Kurupt

Ricardo Emmanuel Brown, better known by his stage names Kurupt, Kurupt Tha Kingpin or Kurupt Tha Macc is an American rapper and former Executive Vice President of Death Row Records. He is a member of the rap group Tha Dogg Pound, and is mostly known for his work with Death Row Records.



Ricardo Emmanuel Brown was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and later moved to Hawthorne, California to live with his father. As a result, he has associated himself somewhat with Philadelphia and its rap scene, including Philly rappers such as Beanie Sigel; his first album, Kuruption!, was a double-disc that featured both east and west coast styles.

Kurupt was signed to Death Row Records in the early '90's, making up a core roster that consisted of himself, Daz Dillinger, Lady of Rage, Snoop Dogg and RBX, led musically by Dr. Dre. These artists gained maximum exposure by appearing on Dre's breakthrough album, The Chronic, during which Kurupt and Daz developed a close working relationship. After forming two-man crew Tha Dogg Pound, they were heavily featured on Snoop's debut Doggystyle, even given their own song alongside Rage, "For All My Niggaz & Bitchez."

After the signing of Tupac Shakur to Death Row in September 1995, a rivalry was sparked between Death Row and the east coast's Bad Boy Entertainment. Death Row became a divided label, with Suge Knight and 2Pac demanding every rapper on the label diss an assortment of east coast artists hailing from or affiliated with Bad Boy. Having already thrown in on the Ruthless Records/Death Row conflict, Kurupt and Daz joined in the feud with their single "New York, New York," featuring Snoop Dogg; the song was interpreted as a diss against NYC and although it did not diss anyone specifically, it incited the response "L.A., L.A." The duo's album, Dogg Food, became highly successful, despite being the first Death Row release not produced by Dr. Dre.

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