Digital Underground

Digital Underground, a shifting stable of rappers and DJ's led by Shock G, was founded in Tampa, Florida in 1987 by Shock G and radio DJ [a438803] (of the Tampa radio station WMNF 88.5). In 1989, Shock G and Kenny K temporarily relocated to Oakland, CA to begin recording their first album under the Digital Underground name. The group's music has always been heavily influenced by George Clinton and his groups Parliament and Funkadelic, in both Digital Underground's grooves and the surreal humor in their rhymes. Digital Underground's first record was the 1987 single "Underwater Rimes" by TNT Records. At the time of their first single, the group consisted of Shock G and [a198844]; by 1989, when Digital Underground signed with the record label Tommy Boy, there group had expanded to a total of seven members.

The group's first album was "Sex Packets" released in March of 1990 on Tommy Boy Records. The album's singles included "Doowhutchyalike" and "The Humpty Dance" showcasing Shock G's nasally prolific and lewdly humorous alter ego Humpty Hump. "The Humpty Dance" went to No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Rap Singles chart in April of 1990, pushing the "Sex Packets" album to platinum sales. The album was followed by the EP "This Is An EP Release" in 1991, featuring two songs ("Same Song" and "Tie The Knot") used in the bizarre dark comedy film "Nothing But Trouble", both of which were "performed" by the group in the film. The EP was Digital Underground's first release featuring their new member Tupac Shakur (also known as 2Pac) and the group [a257819]. The group's EP and their subsequent album "Sons Of The P" were awarded RIAA Gold certifications, with "Sons Of The P" single "Kiss You Back" also achieving an RIAA Gold certification.

However, as the 1990's wore on, mainstream interest in hip hop shifted and the more lighthearted and off-kilter music of Digital Underground was no longer as commercially viable as it had been just a few years prior. Despite debuting another successful solo rapper, Saafir, 1993's "The Body-Hat Syndrome" barely registered on the charts, and the group disappeared for three years before releasing "Future Rhythm" in 1996 and "Who's Got the Gravy?" in 1998.