Amir Ali Said

Armando Manzanero was a composer, pianist, and singer from Ticul, Yucatán, Mexico.  In 1950, at fifteen years old, he composed his first song, "Nunca en el Mundo (Never in the World)."  One year later, he started his career as a…

The Diplomats (aka Dipset) is a hip hop crew from Harlem, New York that formed in the late '90s.  In 1997, the crew started with Cam'Ron, Jim Jones, and Freekey Zekey; Juelz Santana joined two years later.   Then, The Diplomats took the…

Marijata was an afrobeat band from Ghana who recorded a few albums in the '70s.  The band featured three members: Kofi "Electric" Addison (drummer), Bob Fischlan (organist), and Nat Osmanu (guitarist).   In 1976, they released their debut…

Robert Nighthawk (a.k.a. Robert Lee Mccoy) was a blues musician from Helena, Arkansas who started recording in the 1930s.  He continued to record sporadically up until the '60s, but Nighthawk made most of his impact off wax.  He was a…

Erick Sermon is a rapper and a producer from the Bayshore section of Long Island, New York.  He is one half of the legendary hip hop duo EPMD.  Together with Parrish Smith, and featuring DJ Scratch, they rose to prominence in the late '80s…

Rupa is a singer from Malda Town, West Bengal, India who recorded in the early '80s.  She struggled to find success early in her career, but a trip to Canada changed everything.   In 1981, Rupa and her family went on vacation to Canada. …

Big L was a rapper from Harlem, New York who rose to prominence in the '90s.   He was known for freestyling, and he battled MC's throughout the city.  He also founded two groups, Three The Hard Way and Children of the Corn.  Children of the…

Mai Yamane is a Japanese city pop singer from Izumo, Shimane, Japan. City pop was a genre of music that originated in Japan in the '70s and it peaked during the '80s.  In 1979, Yamane released her debut single, "Gozen Reiji."  In 1980, she…

Junior Wells was a blues musician and a harmonica player from Chicago, Illinois.  As a child, he grew up in Memphis, and he learned how to play the harmonica from his cousin Junior Parker, a blues musician from Mississippi.  As a teenager,…

Screwball is a hip hop group from Queensbridge, Queens.  The group was comprised of Blaq Poet, Hostyle, KL, and Solo.  They were one of the illest groups from Queensbridge, and they made their mark early.  In 2000, Screwball released their…