Amir Ali Said

Chubb Rock is a rapper from Brooklyn, New York who had a successful run in the '80s and '90s.   In 1988, he released his debut album, Chubb Rock (Featuring Howie Tee), on Select Records.  The album featured his cousin Howie Tee, who…

Michel Polnareff is a French singer and songwriter from Nérac (Lot-Et-Garonne), France.   He was the son of two artistic parents.  His mother, Simone Lane, was a Breton dancer, and his father, Leib Polnareff, was a musician.  His father…

Piero Umiliani was a film composer from Florence, Italy.  Umiliani's film scores spanned across various genres like Spaghetti Westerns, Eurospy, Giallo, and softcore sex films.  His incorporation of jazz, funk, and rock in his music was…

DJ Quik is a rapper and producer from Compton, California.   Quik started rhyming in high school, and he made his name on the mixtape circuit.  The Red Tape, released in 1987, was the mixtape that led to his record deal with Profile…

Marilyn Barbarin is a singer from New Orleans who released a few singles in the late '60s and the early '70s.  In 1967, she released her debut single, "Just A Teenager/One Little World," on NOLA Records.   A few years later, she released…

Fabolous is a rapper from Brooklyn, New York who has enjoyed an extensive career since the late '90s.  Fab grew up in Bedstuy, Brooklyn, and he started rapping while he was in high school.  Then, in 1998, Fab went to Hot 97 to have a…

Mary Saxton is a soul singer from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.   In 1966, she recorded her debut single, "Is It Better To Live Or Die/Losing Control," for Pace Records.   She released two additional records,  "Ask Any Girl/Do The Jerk" for…

Little Anthony and The Imperials are a doo-wop group from Brooklyn, New York.  Sometime in the '50s, when Little Anthony was in high school, he sang in a doo-wop group called The Duponts.  When the group broke up, Anthony joined another…

Hi-Tek is a producer and rapper from Cincinnati, Ohio.  He started his career with Mood, a local hip hop crew from Cincinnati, and he produced most of their debut album, Doom (1997).  While working on the album, he met Talib Kweli, and that…

Cortex is a French band that was formed in 1974 by Alain Minon, Alain Gandolfi, and Jeff Huttner.  One year later, after a two-day session, they released their debut album, Troupeau Bleu.  The album features a combination of jazz, funk, and…