Drum machine
A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument that creates percussion. Drum machines produce unique sounds. Most modern drum machines allow users to program their own rhythms. Drum machines may play prerecorded samples. Drum machines have had a lasting impact on popular music; the Roland TR-808, introduced in 1980 influenced the development of dance and hip hop music. The first drum machine to use samples of real drum kits, the Linn LM-1, was introduced in 1980 and adopted by rock and pop artists including Peter Gabriel, Fleetwood Mac, Yellow Magic Orchestra and Stevie Wonder. In the late 1990s, software emulations began to overtake the popularity of physical drum machines. Rhythmicon In 1930–32, the spectacularly innovative and hard-to-use Rhythmicon was developed by Léon Theremin at the request of Henry Cowell, who wanted an instrument which could play compositions with multiple rhythmic patterns, based on the overtone series, that were far too hard to perform on existing keyboard instruments.
The invention could produce sixteen different rhythms, each associated with a particular pitch, either individually or in any combination, including en masse, if desired. Received with considerable interest when it was publicly introduced in 1932, the Rhythmicon was soon set aside by Cowell and was forgotten for decades; the next generation of rhythm machines played only pre-programmed rhythms such as mambo, tango, or bossa nova Chamberlin Rhythmate In 1957, Harry Chamberlin, an engineer from Iowa, created the Chamberlin Rhythmate, which allowed users to select between 14 tape loops of drum kits and percussion instruments performing various beats. Like the Chamberlin keyboard, the Rhythmate was intended for family singalongs. Around 100 units were sold. First commercial product – Wurlitzer Sideman In 1959, Wurlitzer released the Sideman, which generates sounds mechanically by a rotating disc to a music box. A slider controls the tempo. Sounds can be triggered individually through buttons on a control panel.
The Sideman was a success and drew criticism from musicians' unions, which ruled that it could only be used in cocktail lounges if the keyboardist was paid the wages of three musicians. Wurlitzer ceased production of the Sideman in 1969. Raymond Scott In 1960, Raymond Scott constructed the Rhythm Synthesizer and, in 1963, a drum machine called Bandito the Bongo Artist. Scott's machines were used for recording his album Soothing Sounds for Baby series. First transistorized drum machines – Seeburg/Gulbransen During the 1960s, implementation of rhythm machines were evolved into solid-state from early electro-mechanical with vacuum tubes, size were reduced to desktop size from earlier floor type. In the early 1960s, a home organ manufacturer, Gulbransen cooperated with an automatic musical equipment manufacturer Seeburg Corporation, released early compact rhythm machines Rhythm Prince, although, at that time, these size were still as large as small guitar amp head, due to the use of bulky electro-mechanical pattern generators.
In 1964, Seeburg invented a compact electronic rhythm pattern generator using "diode matrix", transistorized electronic rhythm machine with pre-programmed patterns, Select-A-Rhythm, was released. As the result of its robustness and enough compact size, these rhythm machines were installed on the electronic organ as accompaniment of organists, spread widely. Keio-Giken, Nippon Columbia, Ace Tone In the early 1960s, a nightclub owner in Tokyo, Tsutomu Katoh was consulted from a notable accordion player, Tadashi Osanai, about the rhythm machine he used for accompaniment in club, Wurlitzer Side Man. Osanai, a graduate of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at University of Tokyo, convinced Katoh to finance his efforts to build better one. In 1963, their new company Keio-Giken released their first rhythm machine, Donca-Matic DA-20 using the vacuum tube circuits for sounds and mechanical-wheel for rhythm patterns, it was a floor-type machine with built-in speaker, featuring a keyboard for the manual play, in addition to the multiple automatic rhythm patterns.
Its price was comparable with the average annual income of Japanese at that time. Their effort was focused on the improvement of reliability and performance, along with the size reduction and the cost down. Unstable vacuum tube circuit was replaced with reliable transistor circuit on Donca-Matic DC-11 in mid-1960s, in 1966, bulky mechanical-wheel was replaced with compact transistor circuit on Donca-Matic DE-20 and DE-11. In 1967, Mini Pops MP-2 was developed as an option of Yamaha Electone, Mini Pops was established as a series of the compact desktop rhythm machine. In the United States, Mini Pops MP-3, MP-7, etc. were sold under Univox brand by the distributor at that time, Unicord Corporation. In 1965, Nippon Columbia filed a patent for an automatic rhythm instrument, it described it as an "automatic rhythm player, simple but capable of electronically producing various rhythms in the characteristic tones of a drum, a piccolo and so on." It has some similarities to Seeburg's earlier 1964 patent.
In 1967, Ace Tone founder Ikutaro Kakehashi developed the preset rhythm-pattern generator using diode matrix circuit, which has some similarities to the earlier Seeburg and Nippon Columbia patents. Kakehashi's pate
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin is an American rapper, record producer and record executive. He was raised in Atlanta, he has worked with and produced for Kris Kross, Mariah Carey, Jay-Z, Monica, Migos, Da Brat, Janet Jackson, TLC, Aretha Franklin, Alicia Keys, Bow Wow. Jermaine Dupri Mauldin was born on September 23, 1972, son of Tina and Michael Mauldin, a Columbia Records executive. Dupri's promising musical career began before he was ten years old, his father an Atlanta talent manager, had coordinated a Diana Ross show in 1982. Dupri got his start as a dancer for the hip hop group Whodini, he made an appearance in their music video for the song "Freaks Come Out At Night". He began performing around the country, appearing with Herbie Hancock and Cameo before he opened the New York Fresh Festival, with Run-D. M. C. Whodini, Grandmaster Flash. In 1990, he produced the female hip hop trio Silk Tymes Leather, he formed the teen duo Kris Kross after meeting the boys at a local mall in 1991. The group's first album, Totally Krossed Out, was released in 1992 and went multi-platinum due to their singles "Jump" and "Warm It Up", both written and produced by Dupri.
He established his own record label called So So Def in 1993. Shortly after, he discovered female R&B group Xscape at a festival in Atlanta and signed them to the label, their debut album, produced by Dupri, Hummin' Comin' at'Cha, went platinum with the support of the singles "Understanding", "Love on My Mind", "Tonight" and "Just Kickin' It", with the peaking at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. During the same year, on Yo! MTV Raps he met Da Brat through Kris Kross, signed her to his label So So Def Recordings, released her debut Funkdafied which went platinum. So So Def Recordings entered into a distribution partnership with Columbia Records in 1993. In 1995, he collaborated with Mariah Carey for the first time on the number one hit single "Always Be My Baby." He contributed to Lil' Kim's 1996 album, Hard Core on the track "Not Tonight". In 1997, Dupri produced several tracks on Usher's second album, My Way; the lead single, "You Make Me Wanna", reached number-one on the Rhythmic Top 40 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart.
The follow up single "Nice & Slow" went to number-one on the Billboard 100 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart, the last single, "My Way" peaked at number-two on Billboard 100. All three singles have been certified Platinum by Recording Industry Association of America. A featured guest on the album, would later become a protegé of Dupri, with her sophomore album, The Boy Is Mine, dropping in July of that year. Dupri produced the single of the album "The First Night", which peaked atop the U. S. Billboard charts, with the album receiving the triple platinum certification and universal acclaim. In 1998, Jermaine Dupri was involved in the release of Destiny's Child's eponymous debut album. Dupri renewed the focus on his own music career, which proved successful with release of the singles "Sweetheart" featuring Mariah Carey, "The Party Continues" featuring Da Brat and Usher, "Money Ain't a Thang" featuring Jay-Z, the lead singles from his debut studio album Life In 1472; that year he met soon-to-be frequent collaborator and production partner Bryan-Michael Cox, as well as 11-year old rapper, known as Lil' Bow Wow and signed him to So So Def Recordings.
The two would part ways after only 2 albums, but continued to collaborate on projects. The deal with Columbia was terminated in 2003 Dupri switched to Arista Records. Dupri worked on Tamar Braxton's debut album, Tamar on the track "Get None" as well as with Weezer and Lil Wayne on the song "Can't Stop Partying." He collaborated with DJ Chuckie to make a vocal version of the song "Let The Bass Kick". He soon released his sophomore studio album Instructions in October 2001. In 2004 Dupri connected again with Usher contributing to Confessions co-writing and co-producing three consecutive singles Billboard Hot 100 number one songs "Burn", "Confessions Part II", "My Boo". Confessions won Best Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. Confessions has been certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America and, as of 2012, has sold 10 million copies in the US and over 20 million copies worldwide. Dupri in early 2005 worked with Mariah Carey on her The Emancipation Of Mimi with the smash hit "We Belong Together".
It stayed at number one for fourteen non-consecutive weeks, becoming the second longest running number one song in US chart history, behind Carey's 1996 collaboration with Boyz II Men on "One Sweet Day". We Belong Together" won Grammy's for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song; the same year he worked on Wanted with Bow Wow, he co-produced and co-wrote "Let Me Hold You". In December, Dupri produced and co-wrote Nelly's single "Grillz", which struck atop the Billboard charts yet again. In early 2006, Dupri signed both Dem Franchize Boyz and Daz Dillinger to his label So So Def after transferring it from Arista Records to Virgin Records; the latter's album, So So Gangsta, was released in September of that year, while the former's label debut was released the following year with the album On Top of Our Game which topped the US Top Rap Albums with the hit songs "I Think They Like Me" and "Lean wit It, Rock wit It." The group featured alongside Dupri on Monica's snap single, "Everytime tha Beat Drop" off her fifth album, The Makings of Me.
In late 2006, Dupri
The Notorious B.I.G.
Christopher George Latore Wallace, known professionally as The Notorious B. I. G. Biggie Smalls, or Biggie, was an American rapper, he is considered by many to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Wallace was raised in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, his debut album Ready to Die made him a central figure in East Coast hip hop, increased New York City's visibility in the genre at a time when West Coast hip hop dominated the mainstream. The following year, Wallace led Junior M. A. F. I. A. to chart success, a protégé group composed of his childhood friends. In 1996, while recording his second album, Wallace was involved in the growing East Coast–West Coast hip hop feud. Wallace was murdered by an unknown assailant in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles on March 9, 1997, his second album, Life After Death, released sixteen days rose to number one on the U. S. album charts. In 2000, it became one of the few hip-hop albums to be certified Diamond. Wallace was noted for his "loose, easy flow", dark semi-autobiographical lyrics, storytelling, which focused on crime and hardship.
Three more albums have been released since his death, he has certified sales of over 17 million records in the United States, including 13.4 million albums. Wallace was born in St. Mary's Hospital in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, on May 21, 1972, the only child of Jamaican parents, Voletta Wallace, a preschool teacher, Selwyn George Latore, a welder and politician, his father left the family when Wallace was two years old, his mother worked two jobs while raising him. Wallace grew up in Clinton Hill, on 226 St. James Place, near the border of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. At Queen of All Saints Middle School, Wallace excelled, winning several awards as an English student, he was nicknamed "Big" because of his overweight size by age 10. He said he started dealing drugs when he was around the age of 12, his mother away at work, did not know of his drug dealing until he was an adult. Wallace began rapping as a teenager, entertaining people on the streets and performed with local groups the Old Gold Brothers and the Techniques.
At his request, Wallace transferred from Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School to George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School, where future rappers DMX, Jay-Z and Busta Rhymes were attending. According to his mother, Wallace was still a good student but developed a "smart-ass" attitude at the new school. At seventeen, Wallace became more involved in crime. In 1989, he was sentenced to five years' probation. In 1990, he was arrested on a violation of his probation. A year Wallace was arrested in North Carolina for dealing crack cocaine, he spent nine months in jail before making bail. After being released from jail, Wallace made a demo tape called "Microphone Murderer", under the name Biggie Smalls, a reference to a character in the 1975 film Let's Do It Again as well as his stature; the tape was made with no serious intent of getting a recording deal. However, it was promoted by New York-based DJ Mister Cee, who had worked with Big Daddy Kane, in 1992 it was heard by the editor of The Source.
In March 1992, Wallace was featured in The Source's Unsigned Hype column, dedicated to aspiring rappers, made a recording off the back of this success. The demo tape was heard by Uptown Records A&R and record producer Sean Combs, who arranged for a meeting with Wallace, he was signed to Uptown and made an appearance on label mates Heavy D & the Boyz's "A Buncha Niggas". Soon after Wallace signed his recording contract, Combs was fired from Uptown and started a new label, Bad Boy Records. Wallace followed and signed to the label in mid-1992. On August 8, 1993, Wallace's longtime girlfriend gave birth to his first child, T'yanna. Wallace had split with the girlfriend some time before T'yanna's birth. Despite having dropped out of high school himself, Wallace wanted his daughter to complete her education, he promised her "everything she wanted", saying that if his mother had promised him the same he would have graduated at the top of his class. He continued selling drugs after the birth to support his daughter financially.
Once Combs discovered this, he forced Wallace to quit. In the year, recording as the Notorious B. I. G. gained exposure after featuring on a remix to Mary J. Blige's single "Real Love", he recorded under this name for the remainder of his career, after finding the original moniker "Biggie Smalls" was in use. "Real Love" peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was followed by a remix of Blige's "What's the 411?". He continued this success, to a lesser extent, on remixes with Neneh Cherry and reggae artist Super Cat in 1993. In April 1993, his solo track, "Party and Bullshit", appeared on the Who's the Man? soundtrack. In July 1994, he appeared alongside LL Cool J and Busta Rhymes on a remix to label mate Craig Mack's "Flava in Ya Ear", which reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100. On August 4, 1994, Wallace married R&B singer Faith Evans. Five days Wallace had his first pop chart success as a solo artist with double A-side, "Juicy / Unbelievable", which reached number 27 as the lead single to his debut album.
Ready to Die was released on September 13, 1994. It reached number 13 on the Billboard 200 chart and was certified four times Platinum; the album shifted attention back to East Coast hip hop at a time when West Coast hip hop dominated US charts. It gained strong reviews and has received
Ruthless Records
Ruthless is an American record label, founded by Eric "Eazy-E" Wright and Gerald "Jerry" Heller. The record label was founded in Compton, California in 1986. Ruthless Records since its inception has been a subsidiary of Inc.. All Ruthless Records trademarks are owned by Comptown Records Inc; the label's acts over the years have earned RIAA certifications of Platinum or higher on 15 of its released albums, including releases by N. W. A, Eazy-E, MC Ren, The D. O. C. Michel'le, J. J. Fad, Bone-Thugs-n-Harmony. Ruthless was formed as a vehicle for releases by N. W. A, as well as member and cofounder Eric "Eazy-E" Wright. W. A's "Dopeman", "8-Ball" and "Panic Zone", introductory to the group's N. W. A. and the Posse, a compilation album released under the group's name, albeit not on Ruthless. It put out singles by underground California acts such as Frost and J. J. Fad, but the label's 1st full-length release was N. W. A's Straight Outta Compton, certified Triple Platinum by the RIAA. Following this was the release of Eazy's solo debut, Eazy-Duz-It.
As the six members went on tour in support of their project, some began to voice their displeasure with the financial situation at Ruthless. According to group member MC Ren, it was a common opinion that N. W. A manager and Ruthless co-founder Jerry Heller was the one receiving their due: We felt he didn’t deserve what he was getting. We deserved that shit. We were the ones traveling in vans and driving all around the place. You do all those fucking shows trying to get known, you come home to a fucking apartment. You go to his house, this motherfucker lives in a mansion. There's gold leaf trimmings all in all kinds of other shit. You’re thinking, “Man, fuck that.” Jerry Heller, in his 2006 memoir Ruthless, disputes any allegations of financial misconduct. The label experienced outside pressure due to the group; the success of their song "Fuck tha Police" led to a threatening F. B. I. letter to distributor Priority Records. After coming off tour, group member Ice Cube voiced his opinions on the group's finances.
Though Heller continually claims that everything was in order, has offered them to open the account books to prove his innocence, the ensuing confrontation ended in Ice Cube leaving Ruthless without signing on as a solo artist, which the remaining members proceeded to do. 1988 saw the release of J. J. Fad's gold-certified album Supersonic, produced by founding N. W. A member Arabian Prince and in 1989, singer Michel'le's eponymous self-titled album, The D. O. C.'s critically acclaimed No One Can Do It Better, all produced by N. W. A beat-smiths Dr. Dre and DJ Yella. W. A, producing the 100 Miles and Runnin' E. P. and the group's Niggaz4Life, which reached Platinum status. Above the Law's Livin' Like Hustlers was released during this period. In 1989, Eazy signed hip-hop's first white female rapper Tairrie B to Ruthless' new Comptown label subsidiary, she released her debut album The Power of a Woman in 1990 featuring the single and video for "Murder She Wrote" which Eazy and Philadelphia rapper Schoolly D appeared in.
The album featured guest vocals by Dr. Dre, D. O. C. and future House of Pain frontman Everlast, production by QDIII. Though N. W. A was successful, Dr. Dre was advised by The D. O. C. and the rapper's friend, Suge Knight, that he should leave the label to avoid any possible financial meddling by Heller, offering to extricate Dr. Dre from his Ruthless contract.. Suge succeeded in procuring Dre, D. O. C. and Michel'le's contracts—through illicit means—and proceeded to set up Death Row with Dr. Dre. Now short of Dr. Dre, Eazy-E signed various other acts that would assist him in a subsequent rivalry with Death Row. Gangsta Dresta and B. G. Knocc Out were among the most vocal of these rappers, with DJ Yella,187um and new producer Rhythum D producing. While MC Ren and DJ Yella stayed neutral, they remained with Ruthless. Eazy-E released several high-profile LPs dissing Dr. Dre, including most famously It's On 187um Killa. Producer Big Hutch/Cold 187 um alleges that during this time period, with Ruthless switching distributors from Priority to Relativity and Epic Wright began to feel as though Heller wasn't being honest with the label's finances: When the money started rolling and a lot of cats couldn’t come to the table and renegotiate….
Ya know, it was fucked up! That's. Like Eazy came to me one night and he said “Man, shit is fucked up, man.” Because he was at a point where he was getting played by Jerry Heller. However he added, "... I can't knock Jerry Heller.... He took us to the people to get massive exposure. We couldn’t have walked through the doors as brothers like that. We needed a guy like Jerry Heller to do that. You need that face, you need. Without him there wouldn’t have been none of that..."Eazy-E fired Jerry Heller, shortly before his death. On March 1, 1995, Eazy-E was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, he had just signed the Cleveland, Ohio-based group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, whose 1994 extended play Creepin on ah Come Up was well received by critics and fans. Eazy-E executive produced Bone Thugs' first full-length album, E 1999 Eternal, released shortly after his death on March 26, 1995 of HIV/AIDS in Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, their smash 1996 single "Tha Crossroads" was dedicated to Eazy-
N.W.A
N. W. A was an American hip hop group from California, they were among the earliest and most significant popularizers and controversial figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, are considered one of the greatest and most influential groups in the history of hip hop music. Active from 1986 to 1991, the rap group endured controversy owing to their music's explicit lyrics, which many viewed as being mysogynist, as well as to its glorification of drugs and crime; the group was subsequently banned from many mainstream American radio stations. In spite of this, the group has sold over 10 million units in the United States alone. Drawing on their own experiences of racism and excessive policing, the group made inherently political music, they were known for their deep hatred of the police system, which sparked much controversy over the years. The original lineup, formed in 1986, consisted of Arabian Prince, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube. DJ Yella and MC Ren joined in 1987, they released their first compilation album as a group in 1987 called N.
W. A. and the Posse which peaked at #39 on Billboard magazine's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Arabian Prince left shortly after the release of their debut studio album, Straight Outta Compton, in 1988 and Ice Cube following suit in December 1989. Eazy-E, Ice Cube, MC Ren and Dr. Dre would become platinum-selling solo artists in the 1990s, their debut album marked the beginning of the new gangsta rap era as the production and social commentary in their lyrics were revolutionary within the genre. N. W. A's second studio album, Niggaz4Life, was the first hardcore rap album to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 sales charts. Rolling Stone ranked N. W. A number 83 on their list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". In 2016, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, following three previous nominations. N. W. A was assembled by Compton-based Eazy-E. Eazy-E sought an introduction to Steve Yano. Although rebuffed, Yano was impressed by Eazy-E's persistence and arranged a meeting with Dr. Dre.
N. W. A consisted of Dr. Dre. Together with fellow producer Arabian Prince, Ice Cube was added to the roster after he had started out as a rapper for the group C. I. A. Dre would bring DJ Yella on board as well. Dre and Yella were both members of the World Class Wreckin' Cru as DJs and producers. Ruthless released the single "Panic Zone" in 1987 with Macola Records, included on the compilation album N. W. A. and the Posse. N. W. A was still in its developing stages, is only credited on three of the eleven tracks, notably the uncharacteristic record "Panic Zone", "8-Ball", "Dopeman", which marked the first collaboration of Arabian Prince, DJ Yella, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube. Mexican rapper Krazy-Dee co-wrote "Panic Zone", called "Hispanic Zone", but the title was changed when Dr. Dre advised Krazy-Dee that the word "hispanic" would hinder sales. Included was Eazy-E's solo track "Boyz-n-the-Hood". N. W. A released their debut studio album, Straight Outta Compton, in 1988. With its famous opening salvo of three tracks, the group reflected the rising anger of the urban youth.
The opening song "Straight Outta Compton" introduced the group, "Fuck tha Police" protested police brutality and racial profiling, "Gangsta Gangsta" painted the worldview of the inner-city youth. While the group was credited with pioneering the burgeoning subgenre of gangsta rap, N. W. A referred to their music as "reality rap". Twenty-seven years member and co-producer of the Straight Outta Compton film, Ice Cube, commented "they were talking about what led into the style that we ended up doing, now called hardcore gangster rap." Dr. Dre and DJ Yella, as HighPowered Productions, composed the beats for each song, with Dre making occasional rapping appearances; the D. O. C. Ice Cube, MC Ren wrote most of the group's lyrics, including "Fuck tha Police" the group's most notorious song, which brought them into conflict with various law enforcement agencies. Under pressure from Focus on the Family, Milt Ahlerich, an assistant director of the FBI, sent a letter to Ruthless and its distributing company Priority Records, advising the rappers that "advocating violence and assault is wrong and we in the law enforcement community take exception to such action."
This letter can still be seen at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Ohio. Policemen refused hurting their plans to tour. Nonetheless, the FBI's letter only served to draw more publicity to the group. Straight Outta Compton was one of the first albums to adhere to the new Parental Advisory label scheme still in its early stages: the label at the time consisted of "WARNING: Moderate impact coarse language and/or themes" only. However, the taboo nature of N. W. A's music was the most important factor of its mass appeal. Media coverage compensated for N. W. A's lack of airplay and their album went double platinum. One month after Straight Outta Compton, Eazy-E's solo debut Eazy-Duz-It was released; the album was dominated by Eazy's persona but behind the scenes it was a group effort. Music was handled by DJ Yella. O. C; the album was another double platinum success for Ruthless. 1989 saw the re-issue of N. W. A and the Posse and Straight Outta Compton on CD, the release of The D. O. C.'s No One Can Do It Better.
His album was a collaboration with Dr. Dre and notably free of "gangsta rap" co
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young, known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, he is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, was co-owner of Death Row Records. He has produced albums for and overseen the careers of many rappers, including 2Pac, The D. O. C. Snoop Dogg, Xzibit, Knoc-turn'al, 50 Cent, The Game, Kendrick Lamar, he is credited as a key figure in the crafting and popularization of West Coast G-funk, a rap style characterized as synthesizer-based with slow, heavy beats. As of 2018, he is the third richest figure in hip hop, with a net worth of $770 million. Dre began his career as a member of the World Class Wreckin' Cru, he found fame with the influential gangsta rap group N. W. A with Eazy-E, Ice Cube, MC Ren, DJ Yella, which popularized explicit lyrics in rap to detail the violence of street life, his 1992 solo debut The Chronic, released under Death Row Records, made him one of the best-selling American performing artists of 1993.
It earned him a Grammy Award for the single "Let Me Ride", as well as several accolades for the single "Nuthin' but a'G' Thang". That year, he produced Death Row labelmate Snoop Doggy Dogg's quadruple platinum debut Doggystyle, mentored producers such as his step-brother Warren G and Snoop Dogg's cousin Daz Dillinger. In 1996, Dr. Dre left Death Row Records to establish Aftermath Entertainment, he produced a compilation album, Dr. Dre Presents the Aftermath, in 1996, released a solo album, 2001, in 1999. During the 2000s, Dr. Dre focused on producing other artists contributing vocals. Dr. Dre signed Eminem in 1998 and 50 Cent in 2002, co-produced their albums, he has won six Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year. Dr. Dre has had acting roles in The Wash and Training Day. Rolling Stone ranked Dre 56 on their list of "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Young was born in Compton, the first child of Theodore and Verna Young, his middle name, Romelle, is derived from The Romells. His parents married in 1964, separated in 1968, divorced in 1972.
His mother remarried to Curtis Crayon and had three children: sons Jerome and Tyree and daughter Shameka. In 1976, Young began attending Vanguard Junior High School in Compton, but due to gang violence, he transferred to the safer suburban Roosevelt Junior High School; the family moved and they lived in apartments and houses in Compton, Long Beach and in the Watts and South Central neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Young has stated that he was raised by his grandmother in New Wilmington Arms housing project in Compton, his mother married Warren Griffin, whom she met at her new job in Long Beach, which added three stepsisters and one stepbrother to the family. Young is the cousin of producer Sir Jinx, he attended Centennial High School in Compton during his freshman year in 1979, but transferred to Fremont High School in South Central Los Angeles due to poor grades. Young attempted to enroll in an apprenticeship program at Northrop Aviation Company, but poor grades at school made him ineligible. Thereafter, he focused on his social life and entertainment for the remainder of his high school years.
Young fathered a son with Cassandra Joy Greene named Curtis. Curtis was brought up by his mother and first met his father 20 years when Curtis became rapper Hood Surgeon. Inspired by the Grandmaster Flash song "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel", he attended a club called Eve After Dark to watch many DJs and rappers performing live, he subsequently became a DJ in the club under the name "Dr. J", based on the nickname of Julius Erving, his favorite basketball player. At the club, he met aspiring rapper Antoine Carraby to become member DJ Yella of N. W. A. Soon afterwards he adopted the moniker Dr. Dre, a mix of previous alias Dr. J and his first name, referring to himself as the "Master of Mixology". Eve After Dark had a back room with a small four-track studio. In this studio and Yella recorded several demos. In their first recording session, they recorded a song entitled "Surgery", with the lyrics "calling Dr. Dre to surgery" serving as the chorus to the song, he joined the musical group World Class Wreckin' Cru under Kru-Cut in 1984.
The group would become stars of the electro-hop scene. "Surgery", released after being recorded prior to the group's official formation, would prominently feature Dr. Dre on the turntable; the record would become the group's first hit, selling 50,000 copies within the Compton area. Dr. Dre and DJ Yella performed mixes for local radio station KDAY, boosting ratings for its afternoon rush-hour show The Traffic Jam. Dr. Dre's earliest recordings were released in 1994 on a compilation titled Concrete Roots. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of the website AllMusic described the compiled music, released "several years before Dre developed a distinctive style", as "surprisingly generic and unengaging" and "for dedicated fans only", his frequent absences from school jeopardized his position as a diver on his school's swim team. After high school, he attended Chester Adult School in Compton following his mother's demands for him to get a job or continue his education. After brief attendance at a radio broadcasting school, he relocated to the residence of his father and residence of his grandparents before returning to his mother's house.
He dropped out of Che
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument played using a keyboard, a row of levers which are pressed by the fingers. The most common of these are the piano and various electronic keyboards, including synthesizers and digital pianos. Other keyboard instruments include celestas, which are struck idiophones operated by a keyboard, carillons, which are housed in bell towers or belfries of churches or municipal buildings. Today, the term keyboard refers to keyboard-style synthesizers. Under the fingers of a sensitive performer, the keyboard may be used to control dynamics, shading and other elements of expression—depending on the design and inherent capabilities of the instrument. Another important use of the word keyboard is in historical musicology, where it means an instrument whose identity cannot be established. In the 18th century, the harpsichord, the clavichord, the early piano were in competition, the same piece might be played on more than one. Hence, in a phrase such as "Mozart excelled as a keyboard player," the word keyboard is all-inclusive.
The earliest known keyboard instrument was the Ancient Greek hydraulis, a type of pipe organ, invented in the third century BC. The keys were balanced and could be played with a light touch, as is clear from the reference in a Latin poem by Claudian, who says magna levi detrudens murmura tactu... intent, “let him thunder forth as he presses out mighty roarings with a light touch”. From its invention until the fourteenth century, the organ remained the only keyboard instrument; the organ did not feature a keyboard at all, but rather buttons or large levers operated by a whole hand. Every keyboard until the fifteenth century had seven naturals to each octave; the clavichord and the harpsichord appeared during the fourteenth century—the clavichord being earlier. The harpsichord and clavichord were both common until widespread adoption of the piano in the eighteenth century, after which their popularity decreased; the piano was revolutionary because a pianist could vary the volume of the sound by varying the vigor with which each key was struck.
The piano's full name is gravicèmbalo con piano e forte meaning harpsichord with soft and loud but can be shortened to piano-forte, which means soft-loud in Italian. In its current form, the piano is a product of the late nineteenth century, is far removed in both sound and appearance from the "pianos" known to Mozart and Beethoven. In fact, the modern piano is different from the 19th-century pianos used by Liszt and Brahms. See Piano history and musical performance. Keyboard instruments were further developed in the early twentieth century. Early electromechanical instruments, such as the Ondes Martenot, appeared early in the century; this was a important contribution to the keyboard's history. Much effort has gone into creating an instrument that sounds like the piano but lacks its size and weight; the electric piano and electronic piano were early efforts that, while useful instruments in their own right, did not convincingly reproduce the timbre of the piano. Electric and electronic organs were developed during the same period.
More recent electronic keyboard designs strive to emulate the sound of specific make and model pianos using digital samples and computer models. Each acoustic keyboard contains 88 keys. Weighted keys, found on electronic keyboards, are designed to simulate the resistance of a key on an acoustic keyboard, via pressurization. There are 4 types of weighted keys. Keybeds, or non-weighted keys place the weights within the base of the keyboard; the second type, Semi-weighted uses springs, the third type is hammer keys. Most electronic keyboards use the fourth type: graded simulate keys. Weighted keys are made of wood, or metal/wood substitute. Enharmonic keyboard Musical instrument Orchestrina di camera Piano Symphony Young, Percy M. Keyboard Musicians of the World. London: Abelard-Schuman, 1967. N. B.: Concerns celebrated keyboard players and the various such instruments used over the centuries. ISBN 0-200-71497-X The general keyboard in the age of MIDI Renaissance Keyboards on the Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Pianofortes of Bartolomeo Cristofori on the Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
