On this day, June 22, in hip-hop history...

1993: Yo-Yo was already a hot commodity when she dropped You Better Ask Somebody, a 12-track banger laced with production and verses from fellow California emcee Ice Cube, Lay Low, QDIIII and more.

The third studio album from the South Central native was the first we heard from her since the release of 1992's ever popular Black Pearl. Yo-Yo served as one of the leading ladies in West Coast rap by this time, and solidified it with her sophisticated yet hard-hitting, story-telling tracks like "Westside Story" and her other lead single, "The Bonnie and Clyde Theme," assisted by Cube.

"Westside Story" finds the "Dear Mama" spitter thinking back on the men who enticed her with bars like "I remember the time my nigga had a G-ride, looking like the west side Bonnie and Clyde/Yep it was a Cutlass, and he'll knock your ass straight out like Dick Butkis," making a slick reference to the legendary NFL tackler. Yo-Yo appears more vicious on "The Bonnie and Clyde Theme" as she trades raps with her frequent N.W.A collaborator, portraying herself as the female lead of the notorious couple. "My gat is quite fat, don't you think so, ho?/But come out them clothes, my nigga can fit those/You ain't seen nothin' til' you seen us both jackin'/Pulling on the side of fools, straight ratpackin'," she spits with conviction. The single landed on the Billboard Hot 100 that year, peaking at No. 72 on August 28.

Other notable production on You Better Ask Somebody comes from The Baker Boys and QDIII, who collectively handled half of the album's head-bopping cuts, including "Can You Handle It?" and the funky "Macktress" with Cube and Krazy Toons, respectively. Yo-Yo continued to reign on the west coast for the first half of the 90s, leaving behind nearly a decade of classic rhymes and an officially unreleased album, Ebony, in 1998.

East West America/Atlantic
East West America/Atlantic
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