WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO: Positive K?

What's your man got to do with me?

On this edition of Forgotten Fridays we reminisce over you, Positive K. The Bronx born rapper scored a major hip-hop hit with 1992's "I Got a Man." The song peaked at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1993. Between the infectious disco sample, the back and forth rhyming, and catchy hook, it was undeniable. I was always wondering who the "female" was on the track, but it turns out that Positive actually did the female parts, and pitched his voice up. Clever. Honestly this joint was my jam back then. And the video is a classic, despite being corny as all hell now.

The song is featured on his debut album, The Skills Dat Pay Da Bills, which dropped on November 3, 1992 on Island Records. With the single "I Got a Man" making waves in the radio, he was also doing underground compilation appearances, guest spots on other hip-hop artists' albums (like his duet with MC Lyte "I Ain't Having That"), and even worked with Big Daddy Kane on the single "Nightshift". Despite reviews calling the album more than a fluke hit, it lacked perseverance on the album charts, leading him to become a dreaded one-hit wonder.

Little know fact: His album is the first recorded instance of the phrase "drop it like it's hot", which appears on the song "Ain't No Crime". Whatchu you know about that, Snoop?

So after his debut release, he pretty much off the rap radar (shouts to YN). I guess he didn't have enough skills to continue paying those bills. He did release a 12" record in 2001 called "Supreme Alphabet" but I think that's the last time his voice was heard on record. Have no fear though, because evidently Positive K is still available for booking club dates and tours. According to this awesome promo, you better hurry though, because dates are filling up!

According to his website, or as he calls it, his Web Crib, he seems to still be involved in the music industry, after he kept his Creative Control label in operation, signing and cultivating new talent. So there's that. There's also a song on his site called "Heat Rock" which appears to be new. Maybe. I'm not "Positive." Hahaaaaa. See what I did there?

But that's all I could dig up on the dude. If anyone has any more info regarding the whereabouts of Positive K, please contact us immediately. We need your help.

Thank you,
Hip Hop Official: Finding rappers who the masses have forgotten.

POSITIVE K - "I GOT A MAN"

What Ever Happened To: Tracey Lee?

It's paaaaaaaaarty time. Ohhhhh, it's paaaaaaaaarty time. Having a partyyyyyy, come on!

On this edition of Forgotten Fridays we reminisce over you, Tracey Lee. The Philly bred rapper had moderate commercial success and made a splash in 1997 with club rockin, house party anthem "The Theme" (It's Party Time)" [above]. I swear to Jesus, they played this song every damn day on BET in 1997. You couldn't get away from it.

Even though Tray Lee was from Philly, he pretty much held down Washington D.C., being that he was attending Howard University when his debut album, Many Facez dropped. I think I'm one of the only 17 people on the planet who bought the CD but straight up, I can't front on that album. It's actually pretty dope. It was a pseudo-concept album in which Tracey Lee took on the "many faces" of his personality and actually rhymes from the perspective of his 5 different personas: L. (the rhymer), Tray (the smooth playboy), LR (the rugged and serious one who sounded like Rock from Heltah Skeltah), Rock (the party goer, who sounded nothing like Rock fro Heltah Skeltah), and Mr. Lee (the business man). He even changed his flow and voice for every one. It was kinda clever, and kinda corny at the same time. But it worked.

Regardless, the album is an underrated gem. The truly amazing thing about it was that he somehow managed to get Busta Rhymes and Biggie Smalls to make guest appearances. This was a no-name rapper outta Philly who had 2 of the biggest rap stars on the planet on his debut album. The Biggie collab isn't that far fetched, considering Tracey Lee was attending Howard, which was also Puffy's alma mater, and he and Big would always be up at the campus for shows and to Party & Bullshit. But Busta Rhymes? Who knows. The Busta song, "The After Party" [below] is also one of the best songs on the album. Other stand out tracks include: Stars In The East, Rugged One, Keep Your Hands High (ft. Biggie Smalls).

So, what ever happened to Tracey Lee? He only dropped one album, and then he dropped from the face of the hip hop landscape. Well, according to his MySpace page, which he keeps current and check regularly, he just graduated from Law School at The Southern University Law Center in Baton Rouge, LA where he received his Juris Doctorate in the field of Law. Looks like he wasn't just making rap song while he was at Howard.

He is currently making moves as a music attorney, and says, "I hope to not only put myself in a better position to navigate my way through the ups and downs of the music business, but also, and more importantly, I want to provide the type of guidance and knowledge to those that are new to the game that will enable them to make informed decisions, as it relates to their music careers."

That's what's up, Tray. It's good to see a rap artist who left the game for bigger and better things, instead of street corners and G-packs of crack. Or prison. Props to you Tracey Lee, and those songs you made 12 years are still knockin in my iPod today. We salute you. I even found him on Twitter. Follow him and show some love.

Thank you,
Hip Hop Official: Finding rappers who the masses have forgotten.

What Ever Happened To: Blahzay Blahzay?

When the East is in the house...Oh My God.

On this edition of Forgotten Fridays we reminisce over you, Blahzay Blahzay. The Brooklyn, New York duo consisted of Outloud and DJ/Producer P.F. Cuttin, and they killed it in 1996 with their underground banger "Danger" (above) which featured a slick sample from Jeru Da Damaja's "Come Clean".

They only released one album, Blah Blah Blah, in 1996 under PolyGram Records. Although the album didn't do that well, the single for "Danger" had heads nodding across the country. The song will always be "one of those tracks" that everybody knows as soon as they hear the first line. It's a classic to any hip hop connoisseur and was essential the reemergence of New York hip hop in the mid 90's. They did have another video that I remember watching on Yo! MTV Raps and The Box (what you know about that.) The song was called "Pain I Feel" and after listening to it again today, I was impressed. Classic sounding New York boom bap hip hop with dope rhymes, scratched hooks, and that bounce that makes your neck snap. If this joint came out today, it would be posted on this blog and added to the iPod with a swiftness.

But honestly, I have no idea what happened to these guys. Besides their album and music video, Blahzay Blahzay left very little trace of their existence. I tried to do some research and found a measly Wikipedia entry and that's it. No website, no MySpace page, no nothing.

If anyone has any more info regarding the whereabouts of Blahzay Blahzay., please contact us immediately. We need your help.

Thank you,
Hip Hop Official: Finding rappers who the masses have forgotten.

What Ever Happened To: The B.U.M.S.?

On this edition of Forgotten Fridays we reminisce over you, B.U.M.S. (a.k.a. Brothas under madness) The Oakland duo of Evocalist & D. Wyze, stepped on the scene in 1994 with their single "Elevation (Free My Mind)" (above). A lot of you might not remember these cats, but they slipped a classic Teddy P track for this smoothed out underground hit. They signed to Priority Records were backed by Sway and Tech from the legendary Wake Up Show, as well as the Baka Boyz who were another Cali DJ radio team on KMEL. With a major label support, some radio rotation and many freestyle appearances on what was to become the most popular Hip Hop radio show in the world, The Wake Up Show, The B.U.M.S. seemed like they were destined for greatness, but it wasn't in the card for them. Their career was short lived. About one year short to be exact.

Their debut album, Lyfe'N'Tyme, was released on Priority Records in 1995 and did...well...it didn't do much commercially. I mean, I bought it, but I think I'm the only person I who even owned it. It was mad decent, and there were some standout tracks, but I think they well victim to the ghetto. Gangsta Rap music was the shit at the time, and nobody was really messing with conscious music at the time. In fact, I don't think anyone has really messed with conscious music at any time (commercially speaking, of course.)

The biggest irony in this whole affair, was the message behind their biggest song, "Elevation." If you listen to the lyrics, it's about the pitfalls of the record industry and references wack gangsters rappers who have no longevity in the rap game.

I gotta free my mind (yo as a matter of fact)
I gotta free my mind (we're not goin out like that)
I gotta free my mind (we got the power to stay)
"Other rappers, they went slip slidin away"

Oooops. Looks like they ate their own words. That must cause some horrible indigestion. But it wasn't all for nothing, they did leave their mark, while minimal, it will always be memorable.

For labels MC's come and they go, but B.U.M.S.
we leave our mark for hip-hop's devestation
In our strive to stay alive for my record's elevation

Besides their album and music video, the B.U.M.S. have left very little trace of their existence. No website. No MySpace. No wikpedia entry. If anyone has any more info regarding the whereabouts of the B.U.M.S., please contact us immediately. We need your help.


Thank you,
Hip Hop Official: Finding rappers who the masses have forgotten.

What Ever Happened To: Channel Live?

On this edition of Forgotten Fridays we reminisce over you, Channel Live. The New York rap duo (Hakim and Tuffy), which was founded by the blast master KRS-One in 1994, made an instant splash with the hit single "Mad Izm." If you were a weed smoker and wore Timberlands in the mid 90's, this was your buddha anthem.

Their debut album, Station Identification, was released on Capitol Records in 1995 and did fairly well - surprisingly going gold. This was when people actually still bought albums. In fact, I remember the DAY I bought this album. I purchased it in the now defunct Blockbuster Music (remember them?). That spot was dope because you could actually listen to the entire album before you purchased it. They even opened it for you, let you sit at your own 6-disc CD player, give you a full hour, and they'd even re-seal that shit for you if you didn't want it. Remember, this was in 1995. That was some future shit. Anyway, I bought this album, along with the Alkaholiks Coast II Coast, The Artifacts Between A Rock and A Hard Place, and Tupac's, Me Against the World. Needless to say, it was a good day.

Sidebar aside, Channel Live kind of disappeared from the rap scene after that album dropped. They released an album in 2006 called Secret Science Rap, and evidently it was so secret nobody knew about it. One of their members, Hakim Green, shaved his dreadlocks and according to his MySpace page became a manager, A&R consultant, lecturer, educator and visionary. Yes, a self proclaimed visionary. That's very visionary-like of him to see that. He consulted for singer Carl Thomas, and most recently is the Director of Artist Relations for the ‘Stop The Violence’ movement recently brought back by KRS-One.

There is word of a new Channel Live album, A Revolution Televised, that was supposed to come out in '08 but still hasn't hit the streets yet. Will the world ever get another broadcast from Channel Live? Only time will tell. Even if the duo never releases another album, their legacy will live on as "Mad Izm" will be forever played in local underground hip hop shows where there's a 13:1 ratio of guys wearing backpacks to girls in the audience. But every time it comes on, it always rocks the spot.

*Sparks an L*


Thank you,
Hip Hop Official: Finding rappers who the masses have forgotten.

What Ever Happened To: The Whoridas?

On this edition of Forgotten Fridays we reminisce over you, Whoridas. The Bay Area rap group, compromised of cousins King Saan and Mr. Taylor, made a splash in 1996 with their street banger, "Shot Callin and Big Ballin" (above), spittin raps about hustlin before it was the norm, encouraged, or even cool. In fact, these cats were the original Clipse. Unfortunately, they didn't have the backing of a Pharrell (but rather Saafir) and pretty much fell off the face of the earth. I guess their pockets didn't really blow up like rockets.

They released 2 albums, the first, Whoridin', being the most notable. Along with "Shot Callin" it also featured the track "Talking About Bank" (you might remember their video did a parody of Pulp Fiction). Their second album, High Times, didn't do much commercially, but had a couple of slappers including "Dock of the Bay." But where are they now? They made an appearance with the Liks in 1997, and haven't released an album since 1999. Their last known appearance was in 2006 on a Mac Dre record. But honestly, who from Oakland hasn't appeared on a Mac Dre song?

They have a MySpace page, but currently only have 288 friends. So maybe you can go on there and help them out by befriending them. If anyone has any more info regarding the whereabouts of the Whoridas, please contact us immediately. We need your help.

Thank you,
Hip Hop Official: Finding rappers who the masses have forgotten.

What Ever Happened To: Ill Al Skratch?

On this edition of Forgotten Fridays we reminisce over you, Ill Al Skratch. The New York duo (Ill & DJ Al Skratch) first hit the scene in 1994 with their single, the underground hit "Where My Homiez (Creep With Me)". Looking back now, it's a pretty ironic and fitting song title, considering we have no idea where they are anymore. They followed up with their second single, the smoothed out "I'll Take Her" (above) which actually featured Brian McKnight. This was the jam back then, and both songs still get necks moving. Classic 90's New York shit.

Ill & Al made a pretty decent imprint on the hip hop community. They released 2 albums. They were featured on multiple soundtracks. They even did a song with a skinny Shaq. But where are they now? They haven't released an album since 1997. Their last appearance was in 2002 on an unofficial release from Nice and Smooth called "Dr. Feelgood." They said they plan on recording again once they can "make it pop-off exactly the way they want it to."

If anyone has any more info regarding the whereabouts of Ill Al Skratch, please contact us immediately. We need your help.

Thank you,
Hip Hop Official: Finding rappers who the masses have forgotten.