Boogie Down Productions

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About Boogie Down Productions

As architects of New York rap (in both its hardcore and conscious incarnations), Boogie Down Productions (BDP) fundamentally shaped the genre in the late ’80s and early ’90s. Graffiti artist turned rapper, KRS-One first met counselor and DJ Scott La Rock while living at a Bronx homeless shelter in the mid-’80s. Their friendship led to the formation of BDP with beatboxer/rapper D-Nice. The group’s 1987 debut LP, Criminal Minded, was a trailblazing entry in the hardcore hip-hop canon, as KRS-One aggressively detailed the grim realities of urban life over lean yet slamming beats. He schooled the world on gun-toting survival (“9mm Goes Bang”) and the origins of rap (“South Bronx”) while exacerbating a rap beef with the infamous Juice Crew diss, “The Bridge Is Over”. Sadly, La Rock was killed shortly after the album’s release, but his death prompted KRS-One to pivot into preaching positivity and placing emphasis on social critique, violence prevention, the preservation of hip-hop, and the elevation of Black people on 1988’s By All Means Necessary and three subsequent albums before disbanding the project in 1992.

ORIGIN
Bronx, NY, United States
FORMED
1986
GENRE
Hip-Hop/Rap

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