Black Moon: 5 Ft. Excellerator, DJ Evil Dee, Buckshot Shorty.Smif-N-Wessun: Tek & Steele (background vocals).Additional personnel: Big Dru Ha, Everette “D.E.A.” Lawson, Havoc, Mr. Walt, Lynn Blackwell (background vocals).Recorded at D & D, New York, New York.This is the defining album of East Coast crime rap, which was largely established by the Brooklyn-based Boot Camp Clik of MCs. ENTA DA STAGE is a classic in its genre, featuring deep-in-the-crates beats by DJ Evil Dee (who continues to have a presence in New York’s underground hip-hop scene), lurid street imagery delivered by MCs Buckshot and 5T and a flavor forever reminiscent of early-’90s New York.As much a social phenomenon as a congregation of MCs and DJs, the Boot Camp Clik spawned Smif-N-Wesson (who later changed their name to Cocoa Brovaz after the arms manufacturer commenced litigation), Heltah Skeltah and the Originoo Gunn Clappaz. ENTA DA STAGE contains the classics “Who’s Got Da Props?”, “How Many MC’s?,” “Buck Em Down,” (a perfect example of Black Moon’s fondness for choosing jazzy loops as the foundations for epic tales of criminal adventurism, a style perfected on “Shit iz Real”) and the contagious “I Got Cha Opin.” Buckshot and 5T’s delivery styles are somewhat monotonous compared to rappers who came after them and might best be described as “blunted,” but Evil Dee’s production style will remain as much a benchmark of NY beat-making as Beats By the Pound’s will of Southern playa rap.

• RSD Release Date: DDD
• Genre: Pop