US Hip Hop Preorder 215 Items

Why you'll love it...
The beats on Capital Punishment, from RZA, Rockwilder, Domingo, and other A-list maestros, are grimy, radio- friendly, yet low-ley cutting-edge, affirming its status as an undisputed classic. Big Pun was as much a visionary — conceptualizing every song — as a consummate pro in the booth. Citing Picasso and Baby Jesus while purporting to “twist your temples into pretzels,” Pun made Minute Rice out of multi-syllables. There’s no way to describe Pun’s febrile liberties with the king’s English. He doesn’t really breathe; when he does, it’s a sharp gasp for air that almost mimics his Ginsu-like wordplay. Pun’s habit of sucking wind before spitting an ill verse mimics the effect of a lit grenade about to land and decimate entire sections of the population. If Pun’s dense rhymes invoke mixed metaphors, that’s likely because he’s an impossible amalgam of wanton wooer and lyrical hitman, an overweight lover with a murderous mouthpiece.

The 1998 album under Bossolo's Mr. Solo moniker out for the first time ever on CD!

Why you'll love it...
*400 Degreez* went over 5x Platinum. Cash Money was an Army (and Navy) and Juvenile became the first breakout star.

Originally released in 1997. Presented here for the first time on Limited Edition Double LP. Remastered for vinyl by The Stuntman at Suite Sound Labs.

Why you'll love it...
The War Report, the 1997 brilliantly militant debut from Capone-N-Noreaga, is the VMP Hip-Hop Record of the Month in December 2022. Celebrating the record's 25th anniversary, our edition is pressed on 2LP Yellow vinyl, with lacquers cut by Cicely Balston...

Originally released as a nine-track LP on Bobbito Garcia’s legendary Fondle 'Em Records in 1996, the Juggaknots’ debut made a massive impact and it remains one of the most revered and groundbreaking releases of the ‘90s independent hip-hop scene.

Ahead of their time, the sibling trio of Breeze Brewin, Queen Herawin and Buddy Slim deftly combine their knack for braggadocio, humor and social commentary with thick, low-end heavy beats for their inaugural effort. It’s an album that helped lay the bedrock for what would become the alternative hip-hop subgenre that thrives today.

Re:Release presents their original debut LP in a whole new light with 11 additional tracks comprising re-mastered music and three bonus mixes. This special edition 2xlp is presented in an alternate cover, gatefold jacket with a six panel insert that contains full album liners, song lyrics, and a forward by Bobbito García a.ka. Kool Bob Love.

Why you'll love it...
Long before this album was released, Busta Rhymes made his name as the king of the feature. In those days, you couldn't just walk into the studio and be the last to rap on a song, you had to be special. Busta proved that he certainly was that so there was a lot of pressure on his debut album, The Coming, and he proved he was up to the challenge.

Limited to 3000 copies, the VMP exclusive version of Busta Rhymes' The Coming is pressed on Cloudy Red vinyl at GZ Vinyl as part of our year-long celebration of Hip Hop with Warner Music Group and Hip Hop at 50. The 2LPs will arrive in a double gatefold, tip-on, foil-stamped and numbered jacket. It was mastered by Cicely Balston at Alchemy Mastering at AIR.

Why you'll love it...
"Tha Hall of Game, with all of its bright moments, kick-started Earl Stevens’ legacy — a showpiece enshrined in a sterling catalog. The record was another level up into the mainstream consciousness, ballooning his rebrand further in a locale where he was already king. Twenty-five years later, it comes as a more revealing record, a mark of growth under a veneer of player anthems and boundless slang. E-40 jostled himself into rap immortality with this release, which remains legendary — expertly calculated in every sense and impossible to ignore, a West Coast power move by Earl and the Stevens family."

Limited edition of 500 copies, featuring a black vinyl, a printed inner sleeve, and a sticker.

Why you'll love it...
The man born Omar Credle is an ornate wordsmith; his tone is rough and rococo — every verse is like a boosted spool of handmade silk. There’s a meticulous rasp to every O.C. utterance, wherein his lavish darts seem composed by a Crooklyn corner-stander tickled by his technical brilliance.

O.C., on Word...Life, had to compete in this impossible climate (in which Nas was rap’s messiah, and B.I.G. squared mad circles the instant he uttered, “It was all a dream”). Against all odds, O.C.’s first LP captivated in its quiet way.

Why you'll love it...
Tical calls back to an oft-romanticized period when rockin’ the mic was more than enough, with no filler in sight.

Why you'll love it...
“The Coup’s second album, 1994’s Genocide & Juice, was an emboldened level-up from their first full length. While early Coup material had moments that blossomed on later efforts, Genocide & Juice was where those ideas deepened, becoming more pronounced as their catalog grew. Production wise, it’s replete with colorful samples, thorough skits and big bass, a perfect intersection of ’90s sample-based ingenuity and West Coast funk.

Genocide & Juice is mainly two things: neighborhood tales and unapologetic worldviews bound with fisted activism — made by the group’s core members at the time — Riley, Pam the Funkstress and E-Roc. But there are voices and sound effects woven throughout that give it more texture. Killer production that was able to sound both clearly professional while retaining its edge. At a concise 14 tracks, this album is one of the best sophomore efforts by any group, in any genre.”

Why you'll love it...
25 years later, Funkdafied still stands tall in the G-funk canon as a record that’s lean, mean, and a nonstop delight to listen to. Where many of her contemporaries’ albums weathered far worse with age, given the gratuitous nature of the subgenre, Da Brat and Jermaine Dupri gave us nine records that play the game without giving themselves the opportunity to grow stale or outlandish.

Premium KiT Version. 1x Album Package 1x KiT Album 1x Booklet 5x Track Sheet 6x Sticker 1x Coaster 1x Iron on Patch 1x Carabiner Click It, Doggystyle. Join us in celebrating 30 years of Death Row Records. We are honored to present to you the release of the Doggystyle Album in a brand new Music Format. This is not Doggystyle on vinyl, cassette tape, or compact disc, but a KiT Album. All the same album glory as those older versions, but with even more options. Including the first ever Dogg House, as well as exclusive, never been sold merch goodies; like a coaster for your Gin N Juice. Including Exclusive, Never Been Sold Merchandise.

Why you'll love it...
"Despite a boisterous personality from Chad “Pimp C” Butler and a steely menace from Bernard “Bun B” Freeman, the Underground Kingz rose as most men do: from gifted measures despite hard-scrabble surroundings. By the time they were 19, they crafted a crude, yet wholly Southern debut album titled Too Hard To Swallow. The genius within Too Hard To Swallow arrives when you realize it is an album of promising sonic development and two rappers wanting to find their footing as the rappers from their section of Texas."

Why you'll love it...
"""Many Tribe fans consider the band’s next album, 1993’s Midnight Marauders, to be its magnum opus. But you don’t arrive at the perfect nocturnal LP without first releasing a focused work like The Low End Theory, which winnowed the colorful expanse of People’s Instinctive Travels into a seamless listen. The Low End sounds minimal in comparison and is a mostly drum’n’bass record of subtle bells and whistles. Tribe represented freedom, and some 30 years after The Low End Theory, it’s still a sonic marvel and one of the best hip-hop albums of all-time."" "

Why you'll love it...
Released on September 5, 1989, Stone Cold Rhymin’ contains 13 songs and zero curse words. The sepia-toned album cover depicts Young in profile, cradling an old broadcast microphone and looking more like a dapper doo-wopper than a hip-hop hero. In terms of playing it straight, the songs are shocking in their innocence. At the 1990 Grammy Awards, “Bust A Move” won for Best Rap Performance. It was clear that hip-hop wasn’t going to back the NY-or-nothing mentality, and New York’s ire was real. Grumpy Village Voice don Robert Christgau deigned to give Stone Cold Rhymin’ a “B+” in his letter-grade consumer guide. “His polysyllables and quick lips aren't as fresh as he thinks they are,” sniffed Christgau. Au contraire: Stone Cold Rhymin’ still sounds fresh after all these years.

Why you'll love it...
The success that Run-D.M.C. enjoyed through its first three albums is impossible to overstate — before the trio from Hollis, Queens, stomped its shell-toe Adidas through the music industry, hip-hop was completely unproven as a commercial force. Just about every ‘’first'' in the genre’s history was accomplished by Run-D.M.C.: It was the first hip-hop act to earn Gold, Platinum and multi-Platinum album certifications, the first to have a music video play on MTV, the first to appear on the cover of Rolling Stone, the first to nab a Grammy nomination, the first to sign a major endorsement deal.

In a previous edition of liner notes for Tougher Than Leather, Public Enemy frontman Chuck D gave the album its props and shared memories of going on the road with the group after it dropped. He geeks out over the funk and rock samples for the title track as well as the way they cut up their older songs into ‘’Soul To Rock And Roll,'' and claimed ‘’Run’s House'' was ‘’the written theme for all of hip-hop'' in 1988.

Why you'll love it...
By All Means Necessary is often discussed like it’s some departure from Criminal Minded. The moment KRS turned into “The Teacha” and became a politically minded, socially conscious wordsmith. In reality, this is who he already was. Misunderstanding and tragedy is what compelled him to not only refocus on the role he wanted to play in hip-hop, but create an album that gave way to a very important movement in hip-hop, too.

By All Means Necessary is an essential and definitive BDP and KRS album. It marks the moment where KRS wasn’t just concerned with being a great emcee but a teacher, too, continuing his exploration of sociopolitical subjects on BDP’s following three albums, as well as throughout his solo career.