Busta rhymes biography facts on samuel

American rapper (born 1972)

For the former American football player, see Buster Rhymes.

Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes. He has received 12 Grammy Award nominations for his work, making him one of the most-nominated artists without winning.

Busta Rhymes was an original member of Leaders of the New School, a group that attracted national attention when they opened on tour for Public Enemy. He gained exposure for their guest appearance on A Tribe Called Quest's track "Scenario". Shortly thereafter, Leaders of the New School broke up, leading Rhymes to become a sought after solo artist, appearing on numerous tracks for other artists before his debut solo album, The Coming (1996). The album reached the top ten on the Billboard 200 album chart, was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and earned him a Grammy nomination.

He has released eleven total solo albums, with the most recent being 2023's Blockbusta. Rhymes' list of hit singles include "Woo-Hah!! Got You All in Check", "It's a Party", "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See", "Dangerous", "Turn It Up" (Remix)/"Fire It Up", "Gimme Some More", "What's It Gonna Be?!", "Pass the Courvoisier, Part II", "I Know What You Want" and "Touch It".

Among his other ventures, he founded the record label Conglomerate (initially Flipmode Entertainment) and the production crew The Conglomerate (formerly Flipmode Squad). About.com included him on its list of the 50 Greatest MCs of Our Time (1987–2007), and Steve Huey of AllMusic called him one of the best and most prolific rappers of the 1990s. In 2012, The Source placed him on its list of the Top 50 Lyricists of All Time. MTV has called him "one of hip-hop's gr

We're celebrating 50 years of Hip-Hop by taking you inside the life and work of legendary MC's. This week: Busta Rhymes. Make sure to listen to ERS+ where history continues to unfold.

By Mo Wilks, Secret Spot Host

EARLY YEARS- Jamiacan Roots and Hip Hop on the Radio

Busta Rhymes emerged onto the rap scene in the early 1990's adding his gravely raspy flow to the Golden Era of Hip Hop. Born Trevor Smith, Jr. May 20, 1972 in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York, both of his parents were from Jamaica. Busta's Jamaican heritage would play a large role in not only his prideful presentation, but attitude and rhyme style. Busta became interested in Hip Hop at age ten listening to Bronx producer Afrika Islam's Zulu Beats Radio Show. 

Busta attended school with Christopher "Notorious B.I.G.' Wallace and Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter. Jay-Z and Busta would battle in school, but Busta was always thought his career was in dancing.  During his years in Uniondale, L.I. Busta Rhymes would bounce around in different breakdancing crews, dropping out of school briefly to pursue dance and occasionally write rap poetry. He went by the emcee name Chill-o-ski.  

LEADERS OF THE NEW SCHOOL

Rhymes would eventually link up with fellow Long Islanders co-founder Bryan Higgins a.k.a. Charlie Brown, James Jackson, a.k.a. Dinco D and Sheldon Scott a.k.a. Cut Monitor Milo. They would go on to form the hip hop trio Leaders of the New School or L.O.N.S. The group would get their big break as the opening act for Public Enemy led by Chuck D., a fellow Long Islander. Chuck blessed him with a new name, Busta Rhymes after the 1980's football player George 'Buster' Rhymes and because people always asked him to "bust-a-rhyme" freestyle. By December 1989, at 17, Busta and his Leaders of the New School crew signed to Elektra Records. Their first album, "A Future Without a Past" was released in 1991.

Their first album was a Hip Hop back to the future alb

Rapper, actor

Found Mentor in Chuck D.

Released Solo Album

Headed Own Record Label

Launched Clothing Line

Selected discography

Sources

Elektra executive Sylvia Rhone said of Busta Rhymes in Billboard, “You can never underestimate Busta; just when you think you’ve figured him out, he will surprise you even more.” The unpredictable rapper first achieved success as a teenager in the group Leaders of the New School. But it was his 1996 solo debut, The Coming, and its lead single, “Woo hah!! Got You All in Check” that catapulted him to stardom. Rhymes has since released three more albums, commenced an acting career, and launched his own record and fashion companies.

Rhymes—born Trevor Smith to a Jamaican mother and U.S.-born father in Brooklyn, New York—moved with his family to the suburbs of Long Island during his adolescence. While his deep, booming voice came from his father, the rapper reported to the Los Angeles Times, “when it came down to discipline in my family, the true barker was Moms. That’s where my real energetic side comes from.” Only after he arrived in “Strong Island,” as fellow natives and rap revolutionaries Public Enemy called the borough, did Rhymes began to dream of rhyming. “I was mad small,” he recollected in Elektra Records press materials, “but I would start entering rap contests, lip synch contests, anything to show my skills.” Fortunately, he claimed, hailing from Brooklyn stood him in good stead, since “Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens was where all the good hip hop was coming from at that time.”

Found Mentor in Chuck D.

Rhymes was still in junior high school when he hooked up with another rapper, Charlie Brown. The pair eventually caught the attention of Public Enemy leader Chuck D. as well as the group’s producers, Eric Sadler and Hank Shocklee. Sadler and Shocklee—kn

At a time when "gangsta rap" dominated the airwaves and pop culture, Busta Rhymes introduced his own unique style of hip-hop, punctuated by lightning-speed rapping over exotic beats, which put him on the map and on top of the charts. Rhymes launched his music career with the East Coast rap crew Leaders of the New School and quickly emerged not only as the group's breakout star, but as a promising talent poised for a successful solo career. After the group disbanded, Rhymes earned solid critical reviews and delivered chart-topping singles with back-to-back hit albums The Coming (1996) and When Disaster Strikes (1997).

A consummate entertainer, Rhymes branched out to film and television acting throughout his career, including dramatic turns in John Singleton's "Higher Learning" (1995) and Gus Van Sant's "Finding Forrester" (2000). Yet it was in music where Rhymes continued to have the most success, through hit albums and memorable guest vocals that established him as an influential and highly marketable figure in hip-hop.

He was born Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr. on May 20, 1972 in Brooklyn, NY to Trevor Smith and Geraldine Green, who were Jamaican-born immigrants. Rhymes attended George Westinghouse Information and Technology High School, a vocational school in downtown Brooklyn that boasted future rap luminaries such as Jay-Z, DMX, and The Notorious B.I.G. He later transferred to Uniondale High School on Long Island, where he graduated from in 1990.

It was around this time when Rhymes formed the rap crew, Leaders of the New School, along with New York natives Charlie Brown, Dinco D and Cut Monitor Milo. The group performed locally until hip-hop pioneers Public Enemy took notice and invited them to open their shows. Rhymes even received his stage moniker from Public Enemy front man Chuck D, who named him after NFL wide receiver George 'Buster' Rhymes. Leaders of the New School released its debut album A Future without a Past in 1991, which yielded the