A one of the original rap collectives of the mid-nineties, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony or BTNHR for short make an initial impact only to disintegrate apart after various creative differences. Hailing from Cleveland, OH the band consists of Krayzie Bone (b. Anthony Henderson), Wish (b. Charles Scruggs), Layzie (b. Steve Howse), Fresh (Stanley Howse) and Bizzy (b. Bryon McCane). Specialising in R&B flavoured rap the five are quickly picked up by Easy-E and the Ruthless Records label. Their debut EP ‘Thuggish Ruggish Bone’ is released in 1994, followed by the album ‘E 1999 Eternal’ bringing the Grammy Award winning single ‘Tha Crossroads’. But there is devastating news when their mentor Easy-E is diagnosed with AIDS and dies in March 1995.
The loss of their main producer is followed by a raft of solo offering by all members. None of these manage to capture the success of the collective and problems with the record company ensue. The latter results in the setting up of their own label; Mo Thugs. When the ‘Art of War’ album is released in 1997 it becomes clear that all members have embarked on a different musical direction. The album sales are disappointing and further solo efforts follow. The collective do reconvene for two further collaborations but neither ‘BTNHResurrection’ nor ‘Thug World Order’ make any significant impact on the charts. However, their influence on rap/hiphop remains and the individual members, most notably Krayzie remains active on the recording front.
E 1999 Eternal (1995 Ruthless)
The Art of War (1997 Ruthless)
BTNHResurrection (2000 Ruthless)
Thug World Order (2002 Ruthless)
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