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Wednesday, Jul 27 2022, 5AM
Released in 1989, the “Fight the Power” anthem served as the theme for Spike Lee’s 'Do the Right Thing' and is featured on Public Enemy’s 1990 album 'Fear of a Black Planet'.
Video:
youtu.be
MC Lyte released her second LP in 1989 - she began rapping at the age of twelve and is widely regarded as ushering in the era of women in hip-hop and rap.
www.mclytenow.com
“Ladies First,” a track from Latifah’s 1989 “All Hail the Queen” album that featured British rapper Monie Love, was a bold declaration, in the days when hip-hop was still defining itself, that women could hold their own:
The ladies will kick it, the rhyme that is wicked
Those that don’t know how to be pros get evicted
A woman can bear you, break you, take you
Now it’s time to rhyme, can you relate to
A sister dope enough to make you holler and scream?
Heralded as early jazz-rap adapters, the Jungle Brothers never quite reached the same levels of commercial success as industry peers De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, or Digable Planets. Their debut album 'Done by the Forces of Nature' was released in 1989.
"Doin' Our Own Dang" was a Native Tongues collab (sampling Bob Marley's "Jamming"): Jungle Brothers with De La Soul, Q-Tip, Monie Love and featuring Quenn Latifah!
Watch the video!
youtu.be
www.junglebrothers4life.com
De La Soul's 1989 debut album!
De La Soul's Pos noted in the book, “Check the Technique: Liner Notes for Hip-Hop Junkies," that:
"The name of this album came from a Johnny Cash tune called “Five Feet High and Rising,” which we sampled, when it says “Three feet high and rising” right at the very end of the track. Dave’s father had that record."
1989's "The Humpty Dance", from Digital's Underground's debut album 'Sex Packets'. Digital Underground took pieces from many different songs, but primarily from "Let's Play House" by Parliament, which is where the "gimme the music" and "do me baby" lines come from along with some of the drum breaks. Pieces of "Bop Gun" by Parliament and "Sing a Simple Song" by Sly & the Family Stone were also used. - bit.ly
1989 Video for the song! - Digital Underground's first video release!
youtu.be
The debut single from The D.O.C.'s 1989 debut album 'No One Can Do It Better'.
For many Hip-Hop Heads, The D.O.C. is widely regarded as one of the most skilled lyricists and songwriters. A native of Dallas, Texas, the artist born Tracy Curry linked with Dr. Dre in the late 1980s to make history. Check out this Great Ambrosia for Heads interview with The D.O.C. reflecting on his career.
ambrosiaforheads.com
Seattle's own! From Sir Mix-A-Lot's 1989 sophomore release 'Seminar', “National Anthem” is Mix-A-Lot’s attempt to pierce the “God Bless America” myth, and probably one of the few hip-hop recordings that covered the Iran Contra scandal. In a 2003 AV Club interview, he explained that the song was designed to remind U.S. citizens that before we brag about our superiority, “let's get our own house in order.” Mix-A-Lot kicks some incisive commentary throughout the song about how our society views the country’s poor and under-privileged residents. He observes, “I saw my homeboy’s mother with a buggy and a bag / People walk by, laughing at poverty / I looked in her face and I soon saw me.”
www.albumism.com
1989 debut studio album from hip hop duo Gang Starr - all songs (except two) were produced by DJ Premier & Guru.
"Jazz Music" sampled Charlie Parker and Miles Davis 1961 "A Night in Tunisia", Ramsey Lewis's 1968 "Les Fleur" and "When the World's at Peace" by The O'Jays (from 1972).
1989 sophomore release from R&B and pop singer/songwriter Sybil (cousin of former En Vogue singer Maxine Jones).
Swedish singer Neneh Cherry forged a groundbreaking mix of genres in the late '80s that presaged the emergence of alternative rap and trip-hop. From 1989's 'Raw Like Sushi' Cherry said of the "Buffalo Stance" single that it refers to "an attitude you have to have in order to get by. It's not about fashion but about survival in inner cities and elsewhere."
nenehcherry.bandcamp.com
The lead single from "The Clown Prince of Hip Hop" Biz Markie's 1989 sophomore release 'The Biz Never Sleeps'. The basic chord and melody from Freddie Scott's 1968 song "(You) Got What I Need" provided the base for the song's chorus.
"Just a Friend" video!
youtu.be
The beat is based on the 1987 Eric B. & Rakim song "Paid In Full." Soul II Soul used it on this and their previous hit, "Keep On Movin'". Read the story behind the making of this 1989 classic:
www.theguardian.com
soul2soul.co.uk
Released in 1989, Janet Jackson's 'Rhythm Nation 1814' is her fourth studio album. Although label execs wanted material similar to 1986's 'Control', Jackson insisted on creating a concept album addressing social issues. Collaborating with songwriters and record producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, she drew inspiration from various tragedies reported through news media, exploring racism, poverty, and substance abuse, in addition to themes of romance. Although its primary concept of a sociopolitical utopia was met with mixed reactions, its composition received critical acclaim. Jackson came to be considered a role model for youth because of her socially conscious lyrics.
"Escapade" video:
youtu.be
In 1989, Siedah Garrett wrote lyrics to the song, and it was recorded by Garfield HS-alum Quincy Jones featuring Tevin Campbell on vocals for the album 'Back on the Block'.
1989's influence! Seattle's Blue Scholars expertly sample "Tomorrow (A Better You, Better Me)" by Quincy Jones on this track!
"Sagaba" translates to ‘suffering’ in Ilocano, the third largest language in the Philippines. The song is an artfully told story about dreams. Here are the lyrics: genius.com
bluescholars.bandcamp.com
Tracy Chapman released her second studio album 'Crossroads' in 1989. It was also the first album on which Chapman served as a producer.
1989 inspires! K'naan's continuation of Tracy Chapman's 1989 song "Crossroads"!
The 1989 sophomore release from Sananda Maitreya (fka Terence Trent D’Arby).
"This Side of Love" video:
youtu.be
sanandamaitreya.com
Classic 1989 release from New Orelans! The Neville Brothers formed in New Orleans in 1977 after joining the recording session of the Wild Tchoupitoulas in 1976, a Mardi Gras Indian group led by their uncle, George "Big Chief Jolly" Landry.
Live performance of "Yellow Moon" at Tipitinas in New Orleans!
youtu.be
www.nevilles.com
1989's 'The Lion' was the first album from the Senegalese singer-songwriter-musician-composer-actor-activist-businessman-politician to be distributed globally. The album was produced by David Sancious, George Acogny, and Peter Gabriel, with musicians drawn from both Super Étoile de Dakar and Gabriel's band.
Debut release 'Aster' from the Ethiopian singer Aster Aweke (singing in Amharic) - originally released in 1989 on British independent label Triple Earth; and then by Columbia Records in 1990 as her U.S. major label debut.