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Black Sheep is an alternative hip hop
Alternative hip hop

Alternative hip hop is a form of hip hop music that is defined in greatly varying ways. Allmusic defines it as follows:Alternative Rap refers to Hip hop music groups that refuse to conform to any of the traditional stereotypes of rap, such as gangsta rap, Miami bass, hardcore hip hop, and party rap....
 duo from Queens, New York
New York

The State of New York is a U.S. state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States and is the nation's List of U.S....
, composed of Andres "Dres" Titus and William "Mista Lawnge" McLean. The duo are native New Yorkers but met as teenagers in North Carolina
North Carolina

North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
 where both of their families relocated. The group was an affiliate of the Native Tongues Posse
Native Tongues Posse

The Native Tongues is a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s Hip hop music artists known for their positive-minded, good-natured Afrocentrism lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and later jazz-influenced beats....
, which included The Jungle Brothers
Jungle Brothers

The Jungle Brothers are an American hip-hop music group that pioneered the fusion of jazz and hip-hop and also became the first hip-hop group to use a house music producer....
, A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest

A Tribe Called Quest is an United States Hip hop music group, formed in 1988. The group is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad....
 and De La Soul
De La Soul

De La Soul is an American hip hop music group formed in 1987 in Amityville, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling and quirky, surreal lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres....
.






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Black Sheep is an alternative hip hop
Alternative hip hop

Alternative hip hop is a form of hip hop music that is defined in greatly varying ways. Allmusic defines it as follows:Alternative Rap refers to Hip hop music groups that refuse to conform to any of the traditional stereotypes of rap, such as gangsta rap, Miami bass, hardcore hip hop, and party rap....
 duo from Queens, New York
New York

The State of New York is a U.S. state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States and is the nation's List of U.S....
, composed of Andres "Dres" Titus and William "Mista Lawnge" McLean. The duo are native New Yorkers but met as teenagers in North Carolina
North Carolina

North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
 where both of their families relocated. The group was an affiliate of the Native Tongues Posse
Native Tongues Posse

The Native Tongues is a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s Hip hop music artists known for their positive-minded, good-natured Afrocentrism lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and later jazz-influenced beats....
, which included The Jungle Brothers
Jungle Brothers

The Jungle Brothers are an American hip-hop music group that pioneered the fusion of jazz and hip-hop and also became the first hip-hop group to use a house music producer....
, A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest

A Tribe Called Quest is an United States Hip hop music group, formed in 1988. The group is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad....
 and De La Soul
De La Soul

De La Soul is an American hip hop music group formed in 1987 in Amityville, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling and quirky, surreal lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres....
. It debuted in 1991 with the hit song "Flavor of the Month" and later released their first album, A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, which gained them praise and recognition in the hip-hop community for the album’s unique rhythms and intelligent lyrics.

Overview

Black Sheep was the first hip-hop act to appear on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno is an United States late night television talk show currently hosted by Jay Leno, on NBC. It made its debut on May 25, 1992, following Johnny Carson retirement as host of The Tonight Show....
 after the departure of Johnny Carson
Johnny Carson

John William ?Johnny? Carson was an American television host and comedian, known as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 years....
. Black Sheep was also one of the first groups to parody gangsta rap
Gangsta rap

Gangsta rap is a term coined by the mainstream media to describe a certain genre of hip hop that reflects the violent lifestyles of some inner-city youths....
 (still in its infancy when A Wolf In Sheep's Clothing was released) in the hilariously over the top "U Mean I'm Not." In the song, Dres describes in detail killing his sister, his parents, and his letter carrier. At the end, he is roused from his sleep and tells his friends bewilderedly, "I dreamed that I was...hard."

A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing charted three times on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart in 1992 with "The Choice Is Yours" (#9), and "Strobelite Honey" (#1). Black Sheep was also featured on the remix
Remix

A remix is an alternative version of a song, different from the original version. A remixer uses Audio mixing to compose an alternate master recording of a song, adding or subtracting elements, or simply changing the equalization, dynamics, Pitch , tempo, playing time, or almost any other aspect of th...
 of Vanessa Williams
Vanessa L. Williams

Vanessa Lynn Williams is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Williams made history on September 17, 1983 when she became the first woman of African descent to be crowned Miss America....
's single "Work to Do" (#8). The group's relationship with its label, Mercury/PolyGram, was so good that the label allowed the duo to establish a boutique label through which it could sign its own acts. Mercury distributed the imprint, which was called One Love, through PolyGram's Independent Label Sales division rather than PolyGram Group Distribution. However, only one full-length title was ever released, the only album by affiliated act the Legion, titled Theme + Echo = Krill, from 1994.

The group's second album, Non-Fiction, was released later that year. Due to virtually no promotion and a generally poor reception, the album managed only lackluster sales. Titus and McLean would separate soon afterward to work on various independent projects and left the label. This resulted in Dres's solo album Sure Shot Redemption
Sure Shot Redemption

Sure Shot Redemption was Dres' first solo album after the breakup of Black Sheep . On the cover he is credited as "Dres - The Black Sheep"....
 and being billed as Dres the Black Sheep. In 2000, the duo reunited to record the title track
Title track

A title track is a song which shares its name with the music album on which it appears. Examples include Michael Jackson's song "Thriller " and AC/DC's "Back in Black "....
 for the movie Once in the Life
Once in the Life

Once in the Life is a 2000 in film written and directed by Laurence Fishburne. Fishburne adapted the script from his own play, Riff-Raff....
, in which Dres had an acting role. In the same year, the duo released an EP called Redlight, Greenlight (EP)
Redlight, Greenlight (EP)

Redlight, Greenlight EP is an EP by Black Sheep . It is the first group record , since Non-Fiction . It was recorded and had been previously unreleased....
. It was released two years later and was not covered by the media.

Dres was featured on the second Handsome Boy Modeling School
Handsome Boy Modeling School

Handsome Boy Modeling School was a Hip hop music collaboration between Dan the Automator and Paul Huston, Record producer of hip hop music trio De La Soul....
 album White People
White people

White people is a term which is usually used to refer to Human characterized, at least in part, by the light Human skin color. It often refers narrowly to people claiming ancestry exclusively from Europe....
, on the track "First...and Then." In 2006, the group released an online-only album titled 8WM/Novakane
8WM/Novakane

8WM/Novakane is the third album by Hip hop music duo Black Sheep , the group's first full-length album since 1994's Non-Fiction . It was released as a download-only album in October 2006, and a physical release followed in December 2007....
. 8WM stands for Women with Women with Weed with Wine with Me. Shortly before the album's release, Mista Lawnge left the group a second time. According to AllHipHop.com, he has changed the spelling of his name to Mr. Long and is working on a solo project. According to Dres through MySpace
MySpace

MySpace is a social network service website with an interactive, user-submitted network of friends, personal profiles, blogs, groups, photos, music, and videos for teenagers and adults internationally....
, although Lawnge was involved in the album, he is no longer with the group. Reasons for his departure were not given, but Dres says that it was amicable. Dres appeared on the 1990s remix of Nas
Nas

Nasir Jones, , , better known by his stage name Nas, , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapping and actor. The son of jazz musician Olu Dara, he was born and raised in the Queensbridge, Queens housing projects in New York City....
' February 2007 song "Where are They Now?"

In 2008, its single "The Choice is Yours" was ranked number #73 on VH1's 100 Greatest Hip Hop Songs.

Discography


Albums

Album information
A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
  • Released: October 22 1991
  • RIAA Certification
    RIAA certification

    In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and single sold through retail and other ancillary markets....
    : Gold
  • Billboard 200 chart position: #30
  • R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #15
  • Singles: "Flavor of the Month"/"Butt...In the Meantime", "The Choice is Yours (Revisited)"/"The Choice is Yours"/"Have U.N.E. Pull"/"Yes", "Strobelite Honey"/"Gimme the Finga", "Similak Child"
Non-Fiction
  • Released: December 6 1994
  • Billboard 200 chart position: #107
  • R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #24
  • Singles: "Without a Doubt"/"We Boys", "North South East West"
    • 8WM/Novakane
    8WM/Novakane

    8WM/Novakane is the third album by Hip hop music duo Black Sheep , the group's first full-length album since 1994's Non-Fiction . It was released as a download-only album in October 2006, and a physical release followed in December 2007....
  • Released: October 23 2006
  • Billboard 200 chart position:
  • R&B/Hip-Hop chart position:
  • Singles: "Whodat?"


    • Singles and EPs

    • "Flavor of the Month" (1991)
    • "The Choice is Yours" (1991)
    • "Strobelite Honey" (1992)
    • "Similak Child" (1992)
    • "Without A Doubt" (1994)
    • "North South East West" (1995)
    • Redlight, Greenlight (EP)
      Redlight, Greenlight (EP)

      Redlight, Greenlight EP is an EP by Black Sheep . It is the first group record , since Non-Fiction . It was recorded and had been previously unreleased....
       (recorded 2000, released 2002)
    • "Whodat?" (2006)


    Music videos

    • Black Sheep - Flavor of the Month (1991)
    • Black Sheep - The Choice Is Yours (1991)
    • Black Sheep - Strobelite Honey (1992)
    • Vanessa Williams ft. Black Sheep - Work to Do (Remix) (1992)
    • Showbiz & A.G ft. Black Sheep - Bounce Ta This (1992)
    • Black Sheep - Similak Child (1992)
    • The Legion ft. Black Sheep - Jingle Jangle (1993)
    • Black Sheep - Without a Doubt (1994)
    • Black Sheep - Whodat? (2006)
    • Black Sheep - Novakane Groove (2007)


    External links

    • April 2008, Interview with Hip Hop Lives Online, HHLO.net