AZ (rapper) Totally Explained

Everything about Az Rapper totally explained

Anthony Cruz (born March 9, 1972 in Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York), better known as AZ, is an American rapper currently residing in Englewood, New Jersey. He is well known for his association with Nas, his membership in the supergroup, and his many successful solo albums. AZ is known for his smooth, cadence of delivery. He is also known for his use of multi-syllable rhyme schemes, internal rhymes, unconventional rhymes, and a large vocabulary. Sylvia Dedeyan of AllHipHop.com, describes AZ as "the greatest rappers as far as lyrics and longevity", his style and flow are instantly recognizable and comparable to his friend and collaborator Nas.
   AZ was born Anthony Cruz to an African-American mother and a Dominican father. AZ first came to prominence by appearing on Nas' landmark album Illmatic on the song "Life's a Bitch" (1994)—he was the only guest emcee to appear on that album. After a bidding war, AZ signed with EMI, and soon released Doe Or Die (1995) to more critical acclaim than commercial sales. The album's lead single, "Sugar Hill", became AZ's only major commercial success as a solo artist, reaching the top 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and achieving Gold status. AZ's EMI contract was transferred to sister label Noo Trybe Records/Virgin Records when the EMI Label Group was shut down. In 1997, he and Nas appeared in an Sprite commercial.
   AZ's fanbase grew considerably after he joined, a supergroup comprised of AZ, Nas, Foxy Brown, and Nature, with Dr. Dre and The Trackmasters producing. The Firm's only album, The Album, was regarded as critically disappointing. Pieces of a Man, AZ's second solo release, didn't sell well. Independently, AZ released S.O.S.A. to little fanfare in 2000. Soon, however, AZ signed with Motown/Universal Records and released 9 Lives.
   In 2002, he released Aziatic. A single from the album, "The Essence," was nominated for the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. The video to its first single, "I'm Back," received moderate MTV2 play. AZ was supposed to release an album titled Final Call, around late 2004 or early 2005. Due to massive bootlegging, however, the album was never released. Instead, A.W.O.L. was released on September 6, 2005. This album featured many tracks that were on the unreleased Final Call, as well as some new ones—the first single was the DJ Premier-produced "The Come Up," and it became a moderately popular single.
AZ's sixth solo album The Format, was released on November 7, 2006. Since The Format, AZ has released a mixtape titled The Memphis Sessions and a J-Love mixtape titled The Return of S.O.S.A. His latest album Undeniable was released on April 1st, 2008 and was received moderately well by critics and fans alike.

Discography

Albums

Doe or Die
- Released: October 10, 1995
- Sales: 338,303
- RIAA Certification: Gold
- Billboard 200 chart position: #7
- R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #1
- Singles: "Gimme Yours"/"Uncut Raw", "Sugar Hill"/"Rather Unique", "Sugar Hill (Remix)", "Doe or Die"/"Mo Money Mo Murder "Homicide"
(with The Firm)
- Released: October 21, 1997
- Sales: 1,200,000
- RIAA Certification: Platinum
- Billboard 200 chart position: #1
- R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #1
- Singles: "Firm Biz", "Phone Tap"/"Five Minutes to Flush"
Pieces of a Man
- Released: April 7, 1998
- Sales: 244,419
- RIAA Certification: None
- Billboard 200 chart position: #22
- R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #5
- Singles: "Hey AZ"/"Sosa", "What's the Deal"/"Trading Places"

S.O.S.A. (Save Our Streets AZ) (EP)

Released: 2000
Sales: -
RIAA Certification: None
Billboard 200 chart position: -
R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: -
Singles: "I Don't Give a Fuck"/"Love Me in a Special Way"

9 Lives

Released: June 12, 2001
Sales: 217,282
RIAA Certification: None
Billboard 200 chart position: #23
R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #4
Singles: "Everything's Everything"/"At Night", "Problems"/"I Don't Give a Fuck"

Aziatic

Released: June 11, 2002
Sales: 205,297
RIAA Certification: None
Billboard 200 chart position: #29
R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #5
Singles: "I'm Back", "Wanna Be There", "The Essence", "Take it Off"

Decade 1994-2004

Released: October 12, 2004
Sales: 250,000
RIAA Certification: None
Billboard 200 chart position: -
R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: -
Singles: N/A

Final Call

Released: Unreleased (planned for 2004)
Sales: -
RIAA Certification: None
Billboard 200 chart position: -
R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: -
Singles: "Live Wire", "Magic Hour"

A.W.O.L.

Released: September 6, 2005
Sales:300,000
RIAA Certification: None
Billboard 200 chart position: #73
R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #17
Singles: "The Come Up"/"Magic Hour", "Still Alive"/"New York", "AZ's Chillin'"/"Never Change"

The Format

Released: November 7, 2006
Sales: 110,000
RIAA Certification: None
Billboard 200 chart position:
R&B/Hip-Hop chart position:
Singles: "The Format"/"Vendetta"

The Memphis Sessions (Official mixtape: Remixes over Al Green-inspired beats)

Released: 2007

Undeniable

Released: April 1, 2008
U.S. Sales: 12,999
Billboard 200 chart position: 1st week: 141 2nd week: 184
Singles: "Life On The Line"/"The Hardest", "Undeniable"/"Fire"

Appearances

1992: "Understanding" Nas Pre-Illmatic Demo Tape

1994: "The Genesis", "Life's A Bitch" Nas Illmatic

1995: "Wake Up Show Anthem" With Big L, Chino XL, Doug E. Fresh & Masta Ace DJ Sway & King Tech Wake Up Show 2

1996: "A+Z" A+ The Latch-Key Child

1996: "When The Cheering Stops" With Zhané, Ray Buchanan & Scott Galbraith V.A. NFL Jams

1996: "Lady [DJPremiere Remix]" D'Angelo Lady 12"

1996: "Album Intro", "Affirmative Action" With Foxy Brown & Cormega Nas It Was Written

1996: "La Familia" Foxy Brown I'll Be 12"

1996: "I Miss U [ComeBack Home Remix]" Monifah Moods... Moments LP/ Miss U 12"

1996: "Something About You [DarkchildRemix]" New Edition Something About You 12"

1998: "Head Over Heels [Trackmaster'sRemix]" Allure Head Over Heels 12"

1998: "Rock Me [JDRemix]" V.A. Caught Up OST

1998: "Promises" With LaTocha Scott Of Xscape & Ray Buchanan V.A. NFL Jams

1999: "Let's Live" With Animal The Union Hard Labor

1999: "24/7 [Remix]" Kevon Edmonds 24/7 12"

1999: "Thug Connection" With Kool G Rap Papoose Alphabetical Slaughter 12"

2000: "Takin' Ova Da Streets" The Bleach Brothers Takin' Ova Da Streets 12"

2000: "Groove On [Remix]" Half-A-Mil Groove On 12"

2000: "Quiet Money" Half-A-Mil Million

2000: "Quiet Money [BloodMoney]" With Animal & Half-A-Mil The Union Organized Rhymes

2000: "It's War" DJ Skribble Traffic Jams

2001: "Layaway" Jon B. Pleasures U Like

2001: "The Flyest" Nas Stillmatic

2002: "Holla Back" With Nawz & Tito Kool G Rap The Giancana Story

2002: "Keep On Lovin' You [Remix]" Dave Hollister Keep On Lovin' You 12"

2004: "Redemption" Cormega Legal Hustle

2006: "Professional Style" The Alchemist Chemistry Files

2006: "The Hardest Pt. I" Styles P The Ghost Sessions - Mixtape

2007: "No Holding Back" With Cormega Statik Selektah

2007: "Who Am I?" with Cormega & Nature Cormega

2008: "Too Real" Foxy Brown Bk's Don DivaFurther Information
Get more info on 'Az Rapper'.

External Link Exchanges

Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://az__rapper.totallyexplained.com">AZ (rapper) Totally Explained</a>

Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned.