Canibus

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Government Name
Germaine Williams (A.K.A. Rip The Jacker) (Born in 1974 in Jamaica)

Groups
Four Horsemen/The HRSMN:
Ras Kass (A.K.A. Razzy Kazzy & Ras Kassiano) (Born John Austin IV, September 26, 1973 in Watts, CA)
Kurupt (A.K.A. Young Gotti) (Born Ricardo Brown, November 23, 1972 in Philadelphia, PA)
Killah Priest (Born Walter Reed, August 16, 1970 in Brooklyn, NY)
Canibus (A.K.A. Rip The Jacker) (Born Germaine Williams in 1974 in Jamaica)

The Undergods:
The Undergods

Keith Murray (Born September 13, 1974 in Central Islip, NY)
Canibus (A.K.A. Rip The Jacker) (Born Germaine Williams in 1974 in Jamaica)

T.H.E.M.:
(Acromym: The Heralds Of Extreme Metaphors)
Canibus (A.K.A. Rip The Jacker) (Born Germaine Williams in 1974 in Jamaica)
Webb

Cloak-N-Dagga:
Canibus (A.K.A. Rip The Jacker) (Born Germaine Williams in 1974 in Jamaica)
Phoenix Orion

See Also: Ras Kass, D.P.G.C./213, Wu-Tang Killa Bees, Keith Murray, Def Squad, Kool G. Rap & Public Enemy

Canibus

Albums
Canibus - Can-I-Bus
Canibus - 2000 B.C. (Before Can-I-Bus)
Canibus - "C" True Hollywood Stories
Canibus - Rip The Jacker
Canibus - Mind Control
Canibus - Mic Club: The Curriculum
Canibus - For Whom The Beat Tolls
Canibus - Melatonin Magik
Canibus - C Of Tranquility
Canibus – Lyrical Law
Four Horsemen - The Horsemen Project
The Undergods - Canibus & Keith Murray Are The Undergods
Undergods - In Gods We Trust, Crush Microphones To Dust

Mixtapes
Canibus - Brainstream
Canibus - My Name Is Nobody
Canibus - Deathwish
Canibus - Cthulhu Hands
Canibus – Training Ops

Also Featured On...
Akon - In My Ghetto Volume 2
Army Of The Pharaohs - Rare Shit, Collabos, And Freestyles
Bronze Nazareth - School For The Blindman
Bulworth
Chino XL - The Messiah
Chino XL - The Latin AmeRICAN
Common - One Day It'll All Make Sense
Common - Communication
Crooked I - Evolution Of A Boss Mixtape
Disses & Hot Shit Cornerstore Mixtape Vol. 3
DJ Clue? - The Professional
Drop The Beat
Eightball - Lost
The Firm - The Album
Wyclef Jean - Gone 'Till November (Single)
Jedi Mind Tricks - Visions Of Gandhi
Killah Priest - The 3 Day Theory
LL Cool J - Phenomenon
M-Eighty Presents The Academy
Papoose - The Beast From The East
Vinnie Paz - Fires Of The Judas Blood
Pharoahe Monch - Internal Affairs
Pras - Ghetto Supastar
Ras Kass - Nature Of The Threat
Ras Kass - Rarities
Ras Kass - Guess Who's Back: 2005 Mixtape Songs & Freestyles
Rhyme & Reason
Slick Rick - The Art of Storytelling
The Source Presents Hip Hop Hits Volume 2
Sprung
Sticky Fingaz - Black Trash: The Autobiography Of Kirk Jones
Sway & King Tech Featuring DJ Revolution - This Or That
Sway & King Tech - Back 2 Basics
Termanology - Hood Politics V

Bio From AllMusic.Com
Though heralded as a prospective talent at the time of his major-label debut in 1998, Canibus nonetheless became little more than a momentary phenomenon as his subsequent work failed to match the hype surrounding him. Following some underground work and cameo appearances, most notably on Wyclef Jean's "Gone Till November" remix in 1997, Canibus feuded famously with LL Cool J. The resulting exchanges — Canibus' "Second Round K.O." and LL's "The Ripper Strikes Back," both spirited battle tracks — garnered significant attention and, of course, promotion as well. Expectations were therefore high when Canibus unleashed his Wyclef-produced debut full-length, Can-I-Bus (1998), shortly afterward on Universal. Critics unfortunately panned the album and listeners did so as well, so Canibus receded from the spotlight quickly. He returned two years later with his follow-up for Universal, 2000 B.C., but it too found little embrace, and Canibus soon found himself returning to the underground circuit from which he came. He interestingly sought to battle his way back into the spotlight as he originally had, ultimately confronting Eminem of all rappers. The tactic proved fruitless, though, and alienated Canibus even further from the mass market. Even so, he retained a cultish following and continued to release albums independently of the majors, occasionally firing off more of the battle raps he remains most known for.

Born Germaine Williams in 1974 in Jamaica, Canibus moved to the United States with his mother at a young age. Because his mother's career required constant relocation, the family moved frequently and the soon-to-be rapper found solace within himself. His rhetorical abilities blossomed later, once hip-hop became the guiding force in his life. He began rhyming and in the mid-'90s joined a group called T.H.E.M. (The Heralds of Extreme Metaphors), which consisted also of his partner Webb. Following a fallout with his partner, Canibus pursued a solo career and began infiltrating the mix-tape circuit. By 1997, he had approached the brink of the major-label rap game, guesting regularly on high-profile releases: He contributed to "Uni-4-orm," an inclusion on the Rhyme & Reason soundtrack also featuring Heltah Skeltah and Ras Kass; "Love, Peace & Nappiness," an inclusion on the Lost Boyz's Love, Peace & Nappiness also featuring Redman and A+; "Making a Name for Ourselves," an inclusion on Common's One Day It'll All Make Sence; the non-album remix of Wyclef Jean's "Gone Till November"; and most famously, "4, 3, 2, 1," an inclusion on LL Cool J's Phenomenon also featuring Redman, DMX, and Method Man.

Of the several guest appearances, "4, 3, 2, 1" certainly meant the most, as it brought together many of New York's preeminent hardcore rappers and thus ushered Canibus into that same elite class. At the same time, however, Canibus lashed out shortly afterward with the Mike Tyson-featuring "Second Round K.O.," where he rhymed, "So I'ma let the world know the truth, you don't want me to shine/You studied my rhyme, then you laid your vocals after mine." In fact, the entirety of the song directed barbed rhymes at LL: "You walk around showin' off your body cause it sells/Plus to avoid the fact that you ain't got skills/Mad at me 'cause I kick that shit real niggaz feel/While 99 percent of your fans wear high heels," and so on. Shortly thereafter, LL sought his revenge, releasing "The Ripper Strikes Back" on the Survival of the Illest soundtrack (1998) and thus channeling even more attention toward Canibus. From the track's chorus ("Can-I-bus? Yes you can!") to practically every line of the verses ("You soft as a newborn baby takin' a nap/Make my dick hard with that bitch-ass track/Where you at? smokin' in some one-room flat/Suckin' on Clef's dick hopin' to come back"), LL unleashed a fury of insults and threats. The media, of course, elevated the battle to grand heights, as even MTV gave the story headlines. In the aftermath of 2Pac's and Biggie's deaths, such confrontations fascinated the rap community, and Canibus certainly capitalized on his newfound publicity.

As for his debut full-length, Can-I-Bus (1998), though, the response was sobering. Critics expressed little support, and sales quickly dropped as listeners also felt genuinely disappointed. Executive produced by Wyclef, the album suffered on many levels, both production-wise and rhetorically as well (critics targeting Canibus' delivery more than his lyrics or themes). The momentum that "Second Round K.O." had generated simmered almost immediately, and it didn't help that LL's "Ripper Strikes Back" found substantial acceptance at the time as well. In the two years following the release of Can-I-Bus, the rapper maintained an extremely low profile, much in contrast to the regular guest appearances he had made leading up to his debut. As a result, when he finally did return with his follow-up album, 2000 B.C. (2000), few noticed, it came and went generally unheard, and Canibus returned to the underground after parting ways with Universal. He continued to record albums and release them on the independent circuit (including 2002's Mic Club, 2003's Rip The Jacker, and 2005's Mind Control). On 2010's Melatonin Magik, his confrontational nature led to swipes at D12 and Eminem, but he was no lone wolf. The 2011 releases Lyrical Warfare and Rip the Jacker II: Infinity saw him working beside the likes of Killah Priest, Ras Kass, and Royce da 5'9". In 2011, he partnered with Keith Murray for the Undergods project and the album In Gods We Trust, Crush Microphones To Dust. — Jason Birchmeier

Official Sites: MySpace, Facebook, Fuckin' Twitter, The Undergods' MySpace & The Undergods' Facebook

Canibus

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