Busta Rhymes

Finally ended his long hiatus this year with the arrival of his seventh album "The Big Bang", Busta Rhymes seemingly looks very settled to once again spread sensation either in U.S. or abroad to really make 2006 another great period to remember for those who have waited patiently for his comeback. In the anticipation of the fixed dates of his European tour, three live performances in U.K. have been delightfully added to his itinerary to be conducted for the latter half of June, covering the venues of London's Hammersmith Apollo, Manchester Apollo, plus Nottingham Academy on date 15, 17, and 21 respectively. As fans could also see the rapper taking a gig at Forest National in Brussels, Belgium by June 22, what hard to be missed by them is surely the release of the artist's subsequent single of "I Love My Bitch" on July 10, another catchy tune boasting guest vocals from Kelis and will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas.

A gifted rapper of Jamaican ancestry known for his rapid-fire rhyming style, Busta was born Trevor Smith Jr. on May 20, 1972 in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York and started developing the glowing talent he possesses at the age of 12 following his family's relocation to Uniondale, Long Island. Planting his musical roots there upon meeting other MCs from the growing New York area hip-hop community, the guy's course in music industry began to take its form when he satisfyingly won a New York City rap contest sponsored by Chuck D of the Public Enemy during his mid teens. What should be noted from his acquaintance of the famed artist was that it was this older man who later bestowed him the moniker which he became widely addressed of, deriving it from the name of former NFL football player George "Buster" Rhymes.

In continuation of his triumph in the competition, Busta then was helped by Chuck to establish a hip-hop crew named Leaders of the New School alongside his three friends namely Charlie Brown, Dinco D, plus Milo in De Dance aka the Cut Monitor by late 1980s. Though managed to enjoy mainstream success through a nice collaboration with fellow hip-hop act A Tribe Called Quest in their hit single titled "Scenario" (1992) besides two studio albums of "A Future Without a Past" (1991) and "T.I.M.E." (1993), the troupe sadly was heavily afflicted by creative and personal problems which finally resulted in its defunct not long after the release of their second LP. On the other hand, however, the split automatically enabled Busta to put full concentration to continue his music career on his own in turn while also gave him chance to spark another profession as movie star that he assumed brilliantly in John Singleton's "Higher Learning" (1995).

Followed it up with the launch of his solo effort, "The Coming", on March 26, 1996 under Elektra Records, Busta again drew vast public attention when this piece of work wonderfully soared to the first rank of Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album chart and the top 10 of The Billboard 200, many thanks to its single of "Woo-Hah!! Got You All In Check." A vibrant also colorful song, the composition really was a monumental track from the album as it wonderfully ruled Billboard Hot Rap Singles for 7 weeks, leading "The Coming" to be certified Gold only two months after its release and more importantly, garnering Busta a Grammy Award nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance category a year later. Undeniably catapulted to widespread popularity afterwards, the superb attainment subsequently built up his confidence to quickly bring out his sophomore LP, "When Disaster Strikes", to the surface in September 1997.

Featured 18 gritty tracks, the album amazingly did not take a long time to surpass its predecessor for it instantly reached the third spot on The Billboard 200, not to mention its claim on the first position on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album, besides spawned hits like "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See" and "Dangerous" which both marvelously scored him Grammy nod, again in the same category, by 1998 and 1999 respectively. With his status cemented solidly in the forefront of hip-hop music scene, Busta effortlessly walked on his steady path to encounter success after success through the releases of his next three works, "E.L.E: The Final World Front" (1999), "Anarchy" (2000), plus "Genesis" (2001), along the way added 4 more Grammy nominations to his burgeoning resume. In the meantime, he effectively rode on this glorious period to make a decent return to Hollywood, appearing in the 2000 box-office hit movies of "Shaft" also "Finding Forrester."

Still sticking to film feature in 2002 with the coming out of "Halloween: Resurrection" and "Narc", Busta wisely took time in between the two pictures to deliver his sixth studio album, "It Ain't Safe No More", by November 26 under J Records. The record only resulted fairly well in the Billboard charts yet it joyously managed to generate hit tracks of "Make It Clap" also "I Know What You Want" featuring Mariah Carey of which music video got nominated for Best Hip-Hop Video category at MTV VMA held in 2003. Next brought up his compilation album of "The Artist Collection: Busta Rhymes" by October 2004, it was not until 2006 that the rapper returned with his subsequent LP, "The Big Bang", on June 13, this time under Dr. Dre's label, Aftermath Entertainment, after previously launched a smash hit single titled "Touch It" in May. Featuring notable names such as Stevie Wonder, Missy Elliott, Q-Tip, Raekwon, and Nas, the album certainly was intended to repeat the golden age the rapper had achieved back in the '90s.