One of reggae music's most prolific and influential production teams, the duo of drummer Sly Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespeare produced and/or played on many of reggae's choicest "riddims," pushing the boundaries of Jamaican music.
Hip hop's founding producers invented the genre by sampling deep funk breakbeats, but in the early '90s a young Dr. Dre found new inspiration in the synth-based funk of Parliament/Funkadelic records. He dubbed the new sound "G-Funk".
Marshall Bruce Mathers III, or Eminem to his fans, is one of the most verbally dexterous MCs to emerge since the genre's beginnings. Here are the highlights of his solo career, as well as other artists he inspired, through lyricism or production.
Just as scrappy and raunchy as their forbears, these freshman also possess a fondness for the art house. Expect DJ Screw-era pastiche, hard drugs and violent fantasies. Decidedly NSFW.