DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDREL

I remember Jeru as being one of the most outspoken MC's during Hip Hop's decline in the mid 90's.  While self-proclaiming himself as Hip-Hop's proverbial prophet and savior, he spoke out against all the industry fuckery that came in the form of shiny suits, mediocre lyricism and fascination with materialism.  

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 I guess we can compare it to what KRS-One had accomplished in the decade prior. We first witnessed Jeru's lyrical acrobatics on Gangstarr's Daily Operation album.  After striking a deal with Payday/ffrr in 1994, the result was his classic debut:  The Sun Rises in the East.  Some of his most noted stunts in the game was his criticism of the Fugees and Sean "Puffy" Combs.  Bear in mind that these were Hip Hop's more popular artists at the time.  His lyrical assaults on the mainstream forged his stance in the late 90's movement of new rap enlightenment.

Hailing from Brooklyn, Kendrick Jeru Davis began scribing his rhymes at the age of ten.  A pivotal point in his early rap ventures came when he met Guru and DJ Premier of Gang Starr.  This would lead to his guest appearance on Gang Starr's "I'm the Man," from the 1992 album Daily Operation.  In 1993 after touring, he released his solo debut, Come Clean on Gang Starr's Illkids label. Come Clean would eventually find its way into tape decks around the world and became quickly recognized as an underground classic.

With so much steam built up behind his Preemo produced single, Jeru added his punctuation after landing a deal with Payday Records.  With DJ Premier on the boards, The Sun Rises in the East became another example of how lethal the one mc/one dj formula is when the chemistry is right.  The well received LP still gets rotation til this day and is hailed by rap fanatics around the world as some of Premier's best works and definitely Jeru's best album.  Although the album was enjoyed by many in 94, there were still some people who were rubbed the wrong way.  To be frank, Jeru's female fans were offended by the song "Da Bitchez" even though he made it clear that not all ladies fall into the category.  Jeru continued to make moves that year.  His appearance on Digable Planets' second album (Blowout Comb) was a stand out collaboration.

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The follow-up, Wrath of the Math played well as a sequel to The Damaja's lyrical madness.  With DJ Premier on cruise control once again, Jeru understood that consistency was critical in keeping his product pure and uncut.  Both of these albums are considered Hip Hop classics.  The lyrics, beats, skits and imagery of Jeru's first 2 albums can never be duplicated.  The Dirty Rotten Soundrel's signature dreadlocks and kung fu outfits give rise to the chemistry.  The burning twin towers on the cover of his first album will always solidify Jeru's claim as the prophet who can't be stopped.