- O.C. (rapper)
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O.C. Birth name Omar Credle Born 1973 Origin Brooklyn, New York, U.S. Genres Hip hop Years active 1990–present Labels Wild Pitch Records
Payday Records
JCOR Records
Hieroglyphics Imperium RecordingsOmar Credle (born in 1973 in Brooklyn, New York), known by his stage name, O.C., is an American rapper who has been involved with several renowned underground hip-hop groups and also released many solo albums.
Contents
History
Recording career
Omar was born in Brooklyn in 1973,[1] and raised in the Bushwick section. In 1991, he made his recording debut on Organized Konfusion's "Fudge Pudge",[1] and one year later he made a featuring on the remix of MC Serch's "Back to the Grill" (which also features a very young Nasty Nas). By 1994, he had signed with Wild Pitch Records and recorded the album Word...Life which featured his most notable single "Time's Up". The album was critically acclaimed and remains beloved in hip-hop circles.
In 1996, Credle appeared on the Red Hot Organization's compilation CD, America is Dying Slowly, alongside Biz Markie, Wu-Tang Clan, and Fat Joe, among many other prominent hip hop artists. The CD, meant to raise awareness of the AIDS epidemic among African American men, was heralded as "a masterpiece" by The Source magazine.
In 1997, O.C. signed to Pay Day Records,[1] where he released his second album Jewelz — another critically acclaimed effort that kept O.C. headed in the right direction and featured collaborations with DJ Premier, Da Beatminerz and Freddie Foxxx. The album featured the single "Far From Yours", which peaked at #81 on the Billboard Hot 100. This is O.C.'s highest charting single to date. By this time, he was a part of the underground rap act known as Diggin' in The Crates together with legends like Lord Finesse, Showbiz & A.G., Diamond D, Buckwild and Big L. In 2000 the crew released their self-titled debut album through Tommy Boy Records on which O.C. featured on the majority of the songs. In 1998, O.C. was featured on Pete Rock's "Respect Mine" from Pete Rock's 1998 solo debut album "Soul Survivor".
The 2001 release of Bon Appetit was met with very mixed reviews; the negative accused O.C. of selling out with a polished, shining and toned-down sound. This was although Buckwild produced the large bulk of the album with the only help coming from Lord Finesse and Ahmed (pretty much the same formula that made Word...Life a success). After the disappointing release O.C. disappeared from the scene until 2005, when he released his fourth album with Grit Records; Starchild which only dropped as a very limited Japanese/European import and was met with great acclaim. Later that year, he signed with Hieroglyphics Imperium Recordings and teamed up with Bronx-native producer Mike Loe, and dropped Smoke and Mirrors.
O.C. is also known for his feature on the Clockers soundtrack as part of the Crooklyn Dodgers, which also featured rappers Chubb Rock and Jeru the Damaja on the now classic DJ Premier produced "Return of the Crooklyn Dodgers". This is however the only time the group has ever collaborated.
O.C. collaborated with fellow D.I.T.C. member A.G. for an album entitled Oasis. The bulk of the album was produced by French beatsmith E-Blaze with additional tracks supplied by Lord Finesse, Statik Selektah and Showbiz who also acts as the executive producer of the album.
Discography
Albums
Album information Word...Life - Released: October 18, 1994
- Certification: None
- Label: Wild Pitch Records
- Singles: "Born 2 Live"/"Let It Slide", "Time's Up"/"Time's Up (Buckwild Remix)"
Jewelz - Released: August 19, 1997
- Certification: None
- Label: Payday/FFRR/Polygram Records
- Singles: "Far From Yours"/"My World", "Can't Go Wrong"/"Dangerous"
Bon Appetit - Released: April 24, 2001
- Certification: None
- Label: COR Entertainment
- Singles: -
Star Child - Released: 2005
- Certification: None
- Label: Grit Records
- Singles: -
Smoke and Mirrors - Released: 2005
- Certification: None
- Label: Hieroglyphics Imperium Recordings
- Singles: -
Oasis - Released: November 24, 2009
- Certification: None
- Label: Nature Sounds
- Singles: -
Compilations
Album information Hidden Gems - Released: April 3, 2007
- Certification: None
- Label: Next Mill Entertainment
- Singles: -
Appearances
- 1991: "Fudge Pudge" (from Organized Konfusion: Organized Konfusion)
- 1992: "Back to the Grill" (from MC Serch: Return of the Product)
- 1996: Red Hot Organization America is Dying Slowly
References
- ^ a b c Bush, John "O.C. Biography", Allmusic, retrieved 2011-06-19
Albums Funky Technician · I'm Not Playin' · Return of the Funky Man · Soul Clap · Runaway Slave · Stunts, Blunts and Hip Hop · Represent · Word...Life · Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous · Goodfellas · Jealous One's Envy · The Awakening · Jewelz · Hatred, Passions and Infidelity · Full Scale · Don Cartagena · The Dirty Version · D.I.T.C. · The Big Picture · Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.) · Bon Appetit · Wild Life · Loyalty · Grown Man Talk · Starchild · All or Nothing · Street Talk · Smoke and Mirrors · The Diamond Mine · The Archives 1996-2000 · Get Dirty Radio · Me, Myself & I · Hidden Gems · Buckwild: Diggin' in the Crates · Live Hard · The Elephant in the Room · The Huge Hefner Chronicles · The Movement · Jealous Ones Still Envy 2 (J.O.S.E. 2) · Oasis: Together Brothers · The Darkside Vol. 1 · Nineteen Ninety Now · Buckwild Presents · Return of the Devil's Son · GodsvilleCategories:- 1972 births
- Living people
- African American rappers
- American people of Portuguese descent
- People from Brooklyn
- Rappers from New York City
- Diggin' in the Crates Crew members
- Members of the Nation of Gods and Earths
- Wild Pitch Records artists
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