Masta Ace – Music Man

From 1990 Album: “Take A Look Around”…..

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http://www.myspace.com/mastaaceofficial

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Masta Ace (born Duval Clear on December 4, 1966) is a rapper from Brooklyn, New York. He appeared on the classic 1988 Juice Crew posse cut “The Symphony”. He is noted for his high level of rapping skill and for influencing other MCs, including Eminem.

Clear graduated from University of Rhode Island in 1988, after meeting Marley Marl in 1987 during his summer break. Ace made his recording debut as Master Ace on the hip hop posse-cut “The Symphony”, along with fellow Juice Crew members Kyle Harris, Kool G Rap and Big Daddy Kane, released on Marley Marl’s In Control album. The album also featured two additional Ace tracks, “Keep Your Eyes on the Prize” and “Simon Says”. In 1989, he released his first solo single, “Together” b/w “Letter to the Better”. His debut album, Take a Look Around, was released through Marl’s Cold Chillin’ label in 1990, featuring production from Marl and DJ Mister Cee. The album featured two minor hit singles in “Music Man” and “Me & The Biz”, the latter being a track with Ace’s impersonation of Biz Markie, rather than a duet as previously thought the song would be.

In the early stages of his career, Masta Ace was very energetic (cf. “Jeep Ass Niguh”, where, tongue-in-cheek, he taunts police officers for their knee-jerk predisposition to harass black youth on city streets.) He also recorded material with a six-member supporting entourage, Masta Ace Incorporated. In light of his newly claimed status as a veteran, he has gravitated toward an earnest, matter-of-fact plainspokenness in the new millennium. Many of the songs that have lent newfound heft to his reputation are simple, no-nonsense rumination on feelings and facts of urban American life, including “Soda and Soap” and “Beautiful”.

During the years between his debut and his second album, Ace began having bitter feelings toward the commercial state of hip hop music, as well as the prominence of Gangsta rap, feelings which ruled the content on his second release, 1993’s SlaughtaHouse, with the loose concept of the album seeing Ace taking the fake “gangsta emcees” to his “SlaughtaHouse”. The album featured Ace’s new crew, Masta Ace Incorporated, which included Eyceurokk, Lord Digga, Paula Perry and R&B vocalist Leschea. The singles “SlaughtaHouse”, “Saturday Nite Live”, “Style Wars” and “Jeep Ass Niguh” were taken from the album. The latter featured an unlisted remix titled “Born to Roll”, which became a crossover single in 1994, peaking at #23 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[7] In the same year, Ace became a member of a temporary crew Crooklyn Dodgers, formed for the release of Spike Lee’s movie, Crooklyn, along with rappers Special Ed and Buckshot of Black Moon, and recorded the title track of the album soundtrack. The song became Ace’s second Hot 100 hit in 1994, peaking at #60 on the chart.

Ace furthered his mainstream appeal in 1995, with his radio-friendly Sittin’ on Chrome album. This effort was also released with the Masta Ace Incorporated crew, now also known as The I.N.C. The album was Ace’s most commercially successful release, breaking into the Top 20 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart. Sittin’ On Chrome included “Born to Roll”, as well as two other Hot 100 hit singles, “The I.N.C. Ride” and “Sittin’ on Chrome”. Following the album’s success, Ace had a falling out with I.N.C. members Lord Digga and Paula Perry, leading to the break up of the crew. After the split, Ace was largely missing from the hip hop scene over the next five years, save for a number of random vinyl singles. During his vinyl days, he bounced from a number of labels, releasing his “Cars” single on Tape Kingz Records, his “Yeah Yeah Yeah” and “NFL” singles on the Union Label, his “NY Confidential” single on Replay Records, his “Express Delivery” single on Three Sixty Records, his “Spread It Out/Hellbound” single on Yosumi Records, his “Conflict” single on Mona Records, his “Ghetto Like” single on Fat Beats, his “So Now U A MC” single on Bad Magic Records, and his “Brooklyn Blocks” single on Buckshot’s Duck Down Records.

Extended & updated info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masta_ace