A most unusual R&B quartet that came out of Los Angeles in the early '90s, G.A.T. combined 1970s-influenced soul singing with the imagery and themes of gangsta rap. G.A.T. (Gangstas and Thugs) was hardly the only R&B act that was heavily influenced by hip-hop, but it was certainly among the few that embraced the type of thug-life lyrics associated with N.W.A., Ice-T, the Geto Boys, and 2Pac. Reviewers gave G.A.T.'s music such unlikely descriptions as "N.W.A. meets the Chi-Lites" and "Ice-T meets the Dramatics," and the quartet really was that unorthodox. Dressing like gangsta rappers, singers Wesley Johnson III, Kenneth Blue, Tyrone Butterfield, and Andrew Sanders gave gritty, troubling, first-person accounts of such things as gang warfare and serving hard time in prison. But G.A.T. was equally convincing when it came to delivering a silky, 1970s-influenced soul ballad or interpreting the Persuaders' classic "Thin Love Between Love and Hate." The quartet signed with MCA in 1994, and its debut album, Just Another Day, came out in 1995. Regrettably, the album didn't sell, and after being dropped by MCA, G.A.T. didn't resurface on another label. ~ Alex Henderson, Rovi
