Where did “Malchishnik”, Decl, Zhorik, Valov and other pioneers of Russian rap go? Where did “Malchishnik”, Decl, Zhorik, Valov and other pioneers of Russian rap go? Popular Russian rap of the 90s

In this article I will give facts known from the history of Russian Hip-Hop - which team was the first, who was the first to release an album, etc. I will try to note those names and albums that are mandatory for understanding Russian school of Hip-Hop, from the point of view of our site. There may be some inaccuracies marked with a (?) (or unmarked facts unknown to me).

First recorded rap song– (Rush Hour), 1984, this is an outward imitation of one American track, rather, without understanding what Hip-Hop is. In the 90s in Russia there were also similar fashionable recordings (B. Titomir, Van Moo, S. Minaev, etc.), which make no sense to consider.

First half of the 90s

During this period, the inertia from the collapsed Union still remained - pioneers, festivals, etc. Although food shortages in the country were increasingly felt by the mid-90s.

First Hip-Hop album – Pulse 1. Music computer. Inspired by the recordings of the pioneers of Hip-Hop, domestic musicians A. Rodionov and B. Tikhomirov, using the first digital music machines, recorded an instrumental record in the Hip-Hop style.

The first rap team to make records and who performed a lot back in the Union - D.M.J. Composition: Arthur, Igor, Pinscher, Crab, Rezik, Mutabor. Founded around 1987 (?) as a breakdance cru. The album began to be prepared in the early 90s and was released in 1993.

The first rap team to release an album- Bachelor party. The group was founded in 1990. Thanks to the producer and the shocking theme, the group performed a lot. Participants: Mutabor, who transferred from D.M.J., Dan, Dolphin, who wrote most of the lyrics.

MC's first girl– Lika (Lika Star), she is the first MC girl to release an album.

At the same time, the Bad B. (Bad Balance) team existed in the underground. Having moved to Moscow from St. Petersburg, in 1994 they released a serious social album, but before that they already had professional recordings, which were released only in the late 90s in the form of the “first domestic rap album.” The team was founded in 1990 in St. Petersburg and consisted of: Chill-Will (Sheff), Mikhey, DJ LA, Monya, Skalya, etc. They were also the first to perform together with a DJ.

First underground album(if you want to first real rap album), – (Bad Balance). The theme of this work, on the one hand, corresponds to Hip-Hop, and on the other, to real problems in the new Russia.

The above-mentioned teams (D.M.J., Bachelor Party, Bad Balance) also necessarily included b-boys. So the group enhanced their performances with breakdancing. Moreover, all the MCs of the named teams also danced various break styles - Sheff, paired with Monya, were the winners of the Union Top Break Championship in 1989 (?).

During this initial period, there also existed St. Petersburg groups T-Jam (Thermonuclear Jam) and Name Protected, which were founded around 1988 (?), but left no records. Most likely, these groups are also associated with breakdancing.

In 1993, new characters and groups appeared in the party - Bust A.S.! and K.T.L.-D.L.L. At this time, the group White Hot Ice (hereinafter referred to as a solo artist) was still making waves in the Moscow crowd, whose records began to appear during this period.

Chronology of published albums in the first half of the 90s:

1985 . "Pulse 1. Music Computer" (LP)(old school)
1992 . Bachelor Party “Let's Talk About Sex” (MC, LP)(old school)
1993 . Bachelor Party "Miss Big Breasts" (CD)(old school)
1993. D.M.J. “This World is Mine” (CD, LP(?) ) (old school)
1993. Lika “Rap” (CD, LP) (old school)
1993. D.M.J. “This World is Mine” + Lika “Rap” (MC) (old school) – 2 albums on 1 cassette.
1993. MD & S PAVLOV (?-title) (CD) (funk rap)
1994 . Bad Balance "Bad B Raiders" (CD, MS(?) ) (old school/underground)

Second half of the 90s

Everything that was from the Union had already been stolen, divided, enterprises stood still, the only source of income was commerce in any form.

The first MC is Dolphin. During the period 1996 – 1997. he releases as many as 4 albums: 2 recorded together with Dubov Gaay in the period 1991 - 1995, Mishina’s project Dolphins, and a powerful solo album that was widely distributed throughout the country. As a result, these albums of his, entirely devoted to the topic of drugs and suicide, and especially “Out of Focus,” can be called the first concept albums in Russian rap.

First concept rap album- (Dolphin) . The album is entirely devoted to personality problems, the topic of drugs and suicide.

It would be wrong to consider Mister Maly as a solo MC, because, firstly, this is a completely production project, and secondly, it relates more to techno music.

The first real rap videos"City Angst" (Bad Balance) / "Dealer" (Dolphin) came out in 1996 and 1997, respectively.

First instrumental Hip-Hop album, released by the participants of the Bachelor Party and Oak Gayya, under the pseudonym Barbitura in 1997 - .

First scratch mix– (DJ 108) .

In 1996 – 1999 The underground begins to flourish in Moscow. Most likely, the impetus comes from the D.O.B. family, which includes K.T.L.-D.L.L. (composition: Ice, Seal, Jeep), Bust A.S.! (line-up: Sir-J, Nail, Lees), D.O.B. (composition: Sir-J, Legalize), Slaves of the Lamp (composition: Grundik, Jeep), Slingshot (composition: Ladjak, Legalize). The Tree of Life (composition: Uncle Zvonky, Muk, Business), transformed from Rhythm-U (composition: Uncle Zvonky, Bus, + Muk) also receive internal fame. “Basement” rap labels of various trends are appearing, publishing rap on cassettes. This is how they are released – Bust A.S.! , D.A.M.A.T. , Dense , D.O.B. , Slaves of the Lamp , Lights Out , Da B.O.M.B. (Max Mix Production & Da Lost Boyz), Big Black Boots, etc.

In 1997, the St. Petersburg group S.T.D.K made its way onto TV. with the hit "Summer". Although the main movement in St. Petersburg is set by Da-108 (composition: DJ 108, Cooper), working since 1992, but gaining fame only in 1996, and their party Da-108 Flava, who became the blacksmith of St. Petersburg rap. Their opponents are "Baltic Clan" led by Fuchs, who publishes numerous collections.

In Moscow and throughout Russia, the tone is set by Bad Balance and their label “Hip-Hop Info”. Magazines and collections of the same name are published, and festivals “Rap Music Live”, “Battle of DJs”, “Voice of the Streets” and “Street Ball” are held with the sponsorship of Adidas. In 1997 – 1999 On “Rap Music Live” regional groups perform and become famous - Da-108, White Brothers, Typical Rhythm, Via Chappa, Evil Spirit, Casta, etc.

Classic mainstream album– (Bad Balance), this, as they say, is a classic of all times.

Chronology of published albums in the second half of the 90s:

1995. Mister Maloy “I’ll Bend Little Smoke” (CD, MC) (techno-rap)
1995. Christian Ray & MF-3 “Party In Bap Style” (CD, MC) (pop-soul / new soul)

1996 (?-year). Bust A.S.! "Pregnant Wit Skillz"(MC) (new school/underground)
1996. Bachelor Party “Skittles” (CD, MC) (old school)
1996. Oak Gaai “Stop The Killing Dolphins” (CD, MC) (“live” rap) – album 1993.
1996 . Oak Gaai “Blue Lyrics #2”(CD, MC) (“live” rap) – 1995 album.
1996. Master Spensor & Friends “Encyclopedia of Russian Rap” (MS) (new school / old school)

1997 (?-year). D.A.M.A.T. “New Day /Trepanation of Ch-Rap 4/” (MC; Pavian Records; PR-01? -9? ) (underground)
1997. Rhythm-U “Merry Rhythm-U /Trepanation of Ch-Rap 6/” (MS; Pavian Records; PR-016-97) (new school)
1997. Limmon feat. D.A.M.A.T. “1st Ablom / Rapmania 2 /” (MC; Pavian Records; PR-019-97) (underground)
1997 . Tree of Life “Prophetic Dream”/Trepanation of Ch-Rap 8/"(MS; Pavian Records; PR-027-97) (new school)
1997. K.M.Evil “Specialization / Rapmania 4 /” (MS; Pavian Records; PR-30) (underground)
1997 . Bad B. “Purely About...”(CD, MC) (“live” rap / old school)
1997. Misha's Dolphins "Toys" (CD, MS) ("live" rap)
1997 . Dolphin "Out of Focus"
1997 . Barbitura "Planet Rock"(CD, MC) (breakbeat/instrumental hip-hop)
1997. Christian Ray & MF-3 “Heat” (CD, MC) (pop-soul / hip-hop)
1997. S.T.D.K. “Dreams” (CD, MC) (new school / old school)
1997. Detso “Kolya, I’m Here” (CD (?), MS) (new school)
1997. Mister Malaya “Catch Courage” (CD, MC) (techno-rap)
1997. The dense “183 Days” (MS, RAPMC002-97) (new school / old school)
1997. White Brothers (MC) (new school / old school) (?-in the area)
1997, December. Da B.O.M.B. "Max Mix Production & Da Lost Boyz" (new school / old school)

1998. D.O.B. "Rushun Roolett" (MC) (new school/underground)
1998: spring. Slaves of the Lamp (MC) (new school/underground)
1998. Bricks “Bricks are Heavy” (CD, MS) (“live” rap)
1998. White Hot Ice “In Fools” (MC) (old school / underground) – album 1996.
1998. Bad Balance “Above the Law” (CD, MC) (old school / underground) – album from 1991.
1998 . Turn off the Light "Don't Lean"(MC) (new school/underground)
1998. K316 "3.1.6." (MC) (new school / old school)
1998. Big Black Boots “Terry Pops. Maz No..." (new school)

1999. DJ 108 “Is that so?!” (CD, MC / KDK Records) (new school / old school mix)
1999: spring. Micah and Jumanji "Bitch Love"(CD, MC; Real Records; RR-004-MC/CD) (funk / reggae)
1999, summer. Bad Balance "Jungle City"(CD, MC) (new school / old school)
1999 . Da-108 "Road to the East"(CD, MC; Zvezda Records; ZV 010 MC) (new school / old school)
1999. Evil Spirit "Exit In..."(MC) (new school/underground)
1999. Spiders G "Spiders That G" (MS) (new school / old school)
1999. Artel Rap Terror "187" (MS) (new school / underground)
1999. Family Yu.G.a (MS) (new school / underground)
1999. K316 & 56 Size “Siberian Rap” (MS) (new school / old school)
1999. ? “Question Mark” (MC, CD) (new school)
1999, summer. Caste “Three-Dimensional Rhymes” (MC) (new school / underground)
1999. Barbitura “Numbers” (CD, MS) (break beat) – album 1997.
1999: autumn. Dolphin “Depth of Field” (CD, MS) (new school / old school)

Designations: LP – vinyl long-playing record, CD – compact disc, MC – compact cassette.

Sources:
1. Personal archive of LPs, CDs, MS of the indicated artists and albums and video recordings from TV.
2. Video magazine “Hip-Hop in Russia: from the first person.”
3. Magazines “Hip-Hip Info”.
4. “100 Percent” magazines.
5. And much more...

This category is dedicated to lovers of music and music videos. Here we tried to collect the most popular, cool and melodic clips from various authors. We did not discriminate against our visitors, and therefore filled in many different directions. There are both rock videos and classic, well-known melodies and, of course, we haven’t forgotten about rap.


Let's start, perhaps, with rap, because this particular style is now incredibly popular in the countries of the former Soviet Union and has gained simply unprecedented popularity. In general, creating such music does not require special skills or hearing, and therefore every rogue can compose a rap. A simple, rhyming text is created, which is read with a certain intonation, and a looped melody plays in the background, which the rappers themselves call a beat. Even schoolchildren compose simple verses. Poems are rarely dedicated to something sublime, but increasingly touch upon our dirty and ambiguous reality.


The second most popular musical genre in our countries can be considered pop. These are also quite simple, rhythmic songs with a catchy chorus and bright visuals that collect millions of views. The main feature of this genre can be considered very simple texts, in which all attention is paid to the chorus. However, many pop artists try to highlight their music with the help of unusual and even sometimes strange visuals. They lure their listeners with bright visual images and a simple, drawn-out, and sometimes stupid melody.


In addition to popular trends, there are also less popular, but higher quality genres. For example, Rock music. It has many different subtypes, from simple grunge to heavier metal compositions with hellish screams. This style is able to touch on various topics and life issues. She can ask her listeners various questions and not give an answer to them. The composition can be about simple human feelings and relationships such as love, betrayal, friendship, etc. It can also tell some interesting story; in general, this music is quite universal. In addition, performers of this genre also like to experiment in their videos and sometimes delight their audience with very high-quality video footage.


However, there are still a whole lot of different styles that are several times better and of higher quality than what is now popular. After all, as everyone knows, if something becomes widespread, it most often loses its unique charm. And greedy performers begin to rivet their unscrupulous fakes, wanting to earn as much green paper as possible.


If you are just a music lover, and you just like to listen to music, regardless of its genre, then hundreds and thousands of videos with music videos will open to you. Here you can listen and watch clips absolutely free of charge and without registration. Nothing can stop you from enjoying your favorite composition and watching your favorite performers. We wish you pleasant viewing and listening!

Famous American site HipHopDX compiled a list of the most overrated rap albums of the 90s. It is worth noting that “overrated” does not mean “bad” or “abnormal”, it’s just that these albums, in their opinion, undeservedly received their status as “great” works and do not live up to such a title. We invite you to familiarize yourself with this list and comments for each album from HipHopDX, discuss the objectivity of this opinion and propose your candidacies for a place in this ranking.

Method Man - "Tical" (1994)

During his rise in the early '90s, Method Man had everything it took to succeed: a charismatic voice, a tight delivery and rhymes that always stood out among the current stars of the time. But his debut didn't live up to the expectations set by his verses on "Enter the 36 Chambers" and Biggie's "The What." Despite the presence of hits in the album ( “You're All I Need,” “Bring The Pain”), "Tical" didn't even come close to ranking with true '90s classics like "Ready To Die" or "The Chronic", and was even outdone by later classic debuts from Wu members Ghostface, Raekwon and GZA. To be fair, it may not be his fault: most of the original album was lost due to a flood at RZA's studio. Apparently it is so valuable because to this day it is Method Man's best album.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Twista - "Adrenaline Rush" (1997)

Twista has taken his place as a worthy representative of Midwest rap, but his "Adrenaline Rush" is not a classic, although it is commonly said so. Yes, he rapped faster than anyone else at the time, but that's where his strengths ended. The lyrics don't stand out in any way, the musical production is uninteresting. The importance of Adrenaline Rush to Twista himself, his city, his region and his entire career is undeniable, but there is not a single song on it that has stood the test of time.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Big L - "Lifestyles Ov da Poor & Dangerous" (1995)

Big L will always be remembered as one of the most tragically murdered MCs of all time. Before his death from a gunshot wound in 1999, he truly had the potential to become one of the greats. But his 1995 debut album is more memorable for its portrayal of who Big L might become in the future than for its content. Despite real street hits like “MVP” and “Put It On,” the album turned out to be quite raw, unlike the work of his contemporaries Nas, Biggie, Raekwon, who had already released their albums before "Lifestyles Ov da Poor & Dangerous". “The Big Picture” in 2000 showed a higher level, but unfortunately Big L never managed to realize his potential.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Busta Rhymes - "The Coming" (1996)

"The Coming" is an illustration of a truth that many in rap don't understand: a debut album isn't automatically a classic. Busta Rhymes is undoubtedly a rap icon, and "The Coming" established him as one of the most distinctive artists in the rap genre, who has the potential to become a consistent hitmaker for years to come. But the album's musical production didn't match Busta's dynamic delivery—again, a low bar for the east coast standards that existed at the time.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Wu-Tang Clan - "Wu-Tang Forever" (1997)

Between "Enter The 36 Chambers" and big solo efforts like "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx", "Ironman" and "Tical" (which is also on this list), Wu-Tang Clan have taken over the rap world by being one of a kind. with their rhymes and militant attitude. But "Wu-Tang Forever" turned out to be too long, while "Enter The 36 Chambers" consisted of only 13 songs. There are a whopping 27 songs on Wu-Tang Forever that brazenly show that their formula worked. It has a lot of great tracks, lyrics and rhymes, and is better constructed than many other double albums, but a lot of it is unnecessary. It should be taken into account that the participants put a lot of effort into their solo projects.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Common - "Resurrection" (1994)

“I Used To Love H.E.R.” is one of the best rap songs of all time, "Resurrection" represents Common's shift toward the conscious rap that we associate him with today. But only these two factors make it possible to now call this album a classic, forgetting what it really is. It's just a good album with some flaws that didn't live up to Common's potential. He will succeed only years later. Same very underrated album "One Day It'll All Make Sense" got some of the best beats from No I.D. , more interesting rhymes and lyrics, and on the next "Like Water For Chocolate" Common finally emerged as a very mature and conscientious performer.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Master P - "Ghetto D" (1997)

You can't argue with Master P's dominance in the 1990s in terms of business and marketing. Thus, the No Limit Records label was born, which has solid album sales and high positions in the charts. But years later, their whole image (tanks, camouflage and savagery) became more important than the music itself. "Ghetto D" is just an example of this. The Pound's beats were commendable, but the lyrics themselves were just bad. Besides, an album on which Silkk The Shocker appears 11 times cannot be good.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Mos Def - "Black On Both Sides" (1999)

It hurts to write this: “Black On Both Sides” is one of the most formed albums showing the musical taste and personal growth of the artist, for which Mos Def received a well-deserved place in the Hip-Hop Hall of Fame. Song concept “Mathematics”, “New World Water”, “Habitat” and “Mr. Nigga” are interesting and skillfully executed, and works such as “Ms. Fat Booty" and "UMI Says" are truly magical. But there are moments that ruin the overall concept of the album, such as “Rock N Roll”, a good but not fitting “Climb”, and two strange “Speed ​​Law,” “Do It Now” in the middle of the album. The positives clearly outweigh its negatives, it is still a phenomenal album. But Yasiin also capitalized on his charisma and marketing - an unforgettable album cover that deviated from other masterpiece Rawkus label releases like Pharaohe Monch "Internal Affairs" and Hi-Tek "Hi-Teknology," did its job.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Eminem - “The Slim Shady LP” (1999)

Eminem took the world by storm with The Slim Shady LP, combining humor, self-deprecation and crazy storytelling, making him an instant rap star. Strong rhymes, and this clearly shows what made Dr. Dre pay attention to this white guy. But the lyrical brilliance and outrageousness are overshadowed by the production, which seems even worse all these years later. The Bass Brothers produced 11 of the 14 songs, which are bland, forgettable, and only saved by Eminem's insane delivery. Dr. Dre became more attentive to future albums and made half the beats on the Marshall Mathers LP that were much better than the Bass Brothers beats. On The Eminem Show, Em did most of the production himself under the supervision of Dre. Despite all this, the great role of “Slim Shady LP” in the history of rap and pop culture is undeniable.

The Flow website will present its vision of the history of Russian rap and remember the albums, names and events that had the greatest influence on it.

In this issue we remember the rap groups that made up the underground scene in Moscow in the 90s. Listing them all is an impossible task for such material, but any memories and readers’ own opinions can and should be left in the “comments” section.

They emerged as a group of breakdancers. Originally called Mercury and danced in the cult film "The Courier".

It was 1986, young people had no free sources of information - they could only watch what was shown. And suddenly breakdancing was shown in Soviet cinema - it was a shock.

The Mercury party included future members of Bad Balance and Bachelor Party. And the name DMJ comes from the merger of “Mercury” and DJ. Closer to the 90s they turned into a rap group. The first album is called "Rap Of Power", but the second one, "This World Is Mine", turned out to be more famous.

The DMJ video "The Last Word" was released in 1993.

The track "You're to blame", another recognizable composition from the album "This World Is Mine".


According to the official version, the name is an abbreviation of the names of the group’s founders: Kirill “Seal” Lisovsky and Dima “Los” Lanin. They were joined by Maxim Gololobov (Jeep, later a participant in the projects Slaves of the Lamp, DOB Community and Fury Inc) and Konstantin Vasilevsky (Ice).

The tracks “New Day” (“My every new day begins with a slut…”) and (“Cops… As always, when it’s not necessary, / Where were you an hour ago, you ugly bastards”) were gloomy depressive city stories about that there is no future and little hope. The active period of this vibrant group lasted only a few years, after which it disbanded.


The name of this Moscow underground group stood for Department of Bastards.

Sergey Sir-J Bulavintsev, creator of the group Bust A.S!, which released the album "Pregnant Wit Skillz" in 1995. D.O.B. appeared as a result of the merger of Bust A.S! and the group Slingshot (a duo consisting of Ladjack and Legalize, who recorded the album "Salut Frum Russia", which was considered lost for a long time and was published only in 2015). Both groups were English-speaking, which would surprise a listener today, but was considered a normal story back then. In 1997, the album D.O.B. was released. "Rushun Roolett" is also in English, recorded by the duet Sir J and Legalize.

The Moscow underground community is growing around them, which includes Slaves of the Lamp (a group created by Jeeep from KTL DiLL and Grundik), Money Mike, Yori (Simone Makanda, mother of the rapper Jacques-Anthony, who is gaining momentum today). The term D.O.B arises. Community.

In 2000, D.O.B. release the album "Masters of the Word", now they read in Russian and do it extremely effectively. Apparently, this was the peak of the team - in the same 2000, Grundik died, and Legalize went into Legal Business and joined the Bad B Alliance.


The duet Slaves of the Lamp, which emerged in 1997 and ended in 2000 with the death of Alexey “Grundik” Perminov, left behind only one album, “It Doesn’t Hurt,” and a book of Grundik’s poems, “My Decadence.”

Apparently, the only person, besides Dolphin, who came from rap, whose texts were published in the form of a book of poems, Grundik deserved more than others to be called a poet. He used mostly dark palette tones, and the tragic fate of Grundik - death at 24 from an overdose - gives the works of the Slaves of the Lamp new content and frightening appeal.


It can be noted that in Russian rap of the 90s, the mood of doom and instability prevailed; he spoke about problems and difficulties, about the dark side. The bright side of Russian rap was one of the few represented by the group Rhythm-U, which released only one album, “Vesely Rhythm-U”.

The group appeared in 1992, its members actually knew how to play instruments and this left its mark.

If other heroes of Russian rap of the 90s were “from the street”, former dancers and so on, then Rhythm-U were “from music”. Rhythm-U preferred live instruments to samples and loops. In terms of sound and mood, it coincided with what the Fugees, A Tribe Called Quest, and The Roots were doing. In addition, the influence of Jamaican ragga was very strong. The group consisted of Zvonky and Bus.

The group did not last long: subsequently Zvonky joined the Tree of Life group, which also included Delovoy and Muk (later a member of the group Blanzh), won the Rap Music festival in 1997, was involved in the Alkofunk project, worked as a sound engineer and sound producer, and participated in the “Voice” show.

An ex-member of the pop duo “Kar-man”, who decided to go even further in adapting foreign fashion to the Russian language - and turned into a rapper. An eccentric, charismatic and a brilliant showman: Titomir’s music was often overshadowed by a scandalous image - nevertheless, “The Girl in Red” and “Do as I Do” cannot be erased from the history of Russian pop music.

An absolutely amazing video: Bogdan Titomir performs “The Girl in Red” in NTV’s New Year’s program dedicated to the 1995 meeting, in the episodes there is the entire unique journalistic team, and it all begins with Eduard Khil (!) reading Titomir’s text addressed to Tatyana Mitkova

Now

Titomir quickly got used to the Moscow creative scene and, according to rumors, sometimes made money with things that had, let’s say, an indirect relation to music. In the late 90s he went to the USA for several years. In 2004 he became one of the founders of the Gazgolder club. In the late 2000s, he recorded the double album “Tender and Rough” and even assembled a live band to perform it, which even received good reviews from critics. He played in the film “PiraMMMida”; co-hosted the TV show “Striptease Star” with Masha Malinovskaya. Perhaps the most resonant manifestations of Titomir in the last decade are the provocative obscene duet with Timati “Dirty Sluts”, which was refused rotation on “Muz-TV” and which later became the basis for the rapper Kach’s track “They will be punished”; a song with the characteristic title “Moscow is shit”; and fight with Stas Baretsky on the air of the “Last Word” program on NTV (in which Titomir generally won).

Late Titomir generally likes to emphasize that he has a lot of money: for example, a relaxed composition from three years ago with the characteristic title “The crisis does not concern me” (as well as an interesting rhyme “eyes” - “nah”)

"Bachelor Party"

Then

Rap scandalists who extremely shamelessly enlightened their listeners on issues of sex and eroticism - now it’s even strange to remember that the song “Sex without a break” was endlessly played on TV and was a big hit. With all its wild shockingness and a large number of borrowings from the American group 2 Live Crew, “Bachelor Party” became the first commercially successful attempt to translate hip-hop into Russian.

The most famous song of the “Bachelor Party”, a detailed account of a collective orgy, which, it seems, was played on federal television channels.

Now

In the mid-nineties, “Bachelor Party” turned into a duet - Dolphin left the group, who soon disowned Russian hip-hop and turned into one of the brightest and most sought-after independent musicians in the country. The remaining two participants, Dan and Mutabor, tried their hand at electronic music with the “Barbitura” project, but later still returned to songs about sex. The duo’s last album, “Weekend,” was released in 2006; since then, “Malchishnik” has not recorded anything new, limiting itself to rare concerts and performances at corporate events. This year, a book about the group, “Sex Without a Break Forever,” was published; it is available for purchase online. On the official website, among other things, you can find news for February 12 with the following headline: “As many as 5 parties with the participation of the group took place in Moscow (Corporate parties and birthdays of people and companies? Easy! Everyone needs nostalgia!).”

Mister Small

Then

A teenager in black glasses, the author of one of the first Russian rap hits “I will perish with little smoke” (1992; Maloy was 13 years old at the time), laureate of the Generation-94 festival; another clear example of the creative freedom that reigned in pop music in the nineties.

The text “I will perish with little smoke” turned out to be prophetic for its performer - and in the saddest sense

Now

Fame, money and women came to Maly in adolescence - and naturally had a sad effect on his fate and health: the rapper had problems with drugs, for which he was treated for a long time; the sad story of his fall is told in the first person in Ilya Stogov’s book “Sinners.” Subsequently, he recorded wild absurdist hip-hop with the group Drunken Boys, worked as an art director of the Griboedov club and in other St. Petersburg establishments, and held strange events like a rap battle for the A Just Russia party. Maly’s latest sensational composition is last year’s track “Hang Glider,” a schizophrenic paraphrase of Valery Leontyev’s disco hit, seemingly in support of Putin: “Better a Siberian Crane on a hang glider than a full arctic fox; “It’s better to see a mammoth on TV than hamsters in a swamp.”

"Brothers Smile"

Now

The band members - Chrome and Skalya - work as sound engineers at one of the St. Petersburg studios. In the fall of 2012, a Afisha correspondent tried to contact Chrom and do an interview, but he was hospitalized and eventually stopped responding to messages. Currently, the “Brothers” public page is on VKontakte. reports, that “Chrome is being restored”, and the group is finishing recording the album “Old Schools” and filming the horror film “And the Zombies Are Quiet Here”; On May 21, “Brothers Smile” gave a concert in Yekaterinburg.

"STDK"

Then

A humorous St. Petersburg group created by breakdancer friends (read more about the background of the group about the main songs in the history of Russian pop music). The authors of the catchphrase “The summer has flown by - everything is left behind” and the popular song of the same name.

It’s interesting that almost all of the mass Russian hip-hop of the 90s, before the appearance of Tolmatsky-Valov’s creations, was extremely positive - and this under certain living conditions in the country

Yes, this video was made by the same person who sang the song about summer

Vlad Valov

Then

He's Sheff. The ideologist of the group Bad Balance - the first Russian rap group that could be taken seriously (and which demanded an appropriate attitude). Founder of Hip Hop Info magazine, which played a key role in introducing rap to millions of teenagers. A producer who showed that hip-hop in Russia can be popular and commercially viable. The man behind the success of Decl, Legal Business and Bad B. Alliance.

Valov is mostly remembered in connection with the story of Decl (and rather in a comic register), but Bad Balance of the first convocation - that is, in particular with Mikhei - were, perhaps, the first large Russian rap group in every sense

Now

Having provoked a hip-hop boom in the early 2000s, Valov very soon fell out with his business partner, Alexander Tolmatsky (due to legal disputes, he even had to change his pseudonym from Sheffa to Master Sheffa) and founded his own label 100Pro. It’s still there - the label releases albums by Bad Balance and artists friendly to the group. Valov produced Yelka's first three albums, but the singer became truly popular after the end of her contract with her first guardian. Valov also has his own Internet radio program and the Rap Music festival - once a “star factory” of Russian hip-hop, which gave birth to “Caste” and “Ellipsis”, but has now lost much of its influence. From time to time, Valov answers questions from visitors to his website in ornate ways - most often in the sense that hip-hop is no longer the same. He plays football as part of the Russian pop stars team “Starko”. Draws pictures.

An example of Valov's current creativity, which, it must be said, has retained the habit of gathering an entire community around him - the current one is called 100PRO

Then

Kirill Tolmatsky, the son and ward of his father-producer, the first true superstar of Russian rap, the author of the sayings “What have you done for hip-hop at your age”, “Pepsi, pager, MTV”, etc. It was with the advent of Decl that it became clear that hip-hop can be truly popular here - the young MC performed in stadiums and filmed big-budget videos. However, this popularity also had its downsides - desks and walls all over the country were scrawled with the words “Decl is a sucker,” and Tolmatsky himself subsequently had to work hard to get rid of this background.

A song that was extremely popular in its time, the refrain of which quickly became a proverb. The second person on stage in three years will become known as Timati. Among other things, “Who Are You” casually described an important human dilemma of the Putin era: “Do you want to be a rapper, a thief, a prosecutor?”

Now

In the mid-2000s, Decl quarreled with his father and Valov, tried to change his pseudonym to Le Truk (it didn’t really work out, and now Tolmatsky performs under two names at once), got married, gave birth to a son, Anthony, began recording with rappers like Smokey Mo and Basta, and changed his style somewhat. , inspired by dancehall and raggamuffin. At the same time, the artist recorded his last big hit - “Let’s Potabachim”. Now Kirill is interested in Rasta culture, travels a lot, releases new albums on average every three years and gives amazing interviews: for example, he states that Stas Mikhailov’s concerts are part of the state plan for money laundering.

Decl’s latest album at the moment was called “Here and Now” (the next one should be released this year) and began with the following topical track: “The world is shrouded in fear, the system is collapsing, / Economic collapse, despair in the eyes, / The oligarch is getting poorer, the patriarch has changed , / And the money began to melt right in your hands.”

Legalize

Then

A member of the underground group D.O.B, with the support of Vlad Valov, he became the face of the “Legal Business” project. He is considered the man who reinvented rap in Russian - he moved away from the “square” rhyme and began to experiment with form. He was the first rapper to make a rap remake of the Kino group's song, turning "A Pack of Cigarettes" into a big hit of its time.

As follows from the comments to this video on YouTube, some people, thanks to Legalize, learned about the existence of Viktor Tsoi himself

Now

After a quarrel between Valov and Tolmatsky, Legalize remained with the latter (dedicating the caustic track “Doctor Bluff” to Valov). He lived in Prague for some time, and upon his return he released the blockbuster album “XL”, which included the song “Future Mothers” - a hit at R’n’B parties at the Infinity club. He judged the show “Battle for Respect-3”, recorded a rap cover of “I want to be with you”, gave lectures about hip-hop at RUDN University and in “Garage”. At the end of the decade he decided to return to more orthodox rap - now he supplies beats little-known American rappers and is engaged in his own project “Rage Inc.”

In addition to Legalize, Fury Inc includes rappers Jeep and Lomak

Then

Vlad Valov's attempt to re-enter the same water. 14-year-old Zhorik became an even more comical character than his predecessor Decl, and was remembered primarily as a curiosity. The track “This is Zhorik” at one time became a hit on the “Shit Parade” program and, in a sense, anticipated the future boom of kid-hop from the VKontakte network.

Now

Several years ago, Zhorik made an attempt to return - however, after the publication of the pathetic songs “Return” and “From NY to Moscow” there was no continuation. It is also known that the rapper currently lives in New York, where he completed his studies. Tagline

Publications on the topic