C‐Block

C-Block were a German platinum-selling hip-hop group, founded in 1995 by music producers Frank Müller, Ulrich Buchmann and Jörg Wagner. Fronted by Anthony "Red Dogg" Joseph and James "Mr.P" White the group is widely acknowledged as one of the most successful acts in the history of European hip hop culture. C-Block were one of the most well-known hip hop acts in Europe in the 1990s, who along with Down Low and Nana, signified the rise of the American-influenced rap music in Europe. The real breakthrough came with their single “So Strung Out”. This song hit the top 5 on the very popular chart, Viva Top100, and reached top 10 in many European countries. Since producer-driven, vocalist-fronted musical projects such as Snap! and C+C Music Factory had remarkable success in the early 1990s, producers Frank Müller, Ulrich Buchmann and Jörg Wagner decided to put together such a group in 1995. The Persian Gulf War had ended in 1991 and former American soldiers who had decided to remain in Germany were all over the country. Some of them were musicians who hadn't had a chance to capitalize off their talent back home and were willing to try a musical career in Europe. Anthony "Red Dogg" Joseph and James "Mr.P" White met in such circumstances and were recruited by Frank Müller to become part of his newly-created musical project. They chose the name "C-Block" and released their debut single, "Shake Dat Azz", a collaboration with Chicago rapper A.K.-S.W.I.F.T. in late 1996, which made a lasting impression on their European fan base. However, their greatest hits were only ahead of them at the time. "So Strung Out", featuring Raquel Gomez-Rey,a more rap-oriented single, was released as their sophomore effort and catapulted the group to European superstardom. Based on a Soul Searchers sample, already made famous by Eric B. & Rakim and Run-DMC, called "Ashley's Roachclip", "So Strung Out" was a soulful ode to drug victims across the world and had a lasting impact in the European rap community. Unfulfilled plans of a solo career made Mr.P leave the group in late 1997, being replaced by until then less visible project members Theresa "Misty" Baltimore and Preston "Goldie Gold" Holloway who had only recorded backing vocals and choruses for the C-Block debut album, "General Population", released in 1997. They all quit the project after the more pop-oriented, less successful second album, ironically called "Keepin' It Real". Mr.P returned to the group and tried to make a comeback with newly-recruited r&b singer Jeanine Love, but the released singles failed to make an impact commercially or critically and the group officially disbanded in late 2000. Frank Müller, one of the creators and producers of the group, released the group's third, shelved, album in late 2010 on the Internet. The followed up the success with another bomb-song “Time Is Tickin´ Away”, and it got as big, if not any bigger then the previous single. If you ask anybody about C-Block, the person probably would mention “So Strung Out” and “Time Is Tickin’ Away” directly. After that it was time for the debut album release. “General Population” hit the stores, and this album is one of the, if not the greatest album of the history of the European HipHop/Rap scene. The album contains, except for the 3 singles “So Strung Out”, “Time Is Tickin´ Away” and their fourth single, “Summertime”, super-songs like “Everything´s Good”, “Being Raised” and “Round N Round”. This is really something for the fans of European Rap & HipHop.