Paris

One of hip-hop's most militantly Afrocentric radicals, Paris struggled for most of his career to find acceptance for his fiercely political music, which drew from the provocative intelligence of Public Enemy and the gut-level rage of early Ice Cube. Born Oscar Jackson, Jr. in California, Paris earned a degree in economics from the University of California-Davis (near the San Francisco Bay Area); but hip-hop appealed to him more, and he founded his own record label, Scarface. He recorded a single, but found he lacked the resources to promote it properly, and wound up landing a deal with Tommy Boy Records. His debut album, The Devil Made Me Do It, was released in 1990, and attracted some attention (and praise) for the single "The Hate That Hate Made," as well as the title track, whose video was banned by MTV. Paris completed the follow-up album Sleeping With the Enemy in 1992; however, in the wake of the controversy over Ice-T's "Cop Killer," Tommy Boy refused to release it, citing the anti-George Bush track "Bush Killa." Eventually, they decided the whole album was far too strident and inflammatory, and bought out Paris' contract. After distribution agreements with Polygram and Def American fell through for similar reasons, Paris resurrected Scarface (helped by the Tommy Boy settlement money) and finally put the album out himself. It was acclaimed as a major statement in some quarters, but failed to find a wide audience in the midst of the gangsta rap revolution. 1994's Guerrilla Funk met with a similar fate, slipping largely under the radar, and Paris spent four years away from the studio. When he returned with Unleashed in 1998, he'd largely abandoned his trademark political fury in favor of watered-down G-funk and gangsta clichés. He retired from hip-hop not long after and put his economics degree to use as a successful stockbroker.

The break didn't last long, however. In 2003, Paris resurfaced with Sonic Jihad, which he released through his new label, Guerrilla Funk Recordings. Remastered versions of his first three albums were issued around the same time, and Paris subsequently partnered with Public Enemy's Chuck D for a collaborative album. The two released Rebirth of a Nation in 2006; that same year, Paris began producing additional records and issuing politically minded compilation albums for his label. He returned to his own craft in 2008, recording and releasing the studio effort Acid Reflex. ~ Steve Huey, Rovi