The Pioneer of Gangsta Rap, Schoolly D first came out in 1984 with his song “Gangster Boogie”. Although later overshadowed by artists like NWA and Ice T, his album “Schoolly D” remains the blueprint of gangsta rap.Rapper Ice-T, who is often given credit for the creation of Gangsta Rap, says that Schoolly D was the first gangsta rapper.
He says: “The first record that came out along those lines was Schoolly D’s “P.S.K.” Then the syncopation of that rap was used by me when I made “6 in the Mornin.” The vocal delivery was the same: “…P.S.K. is makin’ that green,” “…six in the morning, police at my door.” When I heard that record I was like, “Oh shit!” and call it a bite or what you will but I dug that record. My record didn’t sound like “P.S.K.,” but I liked the way he was flowing with it. “P.S.K.” was talking about Park Side Killers but it was very vague. That was the only difference, when Schoolly did it, it was “…one by one, I’m knockin’ em out.” All he did was represent a gang on his record. I took that and wrote a record about guns, beating people down, and all that with “6 in the Mornin’.”
Doodlebug aka Cee Knowledge comes from a similarly classic background, as part of the group Digable Planets. Though they were not the first to synthesize jazz and hip-hop, Digable Planets epitomized the laid-back charm of jazz hipsters better than any group before or since. The trio’s 1993 debut album, Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space), was a mellow ride packed with samples from Art Blakey, Sonny Rollins, and Curtis Mayfield, and the single “Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)” became a Top 20 pop hit. After earning a Grammy for Best New Duo or Group and embarking on an ambitious tour that included several live musicians, the Planets returned in late 1994 with their best album yet. Blowout Comb continued the group’s jazz-rap fusion, but also saw them branching out to embrace the old school sound of the street as well.
Cee Knowledge has been pursueing his solo career since, the latest projects being his album “Futuristic Sci-Fi” and the mixtape “The Expendables”
