US Hip Hop Vinyl 625 Items

Limited edition of 1500 copies.

At the peak of his powers as a producer in the mid-‘90s, Wu-Tang mastermind RZA crafted a distinctive soundtrack at his basement studio in Staten Island. This haunting landscape of dusty samples, sharp snares and menacing urban gloom – culled from the Japanese film “Shogun Assassin” as well as wide-ranging R&B and funk sources – would soon become a pillar of hip-hop history. These sounds were to become GZA’s 1995 sophomore classic, Liquid Swords – considered by many to be the ultimate Wu-Tang Clan solo album. 17-years later, it’s impossible to debate or deny the album’s legendary status, still standing up to any release that has come out in the rap pantheon, before or since.

Cerebral and precise with his words like a shaolin swordsman, GZA crystallized a range of influences, from chess to kung-Fu and mob films to Eastern philosophy. The album features appearances by the entire Wu-Tang Clan, including the memorable debut of Killah Priest on “B.I.B.L.E.”

Last August marked the 50th anniversary of the birth of Hip-Hop and we continue to honor the artists and albums that had a significant impact on the culture. In partnership with Sony's Certified, we are following up on our RSD reissue of BDP's Edutainment and KRS-One's Return of the Boom Bap with a long overdue reissue of KRS-One's 1995 self-titled album, KRS-One. Two years after the release of Return of the Boom Bap, KRS-One got back in the studio and behind the boards and enlisted for additional production DJ Premier, Showbiz, Diamond D, Norty Cotto, and Big French Production. In August of '95 KRS-One dropped the Preemo-produced lead single "MC's Act Like They Don't Know" with "Represent The Real Hip-Hop" featuring Das EFX on the B-side of the 12-inch, boasting KRS-One's lyrical skills and backing up his status as one of the best live performers in the game. KRS-One knocked it out of the park on his second solo effort with another Premier single about the current state of Hip-Hop on "Rappers R, N. Dainja" and straight-up Boom Bap rap on the Fat Joe assisted track "De Automatic." He offers political and social commentary on "R.E.A.L.I.TY.", "Hold", and "Free Mumia" with Channel Live and continues to diss sucker MCs on "Wannabemceez" with Mad Lion. Get On Down is proud to present this deluxe reissue packaged in a gatefold jacket with a new interview by Check The Technique author Brian Coleman, complete with a foldout lyrics sheet.

Limited to 300 copies worldwide. Only available at HHV.
The world received a true hip-hop classic with 2007’s release of, Below The Heavens. And with Blu & Exile’s recent acquisition of the album’s master rights, the duo are pleased to join forces
with Coalmine Records for a special, deluxe edition reissue! Throughout the album’s 15 tracks, you can here Blu & Exiles shared intent, which was to create something that was distinctly their own. They were young, hungry artists with gifts they wanted the world to hear, not only to showcase their abilities but to also reveal another side of West Coast rap. The early to mid aughts was a dichotomous time for L.A. hip-hop especially. The underground was brimming with creative releases from acts like Freestyle Fellowship and Living Legends, but to the rest of the world, gangster rap remained the city’s calling card.Before there was even a Blu & Exile, the producer kept hearing about this up-and-coming rapper named Blu who was performing at
venuesthroughout the city. And it was one of Exile’s other collaborators, Aloe Blacc (who formed Emanon with Exile), who helped bring the duo together. The two immediately hit it off, and embarked on a recording spree where the blueprint for Below The Heavens began to take shape. The duo laid down more than 50 tracks steeped in lived truths and tack-sharp writing from Blu as well as Exile’s jaw-dropping sample flips and drums. Through painstaking decisions and track sequencing, the end result was a modern classic in the style of Blu’s biggest influences—Nas, Common, Planet Asia, and DMX. Below The Heavens beautifully captures a special place and time for the then fledgling duo, while remaining a timeless piece of art. It’s shivers-inducing nostalgic, but also modern in its sentiments and voice. It’s a classic.

European pressing.
'Illmatic' is the debut studio album by American rapper Nas, released in April 1994. Often cited as one of the best hip-hop albums of the '90s, 'Illmatic' is the undisputed classic upon which Nas' reputation rests. It helped spearhead the artistic renaissance of New York hip-hop in the post-Chronic era, leading a return to street aesthetics. Hip-hop fans accustomed to 73-minute opuses sometimes complain about 'Illmatic''s brevity, but even if it leaves you wanting more, it's also one of the few '90s rap albums with absolutely no wasted space. 'Illmatic' reveals a great lyricist in top form meeting great production, and it remains a perennial favorite among serious hip-hop fans.

180g reissue of the sought after explicit version.

Madlib beats meet The Villain on top of his lyrical power. If you don't like this one you don't like hip hop. Period!

Limited edition of 500 copies, only available hat HHV! Only 2 copies per customer!

Bahamadia’s 1996 debut album Kollage is rightly regarded as one of the greatest rap albums of the 1990s. For the first time ever, Be With present the definitive double LP version of this eternal hip-hop classic, including the legendary "Path To Rhythm" which never appeared on the original LP or on vinyl, anywhere. An indelible VIBE from start-to-finish, Kollage presents Bahamadia's swirling rhymes delivered with an irresistibly butter flow and razor-sharp assuredness over a steady slew of smoothed-out, jazzed-up, blunted beats. Achingly cool and effortlessly funky throughout, it's an absolute must for true 90s hip-hop fanatics.

The entire Kollage project was recorded at D&D Studios and the ties to Gang Starr are keenly felt, with DJ Premier producing five tracks in addition to the killer songs Guru had already produced with her. Working with the cream of the mid-90s East Coast sound, Kollage is, accordingly, a record that demonstrates a varied musical taste with disparate influences, as Bahamadia has previously stated: “The title Kollage was a reflection of my state of mind. I first got interested in music from playing my parents’ and grandparents’ records, as well what I heard on the radio. I wanted Kollage to reflect that diversity both lyrically and sonically."

With intelligent, poetic lyricism and a laconic verbal style bursting with both warm texture and deceptive energy, Bahamadia’s flow was as inspired by Aretha and Nancy Wilson as it was Q-Tip, Schoolly D and Lady B. Swaggering out the gate, "WordPlay" finds Bahamadia confidently showcasing her considerable old-school battle-rhyme skills over a Guru beat that utilises an infectiously bouncy bassline with splashes of sultry jazz horns and a Jeru vocal snatch for the hook. Up next, the quietly shimmering and ruggedly beautiful "Spontaneity" is one of the most alluring on the record, Da Beatminerz crafting a brilliantly soulful and jazzy soundscape for Bahamadia's effortless vocals to float across. It's followed by "Rugged Ruff", where the rapper carefully constructs a swift off-beat flow over Premier's raw jazzy fire.

With smooth spacey synth vibes overseen by former Geto Boys producer N.O. Joe, "I Confess" is, without question, a fly love song and soothing (p)-funk groove. "UKNOWHOWWEDU" is an airy, chilled tribute to her hometown. Produced by Ski Beatz & DJ Redhanded, it rides a gloriously mellow break. It's a true Philly anthem, shouting out a who’s who of the entire city’s scene. Early banger "Total Wreck" follows, presenting a murky Guru instrumental elevated by jazzy horns. Bahamadia invokes the title's suggestion, firing her brilliant bars more aggressively than we’re accustomed to. More Beatminerz-brilliance comes in the way of "Innovation", an opportunity for the MC to invoke Freestyle Fellowship in her forward-thinking and literary verses. "Da Jawn" features hometown buddies The Roots, with Black Thought gliding into a back-and-forth with Bahamadia over ?uestlove’s warm, snapping percussion. With the strut club banger "True Honey Buns (Dat Freak Sh*t)", DJ Premier provides some laidback vibrant boom bap for Bahamadia to share a wild, cautionary tale about a night out with her girl, Kia.

Fan favourite "3 Tha Hard Way" is a hypnotically sinister cut, with Bahamadia, K-Swift and Mecca Star taking star turns to coast over DJ Premier’s raw beat whilst the tender "Biggest Part Of Me" is a heartfelt stunner dedicated to her son. Incredibly, only the European and Japanese CD versions of Kollage was released with the brilliantly breezy “Path To Rhythm”, featuring Ursula Rucker. Whilst ostensibly a "bonus track", it's anything but, to our ears. Very much in sonic conversation with KRS-One's stretched-out sleeper classic "Higher Level", it's absolutely essential so we had to include it, appearing on wax for the first time here, exclusively. Quite a coup.

Somewhat predictably, whilst Kollage was released to significant critical acclaim, it suffered from disappointing sales. In the intervening years - and for far too long - it was a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We hope this double LP reissue - which looks and sounds amazing - will go some way to correct this. This 2024 Be With double LP re-issue has been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. It's too bold and beautiful to remain overlooked and underserved.

HHV worldwide exclusive limited to 1000 copies.

Gravediggaz: "Digging graves of the mentally dead and resurrecting their state of unawareness and ignorance." Frukwan describes the meaning of the group's name. Helping give birth to hip-hop’s subgenre of Horrorcore and one of hip-hop's first supergroups, Gravediggaz were born at a time when all four members were at low points in their careers. Already one of hip-hop’s most legendary producers, Prince Paul was at a crossroads in his career resulting in experimenting with darker sounding beats. He recruited a young soon to be legendary producer RZA, who was at a different type of crossroads in his career, not having the best experiences with various labels and before going on to start the global phenomenon that is The Wu-Tang Clan. Also added were Frukwan, a former member of Stetsasonic with Paul, and Too Poetic, a young MC navigating his way in the game after creating underground buzz with his 2 brothers and their short lived group the Brothers Grym and before his unfortunate death from colon cancer. The four transformed themselves into The Undertaker (Paul), The RZArector (RZA), The Gatekeeper (Frukwan) and The Grym Reaper (Too Poetic) to form Gravediggaz. On 6 Feet Deep the group utilize horror-themed imagery and lyrics combined with black comedy and satire to vent their frustrations with the hip-hop record industry. Singles "Diary of a Madman," "Nowhere to Run, Nowhere to Hide" and "1-800 Suicide" lead an onslaught of tracks which The Quietus writer David Bennun
described as "a then novel means of addressing black life at street level [and] finding a new way of getting that message across". Production is mostly handled by Paul with RZA handling a few tracks. Highly regarded and still sought after, this pressing comes in a premium gatefold jacket with only 1000 of this classic available on blood red vinyl at HHV.

In 1996, after 14 years in the game that started with Too $hort and Freddy B selling tapes out of the trunk of their car in East Oakland, Too $hort announced he would be retiring. On May 21, 1996, Too $hort released his 10th studio album Gettin' It with the lead single of the same name featuring Parliament Funkadelic. Retirement was more of a hiatus as Too $hort got back in the game in 1999 with the appropriately named album Can't Stay Away. If Gettin' It was going to be Too $hort's last album, he was going off on a high note by earning his 6th Platinum record. In addition to having Parliament Funkadelic contribute to two songs, Ant Banks and Shorty B are back with their laid-back Bay Area funk along with some G-Funk contributions by Colin Wolfe, L.A. Dre, and Spearhead X. Too $hort delivers another Bay Area classic full of nasty pimpin' rhymes with dope features by MC Breed, Erick Sermon and Rappin' 4-Tay. Previously only available on promo vinyl, Get On Down in partnership with Sony's Certifed is proud to present a proper vinyl release of Gettin' It in an orange swirl-colored vinyl run packaged in a gatefold jacket with a foldout lyric sheet.

Most Wanted Records presents for the first time on wax (Double LP)

Reggie Gibson, aka Saafir, is a producer, actor and underground Oakland California legend known for his abstract form of emceeing. Saafir made his recording debut on Digital Underground’s The Body-Hat Syndrome in 1993, followed by an appearance on Casual’s Fear Itself in 1994, which led to his solo release Boxcar Sessions. The production was handled by Jay-Z, J Groove and Big Nose, with Sleuth and Saafir serving as executive producers. It features guest appearances from Big Nose, King Saan, Poke Martian and Rashinel.

US import. Must have classic! Brand new pressing made in Czech Republic for the US market leading to high import prices. But it's worth every cent. Briliant album

In the early 1990s gangsta rap was becoming more popular. KRS-One took to the mic and continued to write socially conscious raps resulting in the hard-hitting 1992 album Sex And Violence which would be the fifth and final studio album under the Boogie Down Productions name. Produced by KRS-One, Pal Joey, Kenny Parker, D-Square, and Prince Paul, the album explores the darkest sides of the American urban landscape and psyche, with KRS as narrator, detailing all sides of the matrix. While singles like the alarming drum-driven "Duck Down" and the funky-as-hell "We In There" got most of the attention in ‘92, the deeper sequence reveals plenty of additional gems: the history lesson of the dark and dusty "Drug Dealer"; "Ruff Ruff", with scowling MC favorite Freddie Foxxx (aka Bumpy Knuckles); the grooving "Questions and Answers," and the frantic record industry track "How Not To Get Jerked." The album kicks off with an intro skit featuring KRS-One as a DJ in panic needing vinyl which at the time was a dying format while cassettes and CDs became the dominant format. Thirty-two years later vinyl DJs and Hip-Hop vinyl collectors no longer need to panic. Get On Down in partnership with Sony Music's Certified is proud to bring back to vinyl this underrated gem in the BDP catalog. Featuring one of the dopest album covers by American artist Robert Williams, Sex and Violence is pressed on colored vinyl and packaged in a gatefold jacket with full lyrics.

Indie Exclusive Black Vinyl Edition.

Stakes is High is the 4th studio album by De La Soul, released on July 2, 1996. Stakes is High was critically lauded for its music, lyricism, and its overall message concerning the artistic decline rap music began to face in the mid-90s. The title track and first single was produced by J Dilla and the album's second single, "Itzsoweezee (HOT)", with only Dave on vocals, was accompanied by a creative music video. The album spawned a third single "4 More", featuring Zhane. The album did provide a launching pad for future star rapper and actor Mos Def, who appeared on the track "Big Brother Beat" and Common who is featured on "The Bizness".

Don't forget to grab your Stakes Is High poster from our Bonus Coin section.

Limited edition of 300 copies.

Would there have been a Nujabes without the Specifics? Definitely, but that doesn’t take anything away from one of the finest examples of lo-fi hip-hop during its original golden age. The Montreal group released their debut album, Lonely City, in 2004, over a decade before YouTube streams with millions of viewers brought lo-fi hip-hop to the public consciousness. Despite its age, the album still sounds fresh; jazzy samples, mellow beats, and downtempo rhymes combine to create a sound both relaxing and intriguing, perfect whether you want to put it on as you study, or sit down and really listen to it. In the two decades since its initial release, the Specifics have gained high praise in the lo-fi hiphop scene, with appearances on albums such as the Nujabes compiled “modal soul classics by Nujabes” and the posthumous tribute “modal soul classics II-dedicated to…Nujabes”. But at the end of the day, it all comes back to Lonely City. With unmistakable analog warmth, and the iconic original artwork once again adorning the cover, this album has never looked or sounded this good. Don’t miss Lonely City, available with a Japanese obi-strip for the first time ever, only from P-vine Records!

DOOM's most recent solo album, featuring guests including Ghostface, Raekwon, Bumpy Knuckles and Charles Bukowski with beats from J Dilla, Jake One, Madlib and the supervillain himself.

The limited edition vinyl repress is a deluxe double LP with embossed / debossed, spot-glossed, foil-blocked sleeve.

The Infamous is the second studio album by the American Hip Hop duo Mobb Deep, released in 1995. The album features guest apperances from Nas, Wu-Tang Clan members, Reakwon and Ghostface Killah. The Infamous is Mobb Deep's masterpiece, a relentlessly bleak song cycle that's been hailed by hardcore Rap fans as one of the most realistic gangsta albums ever recorded.

180g vinyl edition.

Limited to 300 copies for all black vinyl purists.

Following the success of classic albums from Nas (llmatic), and Mobb Deep’s sophomore LP, The Infamous, the borough of Queens had proven itself to be a mecca of talent, and so the hunt was on the find the next promising emcee to fuel the momentum. It would take a local high school talent show for Geronimo’s talents to be discovered by soon to be music mogul, Irv Gotti, that would lead to a deal with Blunt Recordings for the release of Mic’s debut effort. In addition to an era defining soundscape with production credits from Da Beatminerz and Buckwild, among others, the album boasts a notable line-up of guest appearances from The Lost Boyz, Royal Flush and O.C., along with a burgeoning Jay Z, DMX and Ja Rule, who all appear on the celebrated posse cut, “Time to Build,” marking the first Murder Inc. collaboration.

Quantity: 4100
Release type: RSD Exclusive Release

I Am... The Autobiography, the long sought-after bootleg released commercially for the first time. Features 2 unreleased tracks, as well as many other rarities that have been on limited vinyl and 12" previously, as well as deluxe packaging. A must-have for any Nas and die-hard hip-hop head!"

The instant classic "A Long Hot Summer" from 2004 finally gets a proper vinyl reissue on orange colored wax.

Includes features and productions by the likes of 9th Wonder, Big Noyd, Marco Polo, Ed O.G., DJ Spinna, Rahzel of The Roots, The Beatnuts and many more.

One of the essential Rap albums of the 2000 era that shouldn't be missed in any serious Hip Hop vinyl collection!