Busta Rhymes emerged as one of the most idiosyncratic personalities of Rap’s golden era with his halting, ragga-inspired style and lyrics defined by incredible complexity, inventiveness and humor. After rising to prominence with his group Leaders of the New School, Busta broke out solo in 1996 with a massive hit single, “Woo-Hah!! Got You All in Check.” Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, he was a force to be reckoned with, topping the charts with his albums and debuting at No. 1 in 2006 with his seventh studio album, The Big Bang. In the years that followed, he worked as a producer while also pursuing roles in film and television, remaining sporadically active with his own music with releases like 2020’s Extinction Level 2 Event: The Wrath of God.

While Atlanta and Houston artists were establishing their cities as Southern strongholds, Rick Ross put Miami back in Rap’s national spotlight with platinum-selling “Hustlin’” (2006). The rapper became not only a Hip-Hop fixture but an unlikely Pop star as well. Debut smash Port of Miami, and all nine of Ross’s subsequent studio albums, including the GRAMMY-nominated God Forgives, I Don’t (2012) and Port of Miami 2 (2019), have entered the Top Ten of the Billboard 200, promoted with high-rolling, RIAA-certified singles such as “The Boss” and “Aston Martin Music.” His multitude of guest verses have likewise supported hits by the likes of DJ Khaled (beginning with “We Takin’ Over”), Kanye West (“Monster”), Maybach’s French Montana (“Pop That”), Ace Hood (“Bugatti”) and Chris Brown (“New Flame”). Ross carried his success into the next decade with 2021’s Richer Than I Ever Been.