways to look at 1994: lists of great albums (here’s a top 50 to get you started); a look back at what fans and tastemakers were actually listening to at the time; the best overlooked obscurities. But the best way to really understand why a single 365 three decades ago had such an impact is to narrow our focus to look at the important debut albums released that year.

An artist’s or group’s debut is their entry into the wider musical conversation, their first full statement about who they are and where in the landscape they see themselves. The debuts released in 1994 — which include the Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die, Nas' Illmatic and Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik from Outkast — were notable not only in their own right, but because of the insight they give us into wider trends in rap.

Read on for some of the ways that 1994's debut records demonstrated what was happening in rap at the time, and showed us the way forward.

Hip-Hop Became More Than Just An East & West Coast Thing

The debut albums that moved rap music in 1994 were geographically varied, which was important for a music scene that was still, from a national perspective, largely tied to the media centers at the coasts. Yes, there were New York artists (Biggie and Nas most notably, as well as O.C., Jeru the Damaja, the Beatnuts, and Keith Murray). The West Coast G-funk domination, which began in late 1992 with Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, continued with Dre’s step brother Warren G.

But the huge number of important debuts from other places around the country in 1994 showed that rap music had developed mature scenes in multiple cities — scenes that fans from around the country were starting to pay significant attention to.

To begin with, there was Houston. The Geto Boys were arguably the first artists from the city to gain national attention (and controversy) several years prior. By 1994, the city’s scene had expanded enough to allow a variety of notable debuts, of wildly different styles, to make their way into the marketplace.

The Rap-A-Lot label that first brought the Geto Boys to the world’s attention branched out with Big Mike’s Somethin’ Serious and the Odd Squad’s Fadanuf Fa Erybody!! Both had bluesy, soulful sounds that were quickly becoming the label’s trademark — in no small part due to their main producers, N.O. Joe and Mike Dean. In addition, an entirely separate style centered around the slowed-down mixes of DJ Screw began to expand outside of the South Side with the debut release by Screwed Up Click member E.S.G.

There were also notable debut albums by artists and groups from Cleveland (Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Creepin on ah Come Up), Oakland (Saafir and Casual), and of course Atlanta — more about that last one later.

1994 Saw The Pinnacle Of Boom-Bap

Popularized by KRS-One’s 1993 album Return of the Boom Bap, the term "boom bap" started as an onomatopoeic way of referring to the sound of a standard rap drum pattern — the "boom" of a kick drum on the downbeat, followed by the "bap" of a snare on the backbeat.

The style that would grow to be associated with that name (though it was not much-used at the time) was at its apex in 1994. A handful of primarily East Coast producers and groups were beginning a new sonic conversation, using innovations like filtered bass lines while competing to see who could flip the now standard sample sources in ever-more creative ways.

Most of the producers at the height of this style — DJ Premier, Buckwild, RZA, Large Professor, Pete Rock and the Beatnuts, to name a few — worked on notable debuts that year. Premier produced all of Jeru the Damaja’s The Sun Rises in the East. Buckwild helmed nearly the entirety of O.C.’s debut Word…Life. RZA was responsible for Method Man’s Tical. The Beatnuts took care of their own full-length Street Level. Easy Mo Bee and Premier both played a part in Biggie’s Ready to Die. And then there was Illmatic, which featured a veritable who’s who of production elites: Premier, L.E.S., Large Professor, Pete Rock, and Q-Tip.

The work the producers did on these records was some of the best of their respective careers. Even now, putting on tracks like O.C.’s "Time’s Up" (Buckwild), Jeru’s "Come Clean" (Premier), Meth’s "Bring the Pain" (RZA), Biggie’s "The What" (Easy Mo Bee), or Nas’ "The World Is Yours" (Pete Rock) will get heads nodding.

Major Releases Balanced Street Sounds & Commercial Appeal

"Rap is not pop/If you call it that, then stop," spit Q-Tip on 1991’s "Check the Rhime." Two years later, De La Soul were adamant that "It might blow up, but it won’t go pop." In 1994, the division between rap and pop — under attack at least since Biz Markie made something for the radio back in the ‘80s — began to collapse entirely thanks to the team of the Notorious B.I.G. and his label head and producer Sean "Puffy" Combs.

Biggie was the hardcore rhymer who wanted to impress his peers while spitting about "Party & Bulls—." Puff was the businessman who wanted his artist to sell millions and be on the radio. The result of their yin-and-yang was Ready to Die, an album that perfectly balanced these ambitions.

This template — hardcore songs like "Machine Gun Funk" for the die-hards, sing-a-longs like "Juicy" for the newly curious — is one that Big’s good friend Jay-Z would employ while climbing to his current iconic status.

Solo Stars Broke Out Of Crews

One major thing that happened in 1994 is that new artists were created not out of whole cloth, but out of existing rap crews. Warren G exploded into stardom with his debut Regulate… G Funk Era. He came out of the Death Row Records axis — he was Dre’s stepbrother, and had been in a group with a pre-fame Snoop Dogg. Across the country, Method Man sprang out of the Wu-Tang collective and within a year had his own hit single with "I’ll Be There For You/You’re All I Need To Get By."

Anyone who listened to the Odd Squad’s album could tell that there was a group member bound for solo success: Devin the Dude. Keith Murray popped out of the Def Squad. Casual came out of the Bay Area’s Hieroglyphics.

This would be the model for years to come: Create a group of artists and attempt, one by one, to break them out as stars. You could see it in Roc-a-fella, Ruff Ryders, and countless other crews towards the end of the ‘90s and the beginning of the new millennium.

Multi-Producer Albums Began To Dominate

Illmatic was not the first rap album to feature multiple prominent producers. However, it quickly became the most influential. The album’s near-universal critical acclaim — it earned a perfect five-mic score in The Source — meant that its strategy of gathering all of the top production talent together for one album would quickly become the standard.

Within less than a decade, the production credits on major rap albums would begin to look nearly identical: names like the Neptunes, Timbaland, Premier, Kanye West, and the Trackmasters would pop up on album after album. By the time Jay-Z said he’d get you "bling like the Neptunes sound," it became de rigueur to have a Neptunes beat on your album, and to fill out the rest of the tracklist with other big names (and perhaps a few lesser-known ones to save money).

The South Got Something To Say

If there’s one city that can safely be said to be the center of rap music for the past decade or so, it’s Atlanta. While the ATL has had rappers of note since Shy-D and Raheem the Dream, it was a group that debuted in 1994 that really set the stage for the city’s takeover.

Outkast’s Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik was the work of two young, ambitious teenagers, along with the production collective Organized Noize. The group’s first video was directed by none other than Puffy. Biggie fell so in love with the city that he toyed with moving there.

Outkast's debut album won Best New Artist and Best New Rap of the Year at the 1995 Source Awards, though the duo of André 3000 and Big Boi walked on stage to accept their award to a chorus of boos. The disrespect only pushed André to affirm the South's place on the rap map, famously telling the audience, "The South got something to say."

Outkast’s success meant that they kept on making innovative albums for several more years, as did other members of their Dungeon Family crew. This brought energy and attention to the city, as did the success of Jermain Dupri’s So So Def label. Then came the "snap" movement of the 2000s, and of course trap music, which had its roots in aughts-era Atlanta artists like T.I. and producers like Shawty Redd and DJ Toomp.

But in the 2010s a new artist would make Atlanta explode, and he traced his lineage straight back to the Dungeon. Future is the first cousin of Organized Noize member Rico Wade, and was part of the so-called "second generation" of the Dungeon Family back when he went by "Meathead." His world-beating success over the past decade-plus has been a cornerstone in Atlanta’s rise to the top of the rap world. Young Thug, who has cited Future as an influence, has sparked a veritable ecosystem of sound-alikes and proteges, some of whom have themselves gone on to be major artists.

Atlanta’s reign at the top of the rap world, some theorize, may finally be coming to an end, at least in part because of police pressure. But the city has had a decade-plus run as the de facto capital of rap, and that’s thanks in no small part to Outkast.

Why 1998 Was Hip-Hop's Most Mature Year: From The Rise Of The Underground To Artist Masterworks

The Sphere in Las Vegas

Photo: Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

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U2 Performs "Atomic City" & Transports The 2024 GRAMMYs To Las Vegas

Bono and co.’s long-distance return to the 2024 GRAMMYs marks the Sphere, a state-of-the-art Sin City structure. The 22-time GRAMMY winners performed a jaunty take on "Atomic City" among incredible visuals.

Glenn Rowley

GRAMMYs/Feb 5, 2024 - 02:51 am

U2 transported Music's Biggest Night from the Crytpo.com Arena in Los Angeles to Las Vegas on Sunday night, performing their song "Atomic City" live from the Sphere.

"Guitar, she pulls the strings et cetera/ Sinatra swings, a choir sings/ Love is God and God is love/ And if your dreams don’t scare you, they’re not big enough," Bono wailed as the cameras took in the majesty and awe of the futuristic venue just off the Vegas Strip.

Following the performance, the live segment also featured a special presentation of Best Pop Vocal Album Award to Taylor Swift for 2022’s Midnights — with the superstar using her acceptance speech to announce the April 19 release date for her 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department.

Bono and co.’s long-distance return to the GRAMMYs (where they last performed at the 2018 GRAMMYs) marks the first live broadcast from the state-of-the-art Sin City structure, which the 22-time GRAMMY winners are currently breaking in as a performance venue with their residency U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere.

Launched in September, U2’s inaugural run of 40 shows at the Sphere will wrap on March 2. After the Dublin rockers’ final concert highlighting their 1991 GRAMMY-winning album Achtung Baby, Dead & Company will take over the venue for their own residency with an assist from John Mayer.

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U2 Performs "Atomic City" & Transports The 2024 GRAMMYs To Las Vegas

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