Bone Thugs-N-Harmony

views updated

BONE THUGS-N-HARMONY

Formed: 1993, Cleveland, Ohio

Members: Anthony "Krayzie Bone" Henderson, vocals (born Cleveland, Ohio, 3 June 1974); Byron "Bizzy Bone" McCane, vocals (born Columbus, Ohio, 12 September 1976); Steve "Layzie Bone" Howse, vocals (born Cleveland, Ohio, 23 September 1977); Charles "Wish Bone" Scruggs, vocals (born Cleveland, Ohio, August 1977); Stan "Flesh-N-Bone" Howse, vocals (born Cleveland, Ohio).

Genre: Hip-Hop

Best-selling album since 1990: E 1999 Eternal (1995)

Hit songs since 1990: "Thuggish Ruggish Bone," "1st of tha Month," "Tha Crossroads"

In the mid-1990s, Cleveland rappers Bone Thugs-N-Harmony became the first major hip-hop artists to emerge from the Midwest, achieving near-instant success with a fresh variation of the then-dominant G-funk sound. Alternating reggae-inflected, rapid-fire emceeing, and interwoven vocal harmonies over G-funk's typical funk-based, synth-laden melodic grooves, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony quickly scored a pair of hits, a cult favorite EP, and a blockbuster debut album that is one of the milestones of the 1990s. Following their impressive debut, however, they managed to do little more than repeat their signature sound. Underperforming solo projects and the disappointing commercial and critical reception of their ambitious second album weakened Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's cohesion as a group. Nonetheless, they remained together, releasing their fourth album in 2002.

The five founding members of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony (Krayze Bone, Layzie Bone, Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone, and Flesh-N-Bone) began rapping together in Cleveland, Ohio, in the early 1990s, a time when hip-hop was dominated by artists based either in New York or Los Angeles. Realizing the improbability of getting noticed from their hometown, in 1993 the group traveled to Los Angeles and auditioned for Eric "Eazy-E" Wright, founder of the influential "gangsta" rap group N.W.A. Impressed, Eazy-E signed them to his label, Ruthless Records, which released Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's debut EP, Creepin' On Ah Come Up, in the summer of 1994. The album's first single, "Thuggish Ruggish Bone," showcased the group's novel combination of high-speed, reggae-influenced rapping and sung vocal harmonies over a typically synthesizer-heavy, funk-based "G-funk" groove. "Thuggish Ruggish Bone" quickly became a huge rap hit, particularly in the Midwest, and crossed over to the pop charts. A second single, "Foe Tha Love of $," also did well, driving sales of Creepin' On Ah Come Up to 2 million. Bone Thugs-N-Harmony promptly returned to the studio with their executive producer, Eazy-E, to record a full-length album.

Released in the summer of 1995, E 1999 Eternal skillfully expands the sound established in Creepin' On Ah Come Up to album length. E 1999 Eternal is not ground-breaking; it competently follows the then-successful G-funk template, combining slow grooves and heavy bass with whiny synthesized melodies. Moreover, much of its lyrics cover the standard "gangsta" rap themes of pot-smoking, drinking, and crime. The album is notable chiefly for the unique rapping style and the consistently masterful interweaving of Bone Thug-N-Harmony's five voices. Bone Thugs-N-Harmony further distinguished themselves with the album's first single, "1st of Tha Month," which slyly comments on urban poverty by celebrating the day welfare checks come. The song helped to drive the album to the top of the R&B and Pop charts, but it was the album's second single that turned Bone Thugs-N-Harmony into superstars. Released in May 1996, "Tha Crossroads" is at once a somber meditation on mortality and a heartfelt pledge never to forget dead loved ones, including the band's mentor, Eazy-E, who died suddenly from AIDS-related complications a few months before the album's release. "Tha Crossroads" connected with listeners, topping the pop charts and winning a Grammy for Best Rap Performance by Duo or Group in early 1997. Its massive success helped drive sales of E 1999 Eternal to 4 million.

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony—minus Flesh-N-Bone, who was off pursuing a solo career—followed up their debut with the double album The Art of War in July 1997. Although the album yielded the hit singles "Look My Eyes" and "If I Could Teach the World" and eventually sold 4 million copies, many regarded it as a disappointing and overlong retread of E 1999 Eternal. The members of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony spent the remainder of the 1990s releasing solo albums and launching the spin-off group Mo Thugs Family, which consisted of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and various artists signed to the group's Mo Thugs label.

None of these projects attracted lasting attention, however, and in early 2000 Bone Thugs-N-Harmony released their third album, BTNHResurrection. Although touted as a "comeback" album, BTNHResurrection neither

matched the sales of its predecessors nor generated any significant hits. In October 2002 Bone Thugs-N-Harmony released Thug World Order, which featured a collaboration with pop singer Phil Collins. In early 2003 Bone Thugs-N-Harmony announced that Bizzy Bone was no longer with the group, citing personal differences.

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's fresh vocal style made them the first Midwestern rap act to achieve widespread success, further loosening the grip of New York and Los Angeles on hip-hop culture. Although their career never again achieved the heights at which it began, their debut album and its breakout single, "Tha Crossroads," are major works of 1990s pop music.

SELECTIVE DISCOGRAPHY:

Creepin' On Ah Come Up (Ruthless, 1994); E 1999 Eternal (Ruthless, 1995); The Art of War (Ruthless, 1997); BTNHResurrection (Ruthless, 2000); Thug World Order (Ruthless, 2002).