Given Gotti's track record with success-story artists such as Ja Rule along with Ashanti's limitless talents, success came quickly for the young singer/actress/dancer. A duet with Ja Rule, "Always on Time," hit number one on Billboard's Hot 100 chart in early 2002 just as a duet with Fat Joe, "What's Luv?," was creeping toward the same number one chart position. These two airplay-heavy singles, of course, set the stage perfectly for Ashanti's self-titled debut release. The album's lead single, "Foolish," raced up the Billboard chart, entering the Top Ten in March alongside "Always on Time" and "What's Luv?," giving her three Top Ten songs in the same week.

Of course, Ashanti isn't an overnight sensation. Her music career began back in 1994 when her performance at a talent show caught the eyes of industry insiders. It wasn't long before she signed with a management team and began getting increasingly higher-profile gigs, eventually landing the opportunity to work with Gotti. In addition to her singing talent, Ashanti also trained as a dancer at the Bernice Johnson Cultural Arts Center, learning a number of dance styles. She danced most notably in Disney's Polly, which starred Phylicia Rashad, and also appeared in a number of big-name music videos, in addition to other dance work. As an actress, she made a name for herself with roles in Spike Lee's Malcolm X and Who's da Man before that

Before debuting with "Oops (Oh My)," Tweet had appeared alongside Elliott on "Take Away" (a single also featuring Ginuine from Miss E...So Addictive) and "X" (an album track from Ja Rule's Pain Is Love).

Cash Money Millionaires producer and Big Tymers member Mannie Fresh explains about Big Tymers' third album “ Hood Rich”. He describes a person who embodies qualities of both poor and affluent lifestyles. "Hood rich is pretending that you got it," Mannie said. "Hood rich is when you are living in the hood, and you got like a HUD house, and you got a Benz outside. That's hood rich. It just don't equal out. When your car cost more than 10 times what the house is worth."

Fresh, who formed the group with Bryan "Baby" Williams, added that he isn't condemning the way of living. "That's just the way it is in the hood," Fresh said. "That's not going to ever change. That's like any hood America. You go somewhere, they are going to have the flyest clothes, but the house is shabby. There's no way you can get around that. Now that's keepin' it real!

The irresistibly slippery "Ho Down" expands its fatback funk into a singalong chorus, while "Po Folks" is the sort of lazy country rap that's quickly becoming its own subgenre. And look out if the daring "Shoiz" gets released as a single; its stop-start synth groove makes it even catchier than the current hit "Awnaw," and just weird enough to blow up. But while the tunes don't all meet that high standard, the real strength of Nappy Roots is the unpretentious verses of R. Prophet, Big V, Skinny DeVille, Clutch, B. Stille, and Scales. Whether the topic's reality or just ridiculous, they're always looking out for the little guy--something bound to resonate with fans burned out on bad boys and bling bling

Shakira is perhaps best known for her landmark recording Pies Descalzos, a hybrid of rock, pop and Latin rhythms that sold over 3.6 million copies worldwide. Shakira blends American style pop-rock with traditional Latin rhythms, creating her own unique sound and forging new ground in the growing Latin music market in the United States. Shakira's career received a boost when she was named Latin Female Artist of the Year at the 1998 World Music Awards. Her fourth album, Donde Estan los Ladrones, reached the No. 1 spot on Billboard's Latin 50.