Gangstarr

FORMED: 1988

These Brooklyn rappers are near the top among hip-hop artists influenced by and interested in jazz. In 1989, longtime jazz and Black-pop publicist Elliot Horne placed a poem he wrote with them, and the group used it as the foundation for the song "Jazz Music" on their debut No More Mr. Nice Guy. That track was later included on the soundtrack for Spike Lee's Mo Better Blues. The group has also used saxophonist and Tonight Show bandleader Branford Marsalis and included acoustic as well as electric instruments on their follow-up release Step in the Arena. They've also discussed the jazz/rap connection in such magazines as The Source and The Wire.Both Gang Starr and their main man Guru were in the limelight during 1993 and 1994. Guru teamed with old and new jazz types Donald Byrd, Roy Ayers, and Ronnie Foster, as well as vocalist N'Dea Davenport and other guest stars for the session Jazzmatazz. He later did some New York club dates with some of the same musicians. Gang Starr issued Hard to Earn in March of 1994; it debuted on the Billboard R&B charts at number two. After four years of side-projects and inactivity, Gang Starr returned in the spring of 1998 with Moment of Truth, and the following year saw the release of the career retrospective Full Clip.

~ Ron Wynn, All Music Guide