Artists like Jeru the Damaja

Gang Starr were an American hip hop duo, consisting of Houston-born record producer DJ Premier and Boston-based rapper Guru.

Smif-N-Wessun, also known as Cocoa Brovaz and Tek-N-Steele, is an American hip hop duo from Brooklyn, New York City. It is composed of rappers Tekomin "Tek" Williams from Bedford–Stuyvesant and Darrell "Steele" Yates from Brownsville. The duo comprise one quarter of supergroup Boot Camp Clik, together with Buckshot, Heltah Skeltah and Originoo Gunn Clappaz. Both members are known for their Jamaican Patois during their raps, which was more evident during the earlier stages of their career.

Brand Nubian is an American hip-hop group from New Rochelle, New York, composed of three emcees, and formerly three DJs. Their debut studio album, One for All (1990), is one of the most popular and acclaimed alternative hip-hop albums of the 1990s, known for socially conscious and political lyrics inspired by the teachings of The Nation of Gods and Earths. In 2008, About.com placed the group on its list of the 25 Greatest Rap Groups of All Time.

Heltah Skeltah was an American hip hop duo which consisted of rappers Jahmal "Rock" Bush and Sean "Ruck" Price. The two were also members of New York supergroup Boot Camp Clik, along with Buckshot, Smif-N-Wessun and O.G.C.

William Paul Mitchell, better known by the stage name of Large Professor, is an American rapper and record producer. Based in New York City, he is a founding member of the underground hip-hop group Main Source, and is credited with having discovered and mentored fellow New York City-based rapper Nas. About.com ranked Large Professor at No. 13 on its Top 25 Hip-Hop Producers list.

Pete Rock & CL Smooth were an American hip hop duo from Mount Vernon, New York. They made their debut with their 1991 EP, All Souled Out and followed that with their 1992 LP Mecca and the Soul Brother.

Maxwell Dixon, known professionally as Grand Puba, is an American rapper and record producer, best known as a member of Brand Nubian from New Rochelle, New York. He was formerly a member of Masters of Ceremony.

Aaron Ocosice Phillip, known professionally as Afu-Ra, is an American rapper. A member of the Gang Starr Foundation, he has worked closely with its members, including Gang Starr, Jeru the Damaja, Big Shug and Group Home.

EPMD is an American hip hop duo from Brentwood, New York. The duo's name is an initialism for "Erick and Parrish Making Dollars", referring to its members: emcees Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith. During an interview on college radio station WHOV in 1987, Parrish Smith stated that the name evolved from the original: "We were originally known as "EEPMD", but chose to go with EPMD because it was easier to say." He also stated that they dropped the two "E's" because N.W.A's Eric Wright was already using "Eazy-E" as his stage name. The group has been active for 39 years.

Lamont Coleman, known professionally as Big L, was an American rapper and record producer. Emerging from Harlem in New York City in 1992, Big L became known among underground hip-hop fans for his freestyling ability. He was eventually signed to Columbia Records, where, in 1995, he released his debut studio album, Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous. He was fatally shot in a drive-by shooting in Harlem in 1999.

O.G.C. is an American hip-hop trio composed of members Jack "Starang Wondah" Mcnair, Barret "Louieville Sluggah" Powell and Dashawn "Top Dog" Yates. The group is primarily known through their membership in the Boot Camp Clik, along with Buckshot, Smif-N-Wessun and Heltah Skeltah.

The Beatnuts is an American hip hop group and production duo from New York City. Its current members are JuJu and Psycho Les. JuJu is a Dominican American from Corona and Psycho Les is a Colombian American from Jackson Heights, Queens. Although only peripheral members, they are routinely acknowledged by Q-Tip as being members of Native Tongues. The Beatnuts were originally a trio before Fashion, now known as Al' Tariq, left the group to start a solo career. V.I.C. was also a member of The Beatnuts' production team for a while.

Peter O. Phillips, better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongside DJ Premier, RZA, and Q-Tip as one of the mainstays of 1990s East Coast hip hop production. He rose to prominence in the early 1990s as one half of the critically acclaimed group Pete Rock & CL Smooth. Early on in his career, he was also famed for his remix work.

Craig Jamieson Mack was an American rapper. He is best known for his tenure with Bad Boy Records, during which he released his 1994 single "Flava in Ya Ear" (1994), which peaked within the Billboard Hot 100's top ten. The song preceded his debut studio album Project: Funk Da World (1994), which spawned his second top 40 single, "Get Down". His second album Operation: Get Down (1997) was released by Scotti Brothers Records.

Mobb Deep were an American hip-hop duo formed in Queens, New York, in 1990. Consisting of rappers/songwriters/record producers Prodigy and Havoc, they are considered to be among the most influential artists in East Coast hip-hop. Mobb Deep are one of the most successful rap duos of all time, having sold over three million records. Their best-known albums are The Infamous (1995), Hell on Earth (1996) and Murda Muzik (1999), and their most successful singles were "Shook Ones, " and "Survival of the Fittest". They were known for their dark and hardcore delivery.

Clifford Smith Jr., known professionally as Method Man, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. He is a member of the East Coast hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, and is half of the hip-hop duo Method Man & Redman. His debut solo album, Tical (1994), peaked at number four on the Billboard 200 and spawned the single "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By", which won Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards. The song also peaked within the top five of the Billboard Hot 100; he and Blige later starred in Power Book II: Ghost, a spin-off of Power.

Main Source was a Canadian-American East Coast hip-hop group based in New York City/Toronto, composed of Toronto-born DJs and producers, K-Cut and Sir Scratch, as well as the New York City natives, DJ J.O.D and record producer Large Professor. Later, another Queens MC, Mikey D, replaced Large Professor.

We Are Scientists is a New York City-based rock band that formed in Berkeley, California, in 1999. It consists primarily of guitarist and vocalist Keith Murray and bass guitarist Chris Cain, with drummer Keith Carne joining the band in the studio and for live performances since 2013.

Shyheim Dionel Franklin is an American rapper from New York better known simply as Shyheim. He initially gained fame as a teenager, releasing his debut album AKA the Rugged Child at the age of 17 in 1994. He has spent the majority of his career affiliated with the Wu-Tang Clan, frequently collaborating with Method Man and Ghostface Killah.

Dilated Peoples is an American Los Angeles-based hip-hop trio, composed of rapper and record producer Evidence, rapper Rakaa, and Beat Junkies deejay and record producer DJ Babu. The group is better known in the UK, where they reached the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart with two tracks, "This Way" and "Worst Comes to Worst". Their songs were featured in the 2003 video games Need for Speed: Underground and NBA Street Vol. 2, as well as MLB 06: The Show.

Jean-Jacques Cadet, better known by his stage name J-Live, is an American rapper, DJ, and record producer.

People Under the Stairs was an American hip hop duo from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1997 and disbanded in 2019. Since their inception, the group consisted solely of Christopher Portugal and Michael Turner. The group employed a DIY work ethic of sampling, MCing, DJing, and producing all of their output.