The Lox | |
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| Also known as | The Bomb Squad, D-Block, The Warlox |
| Origin | Yonkers, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Labels | |
| Spinoff of | Ruff Ryders |
| Members | Jadakiss Styles P Sheek Louch |
The Lox (stylizedThe LOX orThe L.O.X.) is an Americanhip hop trio composed ofEast Coast rappersSheek Louch,Styles P andJadakiss. Each hailing fromYonkers, New York, the group formed in 1994 and signed withPuff Daddy'sBad Boy Records two years later to release their debut studio album,Money, Power & Respect (1998). Despite critical and commercial success, the group parted ways with the label in favor ofRuff Ryders Entertainment in 1999, through which they released their similarly successful follow-up,We Are the Streets (2000).
Jason "Jadakiss" Phillips, David "Styles P" Styles, and Sean "Sheek Louch" Jacobs, began their musical careers in their hometown ofYonkers, New York.[1] As high school students, they formed a group called the Bomb Squad and began performing at local shows and producing their own demos. In 1994, they appeared onMain Source's "Set It Off" from the albumFuck What You Think. While the local rap scene was being dominated by artists like Raw Rome, Lord Devon and a youngDMX, the group began to gain attention for their lyrical style and ability to present tales of urban life. The group eventually changed their name to the Warlox and continued developing a fan base by appearing on underground mixtapes.At some point, the trio connected withJaz-O, and had a demo tape produced by him.[2] One of their admirers was the "Queen of hip hop soul," fellow Yonkers nativeMary J. Blige.[1] After acquiring the demo tape that the group made with Jaz-O, Blige passed it on toBad Boy CEOSean "Puffy" Combs who signed them to a deal.[1][3][4] At the behest of Combs, the Warlox later changed their name to the L.O.X. After signing with Bad Boy, the Lox started gaining a bigger buzz off the strength of their first single "Well, Well, Well" featuring Kasino, which appeared on DJ Clue's 1996 mixtapeShow Me the Money.
The Lox gained national exposure in 1997 with an onside collaboration onSean "Puffy" Combs' single "It's All About the Benjamins", shortly after gaining additional exposure with their multi-platinum tribute toThe Notorious B.I.G., "We'll Always Love Big Poppa".[1] The trio later appeared on a multitude of hits,Mase's "24 Hrs. to Live",Mariah Carey's "Honey", andJennifer Lopez's "Jenny from the Block".[1] The group's debut albumMoney, Power & Respect,[1] went Platinum by the RIAA.
In the summer of 1999, the trio found themselves disappointed with the direction of Bad Boy, and the trio wanted to be released from their contract in order to joinRuff Ryders. The Ruff Ryders had always served as The Lox's managers and the group felt like the new label could better represent the hard-core sensibilities which they expressed in their rhymes. Bad Boy was known for its radio-friendly dance hits and high-priced videos, while the Lox were quickly establishing themselves ashardcore rap artists. The identities clashed — "We just needed to be with a rougher label," said Sheek Louch. "A harder label that fit our image."[citation needed]
The Lox tried all of the legal maneuvering available to be released from their contract with Bad Boy. However, the lawyers and conference calls did not work. At a New York rap concert, the trio sported "Let The LOX Go" T-shirts and sparked a grassroots movement to "Free The Lox." Pressure resulting from the campaign ultimately caused Bad Boy and Puff Daddy to release the trio from their contract. "We really changed the game by doing that," says Styles concerning the contractual drama. "It might take years from now, but other people are gonna do it. We made it so they don't have to be scared to speak up."[citation needed]
During the years that followed, the group contemplated signing to other labels as a collective. All the while working on music, each member continued to record steadily releasing various solo studio albums.
A collaborative album with theWu-Tang Clan was released in 2012 titledWu Block, bringing together two historic groups on an album. The result was billed as a collaborative album between members Sheek Louch and the Wu-Tang Clan'sGhostface Killah. In June 2013, Jadakiss toldXXL magazine that several labels, including Bad Boy andMaybach Music Group, made offers to release the next Lox album.[5]
On December 18, 2013, the group released a surpriseextended play (EP) titledThe Trinity, on iTunes.[6] The EP debuted at number 141 on the USBillboard 200 chart, selling 8,400 copies in its first week.[7] On February 24, 2014, the Lox announced a worldwideconcert tour, named after their EPThe Trinity.[8][9]
On March 1, 2014, the Lox continued their release of new music with a song titled "New York", which was premiered byFunkmaster Flex. "New York" saw the three Yonkers emcees rap over a beat reminiscent of which samples the Pudgee, Biggie-assisted "Think Big" featuring Lord Tariq, backed by the "Ashley's Roachclip" drum break.[10][11] On March 16, 2014, the Lox released the music video for "Faded", from theirTrinity EP.[12] On March 24, 2014, the music video for "New York", was released.[13][14]
Filthy America... It's Beautiful was their thirdstudio album, and their first in 16 years. The album was released on December 16, 2016, by D-Block Records andRoc Nation.[15][16]
In 2020, they released the song "Loyalty & Love", which was later included on their fourth studio album,Living Off Xperience, released on August 28, 2020.[17]
The Lox (Jadakiss, Styles P and Sheek Louch) and DipSet (Cam'ron,Jim Jones, Juelz Santana andFreekey Zekey) went head-to-head in a highly anticipatedVerzuz battle at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden Tuesday, August 3rd. It was a no-nonsense New York hip-hop fight, and while no one got killed, unlike previous confrontations, the lyrical assassination committed with malice aforethought by the Lox should be against the law. Someone call Westchester County District AttorneyMimi Rocah to charge the Yonkers trio with premeditated murder by microphone, voluntary microphone manslaughter in the first degree and assault with a deadly microphone. It wasn't merely a slaughter, it was a lyrical summary execution!
On August 3, 2021, the Lox participated in a battle withHarlem rap groupThe Diplomats (DipSet) viaTimbaland andSwizz Beatz'Verzuz at theHulu Theater atMadison Square Garden and were widely regarded as defeating the Diplomats decisively with professionalism and preparedness attributed as major factors.[19][20][21] Moments in the battle included Jadakiss calling out the Diplomats for rapping over tracks including their vocals instead of usingTV tracks before performing his freestyle over The Notorious B.I.G.'s "Who Shot Ya?" released on his 2010 mixtapeThe Champ Is Here, Pt. 3 and the Lox responding to Diplomats jabs with chosen songs. First, Jadakiss responded toCam'ron's remark before performing "Welcome to New York City" that the Lox did not have a New York record that could not beat it, to which Jadakiss responded with his verse inJa Rule's "New York" that also featuredFat Joe, who was in attendance (Jadakiss also performed the verse when Fat Joe and Ja Rule faced each other in the subsequent Verzuz at the same venue). AJuelz Santana jab after Cam'ron's "Hey Ma" that the Lox had no records for female fans was then responded to with a medley that included "Ryde or Die, Bitch" featuringEve followed by remixes featuring them ofMariah Carey's "Honey",Jennifer Lopez's "Jenny from the Block" andMary J. Blige's "Family Affair", plus Sheek Louch's "Good Love" and Jadakiss' "Knock Yourself Out". Styles P also shouted out incarcerated ByrdGang memberMax B – whoJim Jones had an ongoing feud with – before performing his verses inAkon's "Locked Up".[19][20][21]
Following their victory, streams of Lox music increased by 215%.[22][23] In the same month, the group was featured on "Jesus Lord pt 2", the final track on Kanye West's 10th albumDonda alongsideJay Electronica, and received the key to the city of Yonkers.[24] Just over a year after the battle while they were performing atLL Cool J's Rock The Bells festival atForest Hills Stadium in Queens, Jadakiss presented Styles P and Sheek Louch with Lox championship rings and unveiled his.[25]
She was like a number one fan for us. She was loving our music before anybody, and she just brought us to Puff. Puff was looking for a group, a rap group, at that time. It was instant. It just clicked like that. It was chemistry.
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