The Anonymous

Eager, intrepid explorers of the world of hip-hop, The Anonymous, made up of Vesuvio (now known as Vesuveo), Able, Zinndeadly, and DJ Drez, plant their flag in progressive lands without ever leaving their purist home. All the traditional elements are present, including razor-sharp rhythmic offensives, crushing beats, lush soundscapes, and top-notch turntable techniques. The emcees expand the group's capacities by using radical approaches to broaden the scope of their lyricism. Each microphonist brings something unique to the table, and their generous compliment of guest stars, including Mystik Journeymen, Medusa, Awol One, Divine Styler and burgeoning superstar Eminem, secures an extensive variety of themes and rhyme styles. The Anonymous offer listeners something assertively different, yet comfortingly familiar. Their story began in Philadelphia in 1988 when Producers Vesuvio, from New York, and Zinndeadly, from Cleveland, met and began collaborating as college roommates. Together, they developed their style by incorporating samples of instruments, vocals, and sounds from all over the world -- years before Timbaland, Dr. Dre, and others would do the same. Bay Area emcee Able joined the group in 1994. Together Able & Vesuvio put words to their lush soundscapes. One of the first inter-racial rapping duos, Able & Vesuvio were met by a mixture of skepticism and spirited support from die hard Hip Hop crowds. Wearing their hearts on their sleeves, The Anonymous represented both a union of East/West coast at the height of its fracture and a clear alternative to the often vacant Rap music of the late 90s. After moving to Los Angeles, the crew released their debut album Swells of Abstract in 1995 and added DJ Drez and Mark Luv to their line up, forming the backbone of the group's 4-turntable live show while performing with The Black Eyed Peas, Dilated Peoples, KRS-ONE, Cutty Ranks, Rock Steady Crew, Medusa, and Biz Markie. The Anonymous released their second album Weep No More a year later and by 1996 had firmly established themselves on the West Coast underground scene. In 1998, they released their third studio album, Green and Gold, featuring collaborations with Eminem, Rakaa Iriscience of Dilated Peoples, Cut Chemist of Jurassic 5, and Living Legends. The Anonymous scored two Top 10 hits off the record: the title track "Green and Gold" featuring Eminem spent 15 weeks on the Rap Charts peaking at #9; and "Dr. EZ's Cool Fantastic", a double-sided 13-minute song featuring 18 emcees, which rose to #1 on mix-show charts nationwide. Dedicated, their fourth studio Lp, includes 14 unreleased tracks all recorded between 1999 and 2000 but unavailable until 2006. Together, their four full-length releases and three albums of instrumentals, The Anonymous took hip-hop into new, uncharted territory while leaving behind a unique and inspired collection of music. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.