Featuring interviews

with the following artists:

PLUS MANY MORE.

50 CENT

Though he would later struggle with the nature of his fame as well as market expectations, 50 Cent endured substantial obstacles throughout his young yet remarkably dramatic life before becoming the most discussed figure in rap, if not pop music in general, circa 2003. Following an unsuccessful late-'90s run at mainstream success (foiled by an attempt on his life in 2000) and a successful run on the New York mixtape circuit (driven by his early-2000s bout with Ja Rule).

BUN B

Rapper Bun B (born Bernard Freeman) rose to fame in the duo UGK. Bun B and Pimp C formed UGK in the late '80s when their former crew, Four Black Ministers, fell apart. Based in Port Arthur, TX, UGK signed with Jive and with 1992's Too Hard to Swallow began a series of Southern gangsta rap albums that were successful sellers.

CHAMILLIONAIRE

Dubbed "the Mixtape Messiah," Houston's Chamillionaire arrived late as a major-label artist during his city's 2005 takeover of mainstream rap -- the Top Ten Sound of Revenge, released during November that year, followed albums from Mike Jones, Slim Thug, and former Color Changin' Click partner Paul Wall.

DJ VLAD

DJ Vlad started with Hip-Hop back in 1983 during his breakdance days.  In the early 90s he got involved in the San Francisco Bay Underground Hip-Hop scene as a producer. By the mid 90s, he switched from music production into the DJ arena, starting out with mixtapes. Vlad originated the "Internet Mixtape", being the first DJ to release mixtapes in MP3 format.

GREEN LANTERN

DJ Green Lantern, aka the Evil Genius, rose to prominence practically overnight when he aligned himself with Eminem, who wanted to get his Shady Records label into the mixtape game. Green Lantern first hooked up with Em for Shady Invasion, which highlighted the Detroit rapper's then-ongoing battle with Benzino, among many other highlights, including the DJ's own remix of the Nas/2Pac collabo "Thugz Mansion."

JUELZ SANTANA

Born LaRon James in Harlem, the energetic Juelz Santana cut his teeth as an MC with the duo Draft Pick. He didn't hit the big time until 2000, when Cam'ron granted him a guest spot on S.D.E.'s "Double Up." Santana became a member of Cam'ron's Diplomats, contributed a number of verses on other MCs' tracks, and made his full-length debut with 2003's From Me to U. "Dipset (Santana's Town)," easily the best track off the release, barely dented the charts but deserved a lot better.

KID CAPRI

DJ Kid Capri was born David Anthony Love in the Bronx, NY; he began scratching records as early as age eight, and was already an accomplished turntablist by his teens, later spinning records at the famed nightclub Studio 54 and earning a grass-roots following by selling mix tapes of his nightly sets. As his reputation grew, Kid Capri eventually signed to Warner Bros., where he produced sessions for everyone from Heavy D to Boogie Down Productions to Quincy Jones.

LLOYD BANKS

Lloyd Banks was raised in Jamaica, Queens by his Puerto Rican mother--his father spent much of his son's childhood behind bars. Like many young men, he found solace amidst the poverty and ruin of his community through ghetto poetry and the work of rappers like Big Daddy Kane and Slick Rick. He dropped out of high school at the age of sixteen, finding the structured environment a hindrance to his developing talent for rhyming. After appearing on numerous local "mixtapes", Banks, along with childhood friends Tony Yayo and 50 Cent formed a crew called G Unit.

MAINO

If you don't know him, you'll get to know him by the end of one song; those who love him, appreciate his honesty, those who hate him, can't deny him. Armed with a new label deal with Atlantic Records, and an even stronger focus and dedication, MAINO and his Hustle Hard team is poised to become a force that the entertainment industry can't deny.

MIKE JONES

Prior to gaining mainstream exposure during late 2004 and early 2005 with his single "Still Tippin'," Houston-based MC and self-promoter extraordinaire Mike Jones had long been a stalwart of the Swishahouse label, with a handful of releases under his belt. His breakout album, Who Is Mike Jones?, was released in April of 2005, distributed via Warner Brothers. It topped out at number three on the Billboard 200 chart. His second full-length on a major label, The American Dream, followed in July 2007, but not before another series of mixtape releases.

PAUL WALL

Paul Wall, a.k.a Paul Willigan, The Chick Magnet and The Peoples Champ, has become a major force to be reckoned with in the urban music scene. From his days starting out in the game as a street promoter to becoming a respected rapper and one of the most revered mix tape DJ's in the nation, he's taken a hold of the rap world and never let go.

RED CAFE

Red Cafe is a rapper on Universal Records (he recently left his old home at Capitol Records) who debuted with his song "May I" off the album the Virus. He was born in 1976 and is a Brooklyn rapper. He is of Afro-Guyanese descent. Red Cafe began his career in a group called Da Franchise (or as often referred to Franchise) with Bed-Stuy artist Gravy and appeared on many Whoo Kid & Kay Slay mixtapes under Franchise. Due to disagreements between the two, they split up and went separate ways.

SHAWNNA

An MC from the south side of Chicago -- and the daughter of blues guitarist Buddy Guy -- Shawnna (Rashawnna Guy) began writing rhymes while in high school. She caught her first break in 1996, when her duo Infamous Syndicate opened for Junior M.A.F.I.A. in Chicago. Infamous Syndicate signed to Relativity a year later and released Changing the Game in 1999. The album didn't live up to its title, despite production help from No ID and Kanye West; the duo was dropped and eventually split. Shawnna then hooked up with Ludacris, who granted her a spot on his break-out single "What's Your Fantasy."

VINNY IDOL

Vinny Idol is a producer who is definitely on his job. The in-house producer for Super Camp D-Block is behind the Banger "Still Alive" off the A.W.O.L. album.

YOUNG BUCK

To most, rapper Young Buck was a fresh face when he became a member of 50 Cent's crew G-Unit, but he spent a long time waiting on the bench before that. The Nashville, TN, native started rapping at 12 and was in a recording studio by 14, the same age he was when he began peddling narcotics. Cash Money's main man, Brian "Baby" Williams, caught a 16-year-old Young Buck at a rap battle and soon the rapper was out of high school and in New Orleans, crowded into a small apartment with the rest of the Cash Money crew.