08/11/2025
Early years
edit
The roots of Black Moon go back to Brooklyn's Bushwick High School, where Kasim "5ft" Reid and Ewart "DJ Evil Dee" Dewgrade met and formed a group called Unique Image. The two later met a former backup dancer Kenyatte "Buckshot" Blake in the Brownsville, Brooklyn and formed a friendship based on similar musical aspirations.[4]
The trio released their first single "Who Got da Props" in 1992,[5][6] which peaked at number 86 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.[7] With the help of DJ Chuck Chillout, the group signed a record deal with New York-based independent label Nervous Records, becoming the first hip hop act on then-house music-oriented record label.[8]
The group recruited Evil Dee's older brother Walter "Mr. Walt" Dewgrade for recording the pre-production of their debut studio album, which eventually led to the formation of hip hop production team Da Beatminerz between Dewgrade brothers. Black Moon premiered its debut studio album, Enta da Stage, on October 19, 1993,[9][10] including "Who Got da Props?", "Son Get Wrec", "How Many MC's...", "Buck Em Down" and another Hot 100 hit single "I Got Cha Opin (Remix)". The album featured guest appearances from Havoc of Mobb Deep, Nervious Records' intern and promoter Drew "Dru-Ha" Friedman, and debuting hip hop duo Smif-N-Wessun. Enta da Stage went on to sell over 350,000 copies in the U.S. Following the album's release, the group temporarily broke up.[2]
Departure from Nervous Records
edit
Member Buckshot and Dru Ha formed Duck Down Management in 1994 to formally manage Black Moon and Smif-N-Wessun.[11] The year 1995 saw the release of Smif-N-Wessun's debut album Dah Shinin' through Nervous Records' sub-label Wreck Records, which featured contributions from Evil Dee with his extended production team Da Beatminerz and Buckshot, who recruited fellow Brooklyn local groups Heltah Skeltah and Originoo Gunn Clappaz to form a supergroup called the Boot Camp Clik.[2]
Due to the group's hiatus, Black Moon refused to submit a new album for Nervous Records and were dropped from the label. However, in late 1996 Nervous Records released a Black Moon compilation album titled Diggin' in dah Vaults, which featured a number of remixes and b-side tracks. The album was not authorized by the group as the label bootlegged it and became entangled in a legal battle over the licensing rights of their group name, which lasted for a number of years. The case was finally settled in 1998, and the group was able to license its name through Nervous.[2]
In 1999, the group released its long-awaited second album War Zone through Priority Records. The album saw a change in the group's musical style, with a more mature and more serious lyrical delivery from member Buckshot, more vocal contributions from member 5 ft (who appeared on three songs from Enta da Stage and six songs on War Zone), and also featured a new lo-fi production sound from the original two members of Da Beatminerz.[5] Alongside several Boot Camp Click members, it features guest appearances from rappers Busta Rhymes, Heather B., M.O.P., Q-Tip and Teflon. Despite its singles "Two Turntables & a Mic" and "This Is What It Sounds Like (Worldwind)" made small impact on the Billboard charts, the album reached number 35 on the U.S. Billboard 200 albums chart and remains the group's highest charted full-length.
