21 New Jersey Anthems – Hip-Hop’s Forgotten State Gets Its Props

 •  Bloggers  •  by XXL Staff  •  27 Comments

Artifacts, “Wrong Side of the Tracks” (1994, Between a Rock and a Hard Place)
Reppin’ Newark, NJ

The Fugees, “Nappy Heads” (1994, Blunted on Reality)
Reppin’ South Orange, NJ

Miilkbone, “Keep it Real” (1995, Da Milkrate)
Reppin’ Perth Amboy, NJ

Naughty By Nature, “Craziest” (1995, Poverty’s Paradise)
Reppin’ East Orange, NJ

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  • Medai Anarchist

    Jersey has never been forgotten. The problem has always been New York’s ego, that has left them now being the forgotten state! Shout out to the 908 and the 201!

  • Krusher Kronkite

    Jersey has always been in the buildin!

  • ff1one@yahoo.com

    Born in Jersey Raised in da South, i gotta say Redman Reps Jersey the hardest BUT this was a great list. Gotta respect Naughty By Nature. I swear i thought Hip Hop Horray was the greatest song ever. I serioulsy wrote it on my my bedroom wall in my mama house. smh. good times.

    • VR

      Great list! But now Double X Posse!!! “Nah Baby, I’m not gone be able to do it!!”

      And I still rock to “Wrong Side of the Tracks!”

      • that nigga

        That would be the Artifacts “Wrong Side of the Tracks”.

  • http://xxlmag jayruckNYC

    Since when is King Sun from Jersey? He has always repped The Bronx.

  • El Tico Loco

    R.I.P. Apache

    But where’s TI, I mean Lakim Shabbazz?

  • that nigga

    Nice….Im from Englewood, NJ. And King Sun is from Jersey. I remember Redman whooped his ass. I remember Redman and Treach fucked up DJ S&S at the Rink. Jersey bitches. Damn homie, I live off Route 4 West by the Rout 4 Diner. Stay up Matt Barone, its funny you have that name and are a journalist, I know you get the Ray Barone jokes a lot.

    • http://xxlmag jayruckNYC

      Tell him to stop repping the BX then. lol.

  • beaver

    all i can say is joe budden..

    i hated that fire track though,
    but joey is still my fav emcee..he reps jersey hard as fuck..

  • WURK

    YO Matt, I must commend you for writing this story. Even though your from our home state(so some will say your bias), you wrote this story well before it’s time. Anyone who chooses to take a closer look will notice the tide is turning with all the media coverage with the numerous Jersey based shows as you pointed out. If you look at the history it’s obvious we’ve had some of the most talented and influential male/female artist in the game. Our rise to prominence will be in high gear the next two years.(so this story was perfect timing).All we need to be is unified as they are in the south, and also it would be nice to have the assistance from our brothers on the other side of the tunnel, being that they run our radio stations but you know how they are.No matter what happens Jerseys next up! Mark my words we’ll have a NJ rapper in the freshman class of 2012. Speard that Jersey Love

  • WURK

    YO Matt, I must commend you for writing this story. Even though your from our home state(so some will say your bias), you wrote this story well before it’s time. Anyone who chooses to take a closer look will notice the tide is turning with all the media coverage with the numerous Jersey based shows as you pointed out. If you look at the history it’s obvious we’ve had some of the most talented and influential male/female artist in the game. Our rise to prominence will be in high gear the next two years.(so this story was perfect timing).All we need to be is unified as they are in the south, and also it would be nice to have the assistance from our brothers on the other side of the tunnel, being that they run our radio stations but you know how they are.No matter what happens Jerseys next up! Mark my words we’ll have a NJ rapper in the freshman class of 2012. Spread that Jersey Love

  • wesley

    they’re not thought of because they havent had alot of mainstream rap artists. people have only heard of naughty by nature and redman. And both of them are really old. allot of people under age 25 cant even name a song by either of them. they might have a great underground, but most people dont know underground artists. thats why its called UNDERground.

  • The Decatur Dictator

    Chief Rocka!!! The Lords of the underground made you feel like putting on Hoods and Tims and stand in the street like #1 Chief Rocka!”

  • brand-new

    shout out to new jersey, i was born in willingboro, 856, 609 stand up!!

  • El Tico Loco

    Mr Wesley

    You make your post sound like is a bad thing to not have mainstream artists, is actually good and refreshing to see that there’s some rappers that still stay true to themselves, if you noticed most of NJ’s rappers never try to go mainstream if anything, mainstream comes to them. So I really doubt anybody up there could care less about mainstream, which explains all the people that have been insulted by a Chino XL punchline, or Lauren Hill’s hiatus, or Joe Budden getting at Jay instead of kissing up to him like the rest of the industry, come to think about it the same can be said about Detroit. But you’re right, most people don’t know underground artists you gotta think for yourself to get into it, if you only listen to what the industry tells you you’re suppose to like, you will never experience the exclusivity of being an underground head you just rolling with the sheep.

    • http://www.emcdl.com EmCDL

      ^^^this

      Truer words have never been spoken

  • Q461

    The problem is Jersey just got outshined by NY. more niggaz came out of NY around the time cats from Jersey were really reppin hard.

    Lords of the Underground were dope as fuck.Artifacts kicked that raw b-boy underground shit, Naughty is prob the greatest group of all time reppin jersey, love that new album name Garden State Greats. Can’t forget Redman of course. I think Das Efx might have been from Jerz. Jumpoff Joe Budden still reppin NJ hard yo.

    2 boom bap classics I’m surprised you had here:

    Queen Latifah-Jersey
    Miilkbone-Keep it real

    those joints go hard!!! Nigga musta been diggin in the crates hard to find tose old gems.

    • http://xxlmag jayruckNYC

      With Das only one was from Jersey. Drayz was from Teaneck. Skoob is from Crown Heights Brooklyn.

  • No Name

    A Jersey list without anything from Redman earlier than the Doc’s Da Name album? Blasphemy. “Rockafella” at the very least deserves to be on this list.

  • http://www.myspace.com/slotchmusic ms_spittuh

    Most of y’all who know I post under shit like this know that this TX girl will admit to Redman crushing all of our emcees with a smile, but why is that the only Redman song? Hell why not Creepin? My brother-in-law is from Jersey and we had this same discussion and he said Funk Doc. But at least put Tonight’s The Night or Funkarama on there. Hell I would take anything from Gilla House than some of the shit they play down here for godssake! But other than that nice list!

    • http://xxlmag jayruckNYC

      c’mon they wanted to diversify the list a lil. You can’t put but so many Redman songs. We all know he has enough songs to fill the whole list but they wanted to give other cats from jersey they due….

  • MindState

    Cosign, ms_spittuh on Redman’s “Creepin” That’s my muthafuckin shit! And “Tonight’s the Night” I love “No Complex”. “Here To Save You All” is a great fuckin album. Chino should been a lil bigger in my opinion. I could go on.. But yeah, Jersey yo..

  • oskamadison

    I rest in the 336 (Winston-Salem, NC, to be exact) but I’m from the 201 (Jungle City, y’all). Here’s a couple of forgotten Jersey joints from the 14B side:

    OG Flavor Unit, stand up: Latee-”This Cut’s Got Flavor”, “No Tricks”‘ Chill Rob G-”Court Is Now In Session”, hell, the whole “Ride The Rhythm” album, Lord Alibaski-”Top Gun” (note: you had Apache up in there but these cats deserve some burn too.)
    Can’t forget Double XX Posse “Knock ‘Em Out Sugar Ray”, “Executive Class”, “Not Gonna Be Able To Do It”.
    Y’all might not know this cat this is my dude so I gotta put him up there: Low Kash-”Playtime’s Over”, “Rest In Peace”.

    Good Outsidaz representation but you forgot Pacewon’s “I Declare War”. Good post.

  • http://worlddiscoveryti.info/ Kurt Raschilla

    Why do this article reminds me of some other equivalent the one that Someone said some place else?

  • http://brainstormlive.com/d/pg/groups/5811/hitchcock/ hitchcock

    I really never forget hip hop of 21 new jersey anthems.i really like the hip hop song and when i heard then my legs cant stop. and i dance.

  • that dude

    Jersey.