Artists like Mike D

Marlanna Evans, better known by her stage name Rapsody, is an American rapper. After signing with music producer 9th Wonder's music label It's a Wonderful World Music Group, she released a series of mixtapes and collaborated with Erykah Badu and Talib Kweli. Soon afterwards Rapsody released her debut album The Idea of Beautiful (2012). She would attain further prominence when she was featured on Kendrick Lamar's 2015 album To Pimp a Butterfly, on the track "Complexion ".

Young Fathers are a Scottish progressive hip-hop group formed in Edinburgh in 2008. Their second EP, Tape Two (2013), won the Scottish Album of the Year Award. In 2014, they won the Mercury Prize for their debut album Dead. A second album, White Men Are Black Men Too, followed in 2015. Their third album, Cocoa Sugar (2018), peaked at number 28 on the UK Albums Chart and earned the band their second Scottish Album of the Year Award. Their fourth album, Heavy Heavy, was released in 2023 and earned the band their third Scottish Album of the Year Award. The band composed the soundtrack for the 2025 horror film 28 Years Later.

Camae Ayewa, better known by her stage name Moor Mother, is an American poet, musician, and activist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is one half of the collective Black Quantum Futurism, along with Rasheedah Phillips, and co-leads the groups Irreversible Entanglements and 700 Bliss.

Sampa Tembo, known professionally as Sampa the Great, is a Zambian singer, rapper, and songwriter. Between 2014 and 2020, she was based in Australia. Her debut solo album, The Return, peaked at No. 12 on the ARIA Albums Chart. At the 2019 ARIA Music Awards she won Best Hip Hop Release for her second single, "Final Form". In the following year she won the same category for The Return, as well as Best Female Artist and Best Independent Release. In March 2020 Sampa became the first artist to win the Australian Music Prize twice: for Birds and the Bee9 and The Return. The artist was based back in Zambia from late 2020, where she issued her second studio album, As Above, So Below.

Tierra Helena Whack is an American rapper and singer. She originally performed under the stage name "Dizzle Dizz" as a teenager but reverted to her birth name in 2017. Her debut mixtape, Whack World, was released in May 2018 and received widespread critical acclaim. Her song "Mumbo Jumbo" was nominated for Best Music Video at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards. Whack has since collaborated with artists including Beyoncé, Alicia Keys, Tyler, the Creator, Chief Keef, and Melanie Martinez.

Jurassic 5 is an American alternative hip hop group formed by rappers Charles Stewart, Dante Givens (Akil), Courtenay Henderson, and Marc Stuart ; and disc jockeys Mark Potsic and Lucas Macfadden. The six-piece crew came out of the Los Angeles venue Good Life. The group broke up in 2007, shortly after releasing the LP Feedback, citing "musical differences," but returned to the stage in 2013 and released a new track in 2014. The members have continued to release music individually.

Mykki Blanco is an American rapper, performance artist, writer, poet and activist. He has collaborated musically with artists including Madonna, Charli XCX, Blood Orange, Michael Stipe, Kanye West, Teyana Taylor, Big Freedia, and Devendra Banhart.

Czarface is an American hip-hop supergroup formed in 2013 by underground hip-hop duo 7L & Esoteric and Wu-Tang Clan member Inspectah Deck. They released their acclaimed debut album, Czarface, on February 19, 2013. The album was followed by Every Hero Needs a Villain in 2015 and A Fistful of Peril in 2016, both of which were also praised by critics.

Digable Planets is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987. The trio is composed of rappers Ishmael "Butterfly" Butler, Mariana "Ladybug Mecca" Vieira, and Craig "Doodlebug" Irving. The group is notable for their contributions to the subgenres of jazz rap and alternative hip hop.

Yasiin Bey, formerly known as Mos Def, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. A prominent figure in conscious hip-hop, he is recognized for his use of wordplay and commentary on social and political issues, such as police brutality, American exceptionalism, and the status of African Americans in the United States.

Hieroglyphics, also known as the Hieroglyphics Crew and Hiero, is an American underground hip hop collective based in Oakland, California. The group includes founder Del the Funky Homosapien, fellow rappers Casual, Pep Love, and all four members of the group Souls of Mischief—Phesto, A-Plus, Opio, and Tajai—as well as DJ Toure and producer/manager Domino.

Public Enemy is an American hip-hop group formed in Roosevelt, New York, in 1985 by Chuck D and Flavor Flav. The group rose to prominence for their political messages including subjects such as American racism and the American media. Their debut album, Yo! Bum Rush the Show, was released in 1987 to critical acclaim, and their second album, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988), was the first hip-hop album to top The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics' poll. Their next three albums, Fear of a Black Planet (1990), Apocalypse 91... The Enemy Strikes Black (1991), and Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age (1994), were also well received. The group has since released eleven more studio albums, including the soundtrack to the 1998 sports-drama film He Got Game and a collaborative album with Paris, Rebirth of a Nation (2006). Their most recent album, Black Sky Over the Projects: Apartment 2025, was released in 2025.

Cypress Hill is an American hip-hop group formed in South Gate, California in 1988. One of the first Latin American groups to gain mainstream recognition in hip-hop, they have sold over 20 million albums worldwide, and have obtained multi-platinum and RIAA platinum certifications. They are considered to be among the main progenitors of West Coast hip-hop and 1990s hip-hop. All of the group members advocate for recreational marijuana use as well as medical marijuana use of cannabis in the United States. In 2019, Cypress Hill became the first hip-hop group to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Jungle Brothers are an American hip hop duo composed of Michael Small and Nathaniel Hall. Hailed as pioneers of the fusion of jazz, hip-hop, and house music, they were the first hip-hop group to collaborate with a house-music producer. The trio released their debut album, Straight out the Jungle, in July 1988. Their hip-house club hit single, "I'll House You" was added to the album in late-1988 reissues. Fostered by Kool DJ Red Alert, the Jungle Brothers' success influenced De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, and eventually the Native Tongues collective that they founded.

House of Pain was an American hardcore hip-hop trio. They are also regarded as pioneers of Irish rap due to their Celtic aesthetics. Consisting of DJ Lethal, Danny Boy and Everlast, they released three albums: House of Pain (1992), Same as It Ever Was (1994) and Truth Crushed to Earth Shall Rise Again (1996). They are best known for their 1992 hit single "Jump Around", which reached number 3 in the United States, number 6 in Ireland, and number 8 in the United Kingdom.

Man/Woman/Chainsaw is an English rock band from London, founded in 2019. The band are currently signed to Fiction Records.

Ibibio Sound Machine is an English electronic afro-funk band from London. The band currently consists of vocalist Eno Williams, guitarist Alfred Kari Bannerman, percussionist Afla Sackey, drummer Joseph Amoako, bassist Philip PK Ambrose, trombonist/keyboardist Tony Hayden, trumpeter/keyboardist Scott Baylis and saxophonist/keyboardist Max Grunhard.