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Geto Boys
From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist
The Geto Boys were an American rap group from Houston, Texas. The group began in 1986 under the name Ghetto Boys, with, among others, DJ Ready Red and the dancer who later became Bushwick Bill. Their first single was Car Freak in 1986, and their debut album Making Trouble followed in 1988. It attracted little attention and the group split up, after which a new line-up formed. The best-known line-up consisted of Bushwick Bill, Willie D and Scarface.
Music and breakthrough
Their breakthrough came with the albums Grip It! On That Other Level from 1989 and We Can't Be Stopped from 1991. The latter contains Mind Playing Tricks on Me, their biggest hit, which reached number twenty-three on the Billboard Hot 100. The cover shows Bushwick Bill, who had lost an eye in a shooting, in a hospital bed. Till Death Do Us Part, The Resurrection and Da Good da Bad & da Ugly followed, among others. The group remained active until Bushwick Bill died in 2019.
Influence
The lyrics dealt with violence, sex, mental health problems and addiction, but also with police violence and the consequences of violence in the city. In doing so the Geto Boys pushed gangsta rap to the limit, and politicians in the United States sharply criticised them for it. Their soulful sound put Houston on the hip hop map and later inspired artists such as 2Pac, Eminem, UGK and T.I.
Listening
Discography
Studio albums
- 1988Making Trouble
- 1989Grip It! On That Other Level
- 1991We Can’t Be Stopped
- 1993Till Death Do Us Part
- 1996The Resurrection
- 1998Da Good da Bad & da Ugly
- 2005The Foundation
Mentioned in other articles
- Southern hip hop and crunk Genre
From the late 1980s, the southern United States also developed its own hip hop: Geto Boys in Houston, Three 6 Mafia in Memphis and OutKast in Atlanta, who made their debut in 1994.