The Beatnuts | |
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 The Beatnuts in Hamburg, Germany in 2000 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Years active | 1989–2009, 2016[1] |
| Labels | Combat,Relativity,Violator,Loud, Landspeed,Penalty |
| Members | JuJu Psycho Les |
| Past members | Fashion (later Al' Tariq) V.I.C. |
The Beatnuts is an Americanhip hop group and production duo from New York City. Its current members are JuJu and Psycho Les. JuJu (born Jerry Tineo on December 14,[2] 1968) is aDominican American fromCorona and Psycho Les (born Lester Fernandez on April 10,[3] 1970) is aColombian American fromJackson Heights, Queens. Although only peripheral members, they are routinely acknowledged byQ-Tip as being members ofNative Tongues. The Beatnuts were originally a trio before Fashion (born Berntony Smalls on January 13, 1970), now known as Al' Tariq, left the group to start a solo career. V.I.C. (Groove Merchantz, Ghetto Pros) was also a member of The Beatnuts' production team for a while.
JuJu and Psycho Les grew up in different communities in Queens, New York City. Psycho Les started producing beats andDJing at age 15 under aliases including DJ Les Jams and DJ Incredible. At a high school inFlushing, Queens, a friend DJ Loco Moe introduced Les to fellow producer JuJu. While crate digging, both Beatnuts ran into Afrika Baby Bam from the Jungle Brothers. Afrika introduced them toNative Tongues members includingDe La Soul,A Tribe Called Quest and theJungle Brothers. At this time, JuJu and Psycho Les were DJing parties under the alias Beat Kings. The Jungle Brothers claimed that they were not kings, but rather two nuts for their comical nature and the fact that they were crazy enough to carry hundreds of records to every show they played. They thus changed their name and "it stuck."[4] Rapper Kool Fashion later got together with the two Beatnuts members.
The Beatnuts entered the recording industry in 1990 producing two tracks for the Britishalternative hip hop/electronica groupStereo MCs as well as a song for British rapperMonie Love. Over the next two years, they produced songs for rappers includingCommon,Pete Nice &DJ Richie Rich andKurious, as well as a full album forChi-Ali. As of 1992, JuJu had not appeared on a record, but fellow Beatnuts rappers Fashion and Psycho Les appeared on tracks that he produced. In 1993, The Beatnuts produced more songs for the artists they had previously collaborated with as well asFat Joe,Suprême NTM andDa Youngsta's. At the same time, The Beatnuts made their name asremix specialists by remixing songs forMC Lyte,Da Lench Mob,Naughty by Nature,Jomanda and others.
The Beatnuts' early production work earned them a record deal withCombat Records in 1992. The Beatnuts planned on releasing a "mini-LP" through that label, but its release was delayed when Kool Fashion was sentenced to six months of jail for drug convictions.[5] After Fashion completed his sentence, The Beatnuts left Combat Records and signed deals withViolator Management andRelativity Records. In April 1993, The Beatnuts released their debut album,Intoxicated Demons: The EP, through their new label. It featured 11 songs, including the two singles "Reign of the Tec" and "No Equal". The album was characterized by itshedonistic party-style lyrics and sample-heavy jazz beats. It was a critical success receiving favorable reviews byAllmusic,The Source andEntertainment Weekly.[6][7]
Intoxicated Demons was followed in 1994 with the eponymous full-length albumThe Beatnuts: Street Level.Street Level followed its preceding EP in style, but slightly surpassed its commercial success by charting on theBillboard 200. It featured two singles, "Props Over Here" and "Hit Me with That", neither of which were commercial hits.Street Level was the last Beatnuts album released before Fashion left the group to become a devoutMuslim and solo artist under the alias Al' Tariq. He left The Beatnuts on good terms and collaborated with his former group on future albums.
The Beatnuts did not follow up their 1994 album until releasingStone Crazy in 1997. Although it contained "Off the Books", a single that charted on theBillboard Hot 100, featured a standout performance byBig Pun and the first on-record performance fromCuban Link, the album was not a critical success. Leo Stanley ofAllmusic attributed its mediocre reception to its lack of energy—not its "jazz-inflected rhythms and hardcore rhyming".[8] Chris Ryan ofRolling Stone conceded that the album was still "something of a breakthrough" for The Beatnuts in spite of itself.[9] Two weeks after the release ofStone Crazy, The Beatnuts releasedHydra Beats, Vol. 5, a small-scale instrumental album.Vol. 5 was one album in a series of vinyl instrumental albums released byunderground labelHydra Entertainment.
1998 saw the release ofThe Spot, a remix EP that revamped songs from the first three non-instrumental Beatnuts albums. It additionally featured sequels to older Beatnuts tracks and one new song, "Treat$". It was released in anticipation of 1999'sA Musical Massacre, The Beatnuts' most commercially and critically successful album.A Musical Massacre reached #35 on theBillboard 200 due to its hit single "Watch Out Now". The album is hailed for its "eclectic" and "textured" beats as well as its "rough, rugged, and raunchy" lyrics with slightly more content variation than past releases.[10]
AfterSony released The Beatnuts's first hits compilation, 1999'sWorld Famous Classics, The Beatnuts did not record another album until 2001'sTake It or Squeeze It. Their 2001 album contained two slightly popular singles, "No Escapin' This" and "Let's Git Doe", but was unable to match the commercial or critical success ofA Musical Massacre. Reviews by both Allmusic andRolling Stone claimed thatTake It or Squeeze It had a mix of inventive production and clichéd gangster rhymes.[11][12]
In November 2001, it was announced thatLoud Records—whose father labelRelativity Records had released all Beatnuts albums since their 1993 debut—had cut ties with The Beatnuts. The decision was followed by the release of two greatest hits: 2001'sBeatnuts Forever and 2002'sClassic Nuts, Vol. 1. While The Beatnuts were free agents, a rumor surfaced that JuJu and Psycho Les were going to collaborate with Al' Tariq under the group alias 'Intoxicated Demons'.[14] The Beatnuts did not reunite with Al Tariq, but instead signed with theunderground label LandSpeed Records. In 2002, they releasedThe Originators, a commercial failure that did not reach theBillboard 200 or contain charting singles. The album was still a critical success because of its catchy hooks and creative beats. Steve Juon of RapReviews.com remarked on the correlation between The Beatnuts' critical and commercial success:
If they are less known and don't sell as well being on an indie imprint like LandSpeed Records, it will still be worth it if the increased quality of their beats and rhymes remain this high.[15]
Instead of remaining on LandSpeed Records, The Beatnuts signed toPenalty Recordings before releasing their 2004 albumMilk Me. Although Penalty was also an underground label,Milk Me was still able to scrape the bottom of theBillboard 200. The album was almost unanimously held to be solid. Nonetheless, three singles and anAkon guest appearance did not propel the album to the commercial success of prior Beatnuts albums.
Milk Me contained the song "Confused Rappers", a track thatdissedJennifer Lopez for allegedly stealing the beat from The Beatnuts' "Watch Out Now" on her 2002 hit "Jenny from the Block". The song criticizes Lopez's singing ability and looks, but ultimately criticizes the track's producers,Trackmasters andCory Rooney, for allegedly stealing the beat.[16] Although The Beatnuts did eventually receiveroyalties,[citation needed] Psycho Les is still critical of the track's producers. The beats on both "Watch Out Now" and "Jenny from the Block" sample theEnoch Light cover of "Hi-Jack" by Fernando Arbex of the Spanish groupBarrabás. Barrabás created the original drum and bass lines, with the flute transposition of the melodic loop (the famous sample in the Beatnuts and Jennifer Lopez tracks) introduced in theHerbie Mann andEnoch Light covers.
In March 2007, Psycho Les released his debut solo albumPsycho Therapy (The Soundtrack) on Pit Fight Records. Psycho Les additionally joined with Al Tariq and Problemz to form the group Big City. In June, they releasedThe City Never Sleeps onNature Sounds.
Later that year, The Beatnuts had a track included on theOfficial Joints mixtape, a collection of previously unreleased songs by NYC rappers.
In December, JuJu was arrested inStockholm,Sweden for an alleged assault. He was detained for 36 hours for a "minor assault" after performing a concert.[17]
On September 30, 2008, Pit Fight Records releasedU.F.O. Files, a compilation of previously unreleased Beatnuts songs.
In October 2009,Deez Nuts, a semi-autobiographical theatre production conceived by Sacha Jenkins and starring The Beatnuts ran for 3 nights at the Ohio Theatre as part of the New York Hip-Hop Theater Festival.
The Beatnuts partnered with the West Coast Hip hop groupTha Alkaholiks in 2016 to make a super crew known as the Liknuts which toured together.
Both JuJu and Psycho Les contributed beats forTony Touch'sThe Piece Maker 3: Return of the 50 MC's,[18]
They went Tik Tok Viral with the song "Se Acabo" and re-released it in Remix version in 2022 featuringMethod Man.
The Beatnuts are known for their sample-heavy beats and explicit party-ready lyrics. In early records, the beats had ajazz andfunk-influenced sound, but later songs were influenced byLatin music. Critics have commented that The Beatnuts have consistently good beats, but lack in terms of lyrics. JuJu addressed this in a 2004 interview:
We are all about the beat, that's our formula when we produce shit, the beats gotta be hot, it's gotta grab you. 'Cause I'll be the first nigga to say that we're not the best MCs in the world. It kills me to hear these nice MCs rhyming over fucking garbage.[19]
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