Gang Starr

Rap Group The duo of producer Christopher “DJ Premier” Martin and rapper Keith “Guru” Elam formed the monumental hip hop group, Gang Starr. Their debut album, No More Mr. Nice Guy, was released in 1989 and Premier infused bits and pieces of other genres into their underground sound while Guru’s husky baritone added a complementary layer. The group released six studio albums before splitting up in 2004. Guru passed away in 2010.
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Gang Starr

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Guru

Though Gang Starr got their start in 1987, Guru and DJ Premier released their first game changing album in 1993, Jazzmatazz Vol. 1. It was the first in a series and critically acclaimed for successfully bridging that gap between eras of music with...

Skulls Snaps, "It's a New Day"

The opening bars of this song from funk group Skull Snaps' self-titled 1974 album provided hard-as-nails drums for Pharcyde's "Passin' Me By," Gang Starr's "Take It Personal," Diamond D's "Sally Got a One-Track Mind" and other unforgettable rap br...

Gang Starr, "Tonz 'O' Gunz"

Gang Starr lamented the ubiquity of guns on this banger from their 1994 album Hard to Earn. "Tons o' gunz real easy to get, tons o' gunz bringing nothing but death," Guru monotoned. (Photo: Courtesy Virgin Records)

Gang Starr, Daily Operation

One of rap's most consistent groups, Gang Starr was greater than the sum of its parts. On joints like "Take It Personal," from this acclaimed 1992 album, Guru's raspy monotone sounded that much better over Primo's chopped-up jazz breaks and surgic...

16. "The Place Where We Dwell," Gang Starr

Though plenty of songs use Brooklyn as a rallying cry, few have broken down the borough in more diverse detail than this cut from Gang Starr's 1992 album Daily Operation. Over a sparse breakbeat and the familiar "Go Brooklyn" Stetsasonic sample, G...

Hip Hop Remembers Guru

DJ Premier and the family of Guru led a moving tribute to the fallen Gang Starr rapper.  (Photo: Taylor Hill/Getty Images)
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