Ohio rap collective Bone Thugs-N-Harmony rose to public prominence in 1996 with hip hop classic Tha Crossroads.
Krayzie Bone , Lazy Bone , Wish Bone and Bizzy Bone , hailed from Cleveland and were mentored by rap icon , N.W.A legend Eazy E. It was he that signed them in 1993.
Eazy E passed away due to AIDS in March 1995 , and it was a tribute record to his memory that rocketed his proteges Bone Thugs -N-Harmony to the top of the US Billboard Hot 100 a year later.
Such was its rapid rise to the summit of the US charts , it mirrored the successes of iconic tracks such as I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston and Cant Buy Me Love by The Beatles. Its accompanying video only further enhanced a stunning moment in hip hop.
The video saw a Reaper collect the souls of various individuals before the video ends with the Reaper revealed as an angel returning the dead to heaven.
It is by far , one of the most striking music video's of the 90's. No easy feat in itself , given how many classic videos were made throughout this golden age of music video. It was nominated for four MTV Video Music Awards , but cruelly walked away empty handed.
Tha Crossroads went on to become the 7th biggest selling single of 1996 in the USA. And at the 1997 Grammy Awards, the song was rightfully rewarded with a gong for Best Rap Performance by a Group/Duo.
Nearly 20 years on , it remains their crowning glory and a bona fide hip hop classic as well as a watermark for music videos.
The group though , never reached such commercial heights , but are on the verge of a welcome comeback.
On July 15, 2014, it was announced that Bone Thugs-n-Harmony will release their final album in 2015. There will only be one copy released, which will be auctioned off, with bidding starting at $1 million. The group will also conduct a 20 country world tour beginning in December 2014.[20] The following day, Krazyie Bone revealed that the album would be titled E. 1999 Legends. He then told XXL that he approached the group about a reunion album in the middle of last year, and they began recording it at the end of last year. He estimates that Bone Thugs-N-Harmony has probably recorded 75 to 100 songs since they begun recording it. The album will be a double-disc project. The first disc will be only Bone Thugs-N-Harmony records with no features and will be 18-20 songs. The second disc will be feature a large amount of big-name guest appearances such as Mariah Carey, Kendrick Lamar, Phil Collins, Wiz Khalifa, Drake, A$AP Mob and DJ U-Neek will be producing E. 1999 Legends along with Dr. Dre, who has some beats on the album.[21] On Valentine's Day, February 14, 2015 DJ Damizza officially presented their first single "More Than Thugs" which is slated to appear on the "E. 1999 Legends" album
Revisit the classic Tha Crossroads by Bone Thugs-N-Harmony below
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