Craig Curry (born March 24, 1973),[1][2] better known by his stage name Craig G, is an American rapper. He is perhaps best known as one of the members of hip hop producer Marley Marl's Cold Chillin' Records group Juice Crew.[3][4]
Craig G | |
|---|---|
 Craig G in 2013 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Craig Curry |
| Born | March 24, 1973 |
| Origin | Queens, New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Labels |
|
| Formerly of | |
He recorded the single "Shout Rap" with Marley Marl in 1985 at 12 years old and in 1988 recorded "The Symphony" with Juice Crew described by Allmusic as "a landmark moment in the evolution of hardcore rap".[4] He was then signed by Atlantic Records who released two albums, in 1989 and 1991, with little promotion[4] After his experience with Atlantic his career went quiet for much of the 1990s although later in the decade he regained popularity with underground rap fans. He released another album in 2003 on D&D Records This Is Now!!! featuring collaborations with Marley Marl, DJ Premier and Da Beatminerz.[4][5]
Career
editCraig G was a leading freestyle battle rapper memorably battling Supernatural on several occasions,[6] and in the early 2000s wrote and coordinated the battle verses used by Eminem and his opponents in the film 8 Mile. The next year he wrote the character Dangerous' lyrics in 50 Cent's feature film Get Rich or Die Tryin'.[7] His battle with fellow battle rapper Supernatural was a subject of the 2005 documentary Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme.[8]
In 2008, he was part of a reunited Juice Crew performing at the A3C Hip Hop Festival in Atlanta.[9]
In 2012 he released his fourth solo album Ramblings Of An Angry Old Man.[10][11] He was recording an as yet to be titled E.P. With Da Beatminerz[12] Craig G dropped his fifth LP titled I Rap & Go Home on June 3, 2016. He recently leaked music from the project online[13][14] Craig G new project the fragile ego will release September 4, 2020 Craig G will release a new album titled “The World Is Cooked” November 1st 2024
Discography
editAlbums
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US R&B /HH [15] | ||||
| The Kingpin |
|
— | ||
| Now, That's More Like It |
|
97 | ||
|
99 | |||
| Ramblings of an Angry Old Man |
|
|||
| I Rap and Go Home |
|
— | ||
| Lost Chronicles (with The Grinda & T-Leada) |
|
— | ||
| Can't Stop the Funk Volume 1 (with KeemBeats) |
|
— | ||
| The World Is Cooked (Featuring Chuck D, KRS-One, B-Real, DV Alias Khrist, Chubb Rock & Freeway) |
|
— | ||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||
Mixtapes
edit| Title | Mixtape details |
|---|---|
| This Is Now! Official Bootleg Mixtape (with DJ Evil Dee) |
|
Group albums
edit| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Climate Control (as part of Silent Majority) |
|
Collaborative albums
edit| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Operation Take Hip Hop Back (with Marley Marl) |
|
EPs
edit| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| The Legacy (with DJ Koss) |
|
| The WZA Presents OG'S: Original Grown Shit (with The WZA & Egreen) |
|
| Striketeam (with Mr. Cheeks) |
|
| Limelight |
|
| The Fragile Ego |
|
| The World According to You (with Shawneci Icecold) |
|
| The Pen Is Mightier (with BigBob) |
|
| The Assignment (with Nivek Bogeezi & Tone Spliff) |
|
Singles
editAs lead artist
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Rap [32] | |||
| "Transformer"[a][33] | 1985 | — | Street Sounds Electro 10 |
| "Shout"[a][34] | — | Non-album single | |
| "Turn This House Into a Home"[35] | 1989 | — | The Kingpin |
| "Shootin' The Gift"[36] | 1990 | — | |
| "U-R Not The 1" | 1991 | 16 | Now, That's More Like It |
| "Sing-A-Long/Welcome 2 The Game"[37] | 1998 | — | Non-album single |
| "Cash Money" (with Domination Statuz)[38] |
1999 | — | Non-album single |
| "Depopulator/The Freestyle"[39] | — | Non-album single | |
| "Say What You Want/The Executioner Song"[40] | 2002 | — | This Is Now!!! |
| "Let's Get Up" (with Marley Marl)[41] |
2003 | — | |
| "Stomped/Make You Say Yes"[42] | — | ||
| "Made the Change/Deep Down"[43] | 2008 | — | Operation Take Hip Hop Back |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||
Guest appearances
edit| Year | Song | Featured artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | "Droppin' Science" | Marley Marl | In Control, Volume 1 |
| "The Symphony" | Marley Marl, Masta Ace, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane | ||
| "Duck Alert" | Marley Marl | ||
| 1989 | "Gotta Get Paid" | Roxanne Shanté | Bad Sister |
| 1994 | "Just When You Thought It Was Over (Intro)" | Gravediggaz, Biz Markie, Brother Rich, King Ice, I-Roc, Don McKenzie, Ethan Ryman, Michael Preston, Tim Wright, Dave Warner, Stephanie Jackson, Chino Q, Mike G, Joyce, Robert Robinson, Mr. Sime | 6 Feet Deep |
| "Rest In Peace (Outro)" | |||
| 1996 | "The Cypher: Part 3" | Frankie Cutlass, Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Roxanne Shanté | Politics & Bullshit |
| 1998 | "Intense" | Tommy Tee | Bonds, Beats & Beliefs |
| 2000 | "We Break Bread" | Chaos, Littles, Lord Black | Nas & Ill Will Records Presents QB's Finest |
| 2007 | "Offensive Lineup" | Snowgoons | German Lugers |
| "Talk Cheap" | Tommy Tee | No Studio No Time | |
| "Brother On The Run" | O.S.T.R. | HollyŁódź | |
| 2009 | "Lyrics?" | Sadat X | Brand New Bein' |
| "Smallest Violin" | Sadat X, Jak D | ||
| 2011 | "Mann For Min Hatt" | Gatas Parlament | Dette Forandrer Alt |
| 2015 | "Ain't Nothing Funny" | Sadat X, Skyzoo | Never Left |
| "The Kings Sent For Me (Samurydas Remix)" | Canibus, Bronze Nazareth, Kurupt, Raekwon | Time Flys, Life Dies...Phoenix Rise | |
| 2016 | "MC Voltron" | Kool Keith | Feature Magnetic |
| 2016 | "streets all day"cutsupreme x Craig g" | ||
| 2017 | "Real NY City" | Neek the Exotic | The Neek The Exotic Experience |
| 2018 | ”Duże Miasto” | Gorzki & Soyka | Kontrawersja |
| 2022 | "Summertime" | Specifik | The Triple3 Effect |
| 2022 | "Get Em" | Specifik | Get Em 7" |
| 2024 | "Take Command" | Pushing Buttons | Full Level |
References
editNotes
editCitations
edit- ^ Hess, Mickey (2009) Hip Hop in America: a Regional Guide: Volume 1 - East Coast and West Coast, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 978-0-313-34323-0, p. 55
- ^ Bry, David (2001) "Something in the Water", Vibe, March 2001, p. 80
- ^ "Juice Crew". hiphop.sh. Archived from the original on 28 July 2011. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
- ^ a b c d Birchmeier, Jason "Craig G Biography", Allmusic, retrieved 2011-01-27
- ^ Bush, John "This Is Now Review", Allmusic, retrieved 2011-01-27
- ^ DiPasquale, Cara & Karnopp, Kris (2003) "Craig G's battle for relevance", Chicago Tribune, May 20, 2003, p. 29
- ^ Hall, Rashaun (2003) "Words & Deeds: Now Is the Time", Billboard, June 7, 2003, p. 23, retrieved 2011-01-27
- ^ Freestyle:The Art of Rhyme (2005)
- ^ "Juice Crew Reunites at the A3C Hip Hop Festival", Hip-Hop Elements, March 10, 2008, retrieved 2011-01-27
- ^ "Craig G - Okayplayer". Okayplayer. 2013-01-07. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
- ^ Craig G "Ramblings Of An Angry Old Man" Tracklist & Release Date Archived 2012-08-28 at the Wayback Machine, HipHopDX, August 27, 2012, Retrieved on 2012-09-12.
- ^ "Craig G & Da Beatminerz To Release A Collaborative EP". HipHopDX. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
- ^ Its My Turn, retrieved 2017-11-13
- ^ "Moving Music Forward | Audiomack". www.audiomack.com. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
- ^ "Craig G Chart History". Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
- ^ "Ramblings of an Angry Old Man - Craig G - Release Info". AllMusic.
- ^ "I Rap & Go Home - Craig G - Release Info". AllMusic.
- ^ "Lost Chronicles - Tha Grinda, Craig G & T-Leada - Release Info". AllMusic.
- ^ "Can't Stop the Funk Volume 1 - KeemBeats & Craig G - Release Info". AllMusic.
- ^ "The World Is Cooked - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ This Is Now!!! Official Bootleg Mixtape (track listing). MasterTapes. 2003.
- ^ "Climate Control - Silent Majority - Release Info". AllMusic.
- ^ "Operation Take Hip Hop Back - Craig G - Release Info". AllMusic.
- ^ "The Legacy - Craig G & Koss - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ "The WZA Presents OG'S: Original Grown Shit - Egreen, Craig G & The WZA - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ "Striketeam - EP - Mr. Cheeks & Craig G - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ "Limelight - EP - Craig G - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ "The Fragile Ego - Craig G - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ "The World According to You - EP - Shawneci Icecold & Craig G - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ "The Pen Is Mightier - Craig G and BigBob - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ "The Assignment - Nivek Bogeezi, Craig G & Tone Spliff - Release Info". Apple Music.
- ^ "Craig G - US Hot Rap Songs". billboard.com. Archived from the original on February 4, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
- ^ Transformer (track listing). Pop Art Records. 1985. PA-8501.
- ^ Shout (track listing). Pop Art Records. 1985. PA-1412.
- ^ Turn This House Into A Home (track listing). Atlantic. 1989. 0-86303.
- ^ Shootin' The Gift (track listing). Atlantic. 1990. 0-86237.
- ^ Sing-A-Long/Welcome 2 The Game (track listing). Sure Shot Recordings. 1998. SSR-0002.
- ^ Cash Money/Murder He Wrote (track listing). Echo International. 1999. Echo-2325.
- ^ Depopulator/The Freestyle (track listing). Menace Recordings Ltd. 1999. MXR-52800.
- ^ "Craig G - Say What Ya Want/The Executioner Song (12 inch Vinyl Single - D&D #641231)". AllMusic.
- ^ "Craig G - Let's Get Up (12 inch Vinyl Single - D&D #DAD 6412521)". AllMusic.
- ^ "Craig G - Stomped/Make You Say Yes (12 inch Vinyl Single - D&D #DAD 6412571)". AllMusic.
- ^ "Craig G - Made the Change/Deep Down (12 inch Vinyl Single - Traffic Entertainment Group #1954)". AllMusic.