Hard as it may be to imagine nowadays, there was a time when you needed more than just an Internet connection and a liberal dose of self-delusion to launch your career as a professional rapper*. You needed the skill to concisely channel your talent into a few choice songs, the resourcefulness to get that material into the hands of the record label gatekeeper who possessed the key to your hip-hop dreams, and a liberal dose of self-delusion. You needed a demo.
True, dropping a noise-making independent single, adding a hot guest verse on yourmansnthemâs record, or being the beneficiary of some good olâ fashioned show biz nepotism could be more direct routes to getting on. But the traditional demo tapeâan industry calling card in the form of a TDK60; that romantic relic G Rap and Erick Sermon once devoted crisp-lisped verses toâwas still key to sealing the deal with any potential A&R suitor, and provided the unconnected masses perpetual hope of a seat on the express from ashy to classy.
They donât make demos like they used to because, well, they donât make demos anymore period. Blame the Interwebz for saturating cyberspace with more rap âprojectsâ than New York City public housing. Yet as the Web taketh away so doth it giveth, regularly gifting us beaucoup vintage demos and lost OG versions of tracks from the classic hip-hop era like every day is rap nerd Xmas (or at least Kwanzaa). Here are the best in circulation, rap rarity bliss laced with crazy tape hiss.**
* Actually, feel free to replace ârapperâ in this sentence with any other vocation (save for maybe doctor or astronaut) and the sentiment still basically applies.
** Pre-debut LP material only. (Well, almost.)
Written by Chairman Mao (@chairmanmaonyc).
#30. J Rock, Six Song Demo (1990)
J Rock "Drug Dealer"
Â
SourceStreetwizeStreetwize
#29. DMX, Four Song Demo (1991)
DMX "Spell Bound"
A January 1991 âUnsigned Hypeâ winner (may wanna get used to reading those last three words), DMXâs demo featured Earl No-Shirt rhyming in a cadence that relied more on Treach-esque dexterity than the gruffer tone of his Ruff Ryders heyday, landing him a brief single deal with Ruffhouse/Columbia. Fond as X would eventually become of barking, biting was still a no-no. On âSpellbound,â he attempted to re-claim the letter-man rhyme style K-Solo rode to fame, accusing Solo of stealing the technique while the two were fellow inmates and sometime rhyme battle foes in the same correctional facility years earlier.
28) Artifacts, Four Song Demo (1993)
Artifacts "Attack of New Jerusalem"
Stretch Armstrong Show
#27. Last Emperor, Four Song Demo (1997)
Last Emperor "Bums"
#26. UGK "Underground King" (1990)
UGK âUnderground Kingâ
The Southern WayToo Hard to Swallow
#25. Tha Alkaholiks (p.k.a. E.S.P.), Six Song Demo (1991)
Tha Alkaholiks âL.A. Law â
#24. Big L, "Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous" Demos (1991-2)
Big L f/ Terra, Buddah Bless, Big Twan, Killa Kam, Trooper J. & Mike Boogie â8 Iz Enuffâ
LODP&DâsThe Demo EP
#23. Show & A.G., "Runaway Slave" Demos (1990-1)
Show & A.G. "Diggin' in the Crates (Original Version)"
Broken ChainsRunaway Slave
#22. Mudbones (featuring Cage) "Crazy Man Ahead" (1992)
Mudbones "Crazy Man Ahead"
Stretch Armstrong Show
#21. Brand Nubian, Pre-"All For One" Demos (1989-90)
Brand Nubian "How Ya Living?"
#20. Casual, "Fear Itself" Demos (1992)
Casual "Can U Feel It?"
Fear Itself
#19. O.C., Three Song Demo (1993)
O.C. "Step Into the O-Zone"
Word⊠LifeO.C. OriginalsWord... Life
#18. Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, "The Lost Demos" (Late â80s)
Del Tha Funkee Homosapien "Mr. Lovable"
I Wish My Brother George Was Here
#17. Ras Kass, "Soul On Ice" Demos (1995)
Ras Kass "Capital RAS"
Soul On IceIllmatic
#16. DJ Shadow, "Hip-Hop Reconstruction From the Ground Up" Demo (1991)
DJ Shadow "Hip-Hop Reconstruction From the Ground Up"
#15. Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, "C.L. Strikes Again" (1989)
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth "C.L. Strikes Again"
In Control ShowAll Souled OutThe Basement Demos
#14. Cypress Hill, Six Song Demo (1990)
Cypress Hill "Caliente"
#13. Eminem, "Kid Chaos" Demos (1988-1992)
Eminem f/ Chaos Kid "Artificial Flavour"
#12. Hurricane G "Milky" (1991)
Hurricane G f/ Erick Sermon & Red Man "Milky"
konstantkontact.blogspot.comAll Woman
#11. Lord Finesse, Two Song Demo (1989)
Lord Finesse "Bust a Lil' Something (Nautilus Version)"
Funky Dope Manuever EPFDM
#10. 213, Untitled Demo (1991)
213 "Untitled"
Snoop didnât have to go too far to meet Dr. Dre, considering his LBC group, 213, included the good Dr.âs half-brother, Warren G. But the story of how they got Dre to check out their demo is still pretty cool. As the Doggfather told CNNâs Larry King last August: âWe had a cassette tape [demo] and Warren G took it to Dr. Dreâs bachelor party. And the music had cut off from the bachelor party. So he slipped my tape in and when my tape came in, people was dancing to it. And Dre was like, 'Who was that?'âš [Warren] was like, 'That's my homeboy, Snoop.' He introduced me to him and the rest is history."
And though the untitled demo here doesnât feature Nate Dogg (R.I.P.), it does present Snoop rapping his ass off for five straight minutes over a tricked out James Brown sample. The youngâunsâ rough G-Funk draft was just the traveling music Dre required to move his practice over to Death Row.
#9. Jay-Z "Reach the Top" (1995)
Jay-Z "Reach The Top"
Reasonable Doubt
#8. Wu-Tang Clan, Pre-"Protect Ya Neck" Demos (1991-2)
Wu-Tang Clan "After The Laughter"
Demo Cuts Deluxe Edition
#7. Organized Konfusion (p.k.a. Simply Too Positive), Six Song Demo (1990)
Organized Konfusion "Cooling One Day"
#6. Mobb Deep (p.k.a. Poetical Prophets), Four Song Demo (1991)
Poetical Prophets "Flavor For the Non-Believers"
In an era rife with kiddie rappers and R&B singers, Havoc and Prodigy (then doing business as the Poetical Prophets) showed the world that juveniles could roll just as hardcore as any of their degenerate grown-up counterparts. Anchored by a snaking electric piano loop, the OG run-through of âFlavor For the Non-Believersâ actually trumps the subsequent released version for grimy appeal. After claiming âUnsigned Hypeâ honors in July of â91, the demo attracted the attention of 4th & Broadway A&R (and world famous music journalist) Bonz Malone, paving the way for a name change, and Mobb Deepâs debut LP, Juvenile Hell.
When Mobb Deepâs 4th & Broadway situation deteriorated Havoc approached Matty Câtransitioning out of his editorial post at The Source (where he wrote the âUnsigned Hypeâ column) and into an A&R gig at Loud Recordsâwith a new demo track, âPatty Shop.â It was off the strength of this single demo track that Mobb Deep signed a new deal with Loud. (The remainder of whatâs recently circulated as The Infamous Demos consists of fascinating early versions of songs that would later make up the bulk of Mobb Deepâs landmark second album.)
Schott Free on the creative leap the group had made: âOn the [first] album Prodigy was more or less the dude choppinâ up [beats]. And Havoc was more or less the lyrical dudeâeven in a lot of instances writing a lot of Prodigyâs shit. But you see the dynamic switch with the demo. Havoc is the one thatâs trying to chop beats and learn the MPC now, and Prodigy has this new style which is calm: âYou got a lot of heart, boy/All that yappinâ/Acting like it canât happen/Itâs niggas like you that fail to realize the realness/So now I gotta deal with this.â That was a whole ânother style for him. He [told me], âYo, man, I just decided I want my style to be like Iâm talking to these motherfuckers. Iâm rappinâ, but I want my style to come off like Iâm having a conversation.â And thatâs when we love P the best: real calm and just conversatinâ with you.â
#5. Souls of Mischief, "'93 Til Infinity" Demos (1992)
Souls of Mischief "Batting Practice"
Taxi
#4. Common (p.k.a. Common Sense), Seven Song Demo (1991)
Common Sense "2 The Temple"
Matty C recalls the process by which Common got his deal with Relativity after his demo won âUnsigned Hypeâ in October 1991: â[The Source] decided to do an âUnsigned Hypeâ compilation album. It was [going to feature] Mobb Deep, Common, Biggie, DMX, Top Quality, and a few other groups. The [proposed] deal with Relativity was: $5000 per artist, and there was a clause that said, âYouâre signed [to Relativity] once you do this. So weâll give you five grand now for this album, and weâll give you some more money for [your own] album. But weâll negotiate that laterâjust sign here.â And thatâs why it didnât happen. I was like, âHell no, Iâm not doing thatâI got people ready to pay a hundred grand and more for one or two of these groups at different labels, forget it.â
âRight at the [negotiating] table [the label] broke down and [Relativity execs] Peter Kang and Alan Grunblatt were like, âBut weâll take Common.â Because [Commonâs] demo was mad polished. It was the cleanest demo I ever had that won the âUnsigned Hypeâ and got a deal. It was fully produced out of a studio. [It had] also won the New Music Seminar demo contest that year. It was that [high in] quality. These guys at Relativity didnât know [about rap]. Peter Kangâhe wasnât really a rap head, he was some Asian kid [into] rock nâ roll. Alan Grunblattânot really. But the sound quality was so good on that demo, and the music so goodâyou had the Roy Ayers sample, the Eddie Kendrick sample, real rich soundsâthat [Relativity] was just so [impressed].â
#3. Public Enemy "Public Enemy No. 1" (1985)
Public Enemy "Public Enemy No. 1 (WBAU Promo)"
Yo! MTV Raps
#2. Nas, Two Song Demo (1991)
Nas "I'm A Villain"
The Nasty Nas 1991 Demo Tapeâsometimes referred to as Prematicâis a great collection of early, largely unreleased Nas material, but accuracy-wise itâs problematic. Of the ten tracks included more than half (including âDĂ©ja Vuâsâ test run of the guest verse from Raekwonâs âVerbal Intercourseâ) were recorded post-1991, some even post-1994. What remains appears to be of more convincing vintage. âNumber One With a Bulletâ (featuring Kool G Rap and White Boy) was, according to Illmatic executive producer MC Serch, a byproduct of unconsummated business flirtations with Cold Chillinâ. In part an early draft of âNew York State of Mind,â the superb âJust Another Day In the Projectsâ previews the storytelling sophistication so intrinsic to Illmatic.
However, as Serch recalls only the dual Large Professor productions âIâm a Villainâ (a JBs-sampled beat Extra P had originally reserved for Rakim, but gave to Nas when the Mic God was a no-show at Power Play Studios that particular session) and âNas Will Prevailâ (a.k.a. the OG âIt Ainât Hard to Tellâ) are from Nasâ actual demo. The former features lyrics later used on Illmaticâs âOne Time 4 Your Mindâ and âRepresent.â The latter, a signature Stretch and Bobbito exclusive, remains one of the all-time demo classics, as a teenaged Nas flows with a charisma and assuredness far beyond his years.
#1. The Notorious B.I.G., Three Song Demo (1991)
The Notorious B.I.G. "Guaranteed Raw"
Originally recorded in B.I.G.âs DJ 50 Grandâs Bedford Ave. basement before being re-recorded at DJ Mister Ceeâs crib, this is the big poppa of rap demos. Forget the fact that it won âUnsigned Hypeâ honors in March 1992, thus piquing the interest of one Sean Combs and leading to B.I.G.âs deal with Uptown (and consequently) Bad Boy. Forget the fact that it represents the start of one of the most comet-like careers in hip-hop history. Just listen and appreciate the beauty in its simplicity: single-take performances, no overdubs, not even any samples. Just a DJ going back and forth on two copies of classic breakbeats, and an emcee ferociously spitting heat, his burgeoning talent only exceeded by his hunger.
Ironically enough, when B.I.G.âs demo was initially aired on WKCR back in the day the reception was less than enthusiastic. Bobbito: âMe and Stretch did a demo battle around â92 with a group called Bronx Zu and an unsigned artist named Biggie Smalls [with the winner decided by the listeners]. The phones lit up and... Bronx Zu won by a landslide! Obviously, no one ever heard about them afterwards and Biggie wound up being one of the biggest selling artists of the era. Crazy, right?â No such shenanigans in this countdown, though. Now and forever, B.I.G. is king.