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Cameron Giles, better known by his stage name Cam’ron (and previously as Killa Cam), is a Grammy-nominated American rapper and hip hop musician.

Born 4^th February 1974 in Harlem, New York, Giles took an interest in hip hop music from a young age. He soon began rapping and joined the group Children of the Corn in the mid-1990s, before being introduced to the Notorious B.I.G. and signing to Untertainment Records as a solo artist. He released his debut album Confessions of Fire in July 1998, which reached number six on the Billboard 200 and produced the hit single Horse & Carriage (ft. Mase).

In 2000 Cam’ron set up the hip hop group The Diplomats with childhood friends Joseph Jones II (aka Jim Jones) and Ezekiel Jiles (Freekey Zekey) – later adding the rapper Juelz Santana – and featured them heavily on his next two solo albums S.D.E. and Come Home With Me. The latter was his biggest hit to date, shooting to number two in the US charts, selling over a million copies and producing the US Top 5 hits Oh Boy and Hey Ma (both featuring The Diplomats).

Following this the rapper released two studio albums with the group – 2003’s Diplomatic Immunity and 2004’s Diplomatic Immunity 2 – producing the singles Dipset Anthem, I Really Mean It, Ground Zero, Bout it, Bout it… Part III (ft. Master P), Crunk Muzik, S.A.N.T.A.N.A. and Get Down. However, The Diplomats decided to take a break in 2004 so they could each pursue their burgeoning solo careers.

Since then Cam’ron has released a further three solo studio albums – Purple Haze, Killa Season and Crime Pays – including singles like Down and Out (ft. Kanye West and Syleena Johnson), Touch It or Not (ft. Lil Wayne) and Cookies-n-Apple Juice (ft. Byrd Lady and Skitzo). His latest album Gunz N’ Butta is due to be released in late 2010 and has produced one single to date: Speaking in Tungs (ft. Vado).

Artis Leon Ivey, Jr., better known by his stage name Coolio, is a rapper and hip hop singer.

Born 1^st August 1963 in Monessen, Pennsylvania but brought up in Compton, California, Ivey started rapping at a young age, and by his late teens was making regular appearances on the Los Angeles radio station KDAY. However, he soon got into dealing cocaine and ended up being charged by the police. He cleaned up his act and went to work briefly as a firefighter, before deciding to focus on a career in music. He self-recorded two singles in the late 1980s – Watcha Gonna Do and You’re Gonna Miss Me – and joined the rap group WC and the Maad Circle in 1991. They were reasonably successful and released two albums – Ain’t a Damn Thang Changed and Curb Servin’ in 1995 – before splitting up in the mid-90s, which led to Coolio signing a solo contract with Tommy Boy Records.

The singer’s debut album It Takes a Thief was released in July 1994. It reached number eight on the Billboard 200 and produced the singles Fantastic Voyage – a Hot 100 number three hit – County Line and I Remember. Next came 1995’s Gangsta’s Paradise, which also reached the Top 10 on the Billboard 200 and sold over two million copies worldwide. It produced the smash hit title single Gangsta’s Paradise – which shot to number one in over a dozen countries worldwide and became the biggest international chart hit of 1995 (and one of the most successful rap songs of all time) – as well as the Top 5 hit 1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin’ New) and the Top 30 single Too Hot.

Since the mid-90s Coolio has released a further five studio albums and scored hits with singles like It’s All the Way Live (Now), C U When U Get There (ft. 40 Thevz), I Like Girls, Gangsta Walk (ft. Snoop Dogg) and From The Bottom 2 The Top.

DeAndre Cortez Way, aka Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em (or simply Soulja Boy) is a Grammy Award-nominated American rapper and record producer.

Born 28^th July 1990 in Chicago, Illinois, Way moved to Atlanta, Georgia at the age of six. He soon became interested in hip hop music and, despite moving away to Batesville, Mississippi in 2004, continued to write and perform raps. His father built him a recording studio to help him achieve his ambitions.

Way immediately recorded a number of original rap and hip hop songs. In late 2005, he posted several of these on the music social network SoundClick, as well as establishing pages on YouTube and MySpace. In early 2007 he published the single Crank That (Soulja Boy) on the various sites and quickly gained a horde of admiring fans. This encouraged him to release his first independent mixtape – Unsigned & Still Major: Da Album Before da Album – later that year.

In just a short time Way had attracted a considerable amount of industry interest and signed his first professional recording contract with Interscope Records in April 2007 – at the age of sixteen. Crank That (Soulja Boy) was re-recorded and released in May, shooting to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and staying there for seven weeks – making Way the youngest person ever to write, perform and produce a number one single. This was followed by his debut album Souljaboytellem.com, which reached the Top 5 in the US – producing the further Top 50 singles Soulja Girl and Yahhh! and earning the singer his first Grammy Award nomination.

Way released his second album iSouljaBoyTellem in December 2008, along with the singles Bird Walk, Kiss Me Thru the Phone and Turn My Swag On. His third album Dre followed in June 2010 and has, to date, produced one Top 40 single: Pretty Boy Swag.

Massive Attack is the name of a British collaborative music duo, currently consisting of Robert Del Naja (known as D) and Grant Marshall (known as G). They have enjoyed immense critical and commercial success over twenty years working with a series of session musicians and guest vocalists.

The group was founded in 1988 in Bristol, England – originally as a trio that also included Andrew Vowles (known as Mushroom) – and self-released their first single Any Love (ft. Carlton McCarthy) the same year. In 1990 they signed to Circa Records and released their debut album Blue Lines – generally considered to be the world’s first trip hop album.

Blue Lines was a UK Top 20 hit and produced the singles Daydreaming, Safe from Harm and the Grammy Award-nominated Unfinished Sympathy. The latter is now regarded by a variety of sources as diverse as BBC Radio 1, MTV2, The Face and Melody Maker, as the greatest song of all time – and is also notable for its much-imitated one-take music video.

The trio’s follow up album Protection was a complex mixture of reggae, hip hop, R&B, synthpop, electronic and classical music, with a heavy use of string instruments. It was critically acclaimed and produced three singles: Protection, Karmacoma and Sly. This was followed by the 1998 album Mezzanine, which was another critical smash hit – named as one of the Greatest British Albums Ever by Q music magazine in 2000 – and also performed commercially, reaching number one on the UK Album Chart.

The group’s fourth album – and their first after the 1998 departure of Vowles – was released in February 2003. 100^th Window saw the duo’s music become increasingly experimental but, perhaps consequently, less commercially successful. However, the album did produce the single Special Cases (ft. Sinéad O’Connor), which reached number fifteen on the UK Singles Chart.

After a seven year hiatus, Massive Attack’s fifth studio album Heligoland was released in February 2010 and has produced one single to date: Splitting the Atom.

Jay Jenkins, better known as Young Jeezy (or formerly Lil J), is an American rapper. He is known as both a solo artist and as a member of the hip hop groups United Streets Dopeboyz of America (USDA) and Boyz n da Hood.

Born 12^th October 1977 in Columbia, South Carolina, Jenkins first came to prominence after the release of his 2001 debut album Thuggin’ Under the Influence (T.U.I.) This was followed by his next independent release Come Shop wit Me in 2003, before he signed with Bad Boy Records. He joined the rap group Boyz n da Hood for the release of their self-titled debut album – which reached number five in the Billboard 200 and spawned the singles Dem Boys and Felonies – before committing to a solo career.

Jenkins’ first solo release was 2005’s Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101, which reached number two on the Billboard 200. It produced three charting singles – And Then What, My Hood and Soul Survivor (ft. Akon), which reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100. This was followed by 2006’s The Inspiration (aka Thug Motivation 102), which reached number one on the pop album chart and produced the Top 20 hits I Luv It and Go Getta, as well as well as the R&B chart single Dreamin’.

After releasing his side project Young Jeezy Presents USDA: Cold Summer in 2007, which reached number four in the album charts and spawned the singles White Girl and Corporate Thuggin’, Jenkins returned to the studio to record his next solo album. Released in September 2008, The Recession hit the top spot in the album charts and produced several singles, including Put On, Vacation and Crazy World.

Jenkins is currently working on his latest album Thug Motivation 103, which is due to be released in late 2010/early 2011.

Clifford Harris Jr., better known as T.I., is a popular American rapper and hip hop singer-songwriter.

Born 25^th September 1980 in Atlanta, Georgia, Harris began rapping at the age of seven under the pseudonym ‘Tip’. After a troubled upbringing and eventful teenage years – during which he dealt drugs and was arrested on a number of occasions – Harris was eventually signed to LaFace Records in 2001. It was then he changed his name to T.I. to avoid confusion to rapper Q-Tip, who was signed to the same label.

T.I. released his debut album, I’m Serious, along with the title track, in 2001. Unfortunately, it was a critical and commercial flop – leading to him being dropped from his label. However, undeterred, T.I. formed Grand Hustle Entertainment and reappeared in 2003 on Bone Crusher’s song Never Scared. This led to him signing a joint venture deal with Atlantic Records, and gave him the financial muscle to release his debut album in 2003.

Trap Muzik, unlike his previous album, was an unqualified success. It debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 and produced the singles Be Easy, 24s, Rubberband Man and Let’s Get Away. He followed this with the release of his third studio album Urban Legend in 2004. It instantly became successful when the lead single Bring ‘Em Out reached number nine on the Billboard Hot 100, and the album ultimately sold over one million copies in the US. The track U Don’t Know Me also earned T.I. a Grammy nomination.

Since then, T.I. has been one of the biggest names in hip hop. His fourth studio album King debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and spawned the hit singles Front Back, What You Know and Live in the Sky, while his fifth album, 2007’s T.I. vs. T.I.P., produced the Top 10 hits Big Things Poppin’ (Do It) and You Know What It Is.

His latest album Paper Trail gave T.I. his first and second number one hits with Live Your Life and the Grammy Award-winning Swing Ya Rag, and he also scored Top 5s with the tracks Whatever You Like and Dead and Gone.