Detroit's Most Wanted is an American hip hop group from Detroit, Michigan. Formed in 1986, the group pioneered Detroit hardcore hip hop.[1][2] The group was one of the first Detroit rap groups to secure a national record label deal, although they did not achieve national success.[2]
Motsi Ski met MC Lee at Cooley High School and DJ Dunkin Hines through a mutual friend.[2] The guys originally hated each other for a little while until they were able to put their differences aside and stop competing with each other for the attention of girls.[2] The trio formed Detroit's Most Wanted in 1986 and were financed by a local drug dealer through the making of their debut album.[2]
Tricks Of The Trades and Tricks Of The Trade, Vol. II: The Money is Made (1990-1992)
In 1990, DMW released their debut album Tricks Of The Trades. The album was independently released on Motsi Ski's label Bryant Records and the album became a local bestseller, even reaching #83 on the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart.[3] DMW signed to Ichiban Records and secured national distribution through them some time after and released their most successful album to date, Tricks Of The Trade, Vol. II: The Money is Made on April 6, 1992.[3] Like their debut, The album was well received in their hometown of Detroit and reached the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart, peaking at #58.[3] A music video for The Money Is Made was made and was able to gain some airplay locally in Detroit and nationwide. The video was shot on location in Atlantic City, New Jersey and was the first rap video to be shot in a casino.[4] At this point, The group began gaining a cult following that went beyond their hometown of Detroit and eventually earned the attention of MC Hammer.[2]
Break-up, DMW continuing on as a Motsi Ski solo project (1993-1997)
DJ Duncan Hines wanted to rap more on the group's songs but Motsi objected to this idea, thinking that Hines should focus more on being a DJ instead of a rapper, which would cause a rift in the group.[2] Then, MC Hammer began showing interest in the group and wanted to sign them to his record label Bust It Records.[2] However, group leader Motsi Ski turned down the offer citing a disapproval of Hammer's plans for the group which would involve a name change and a toning down of the group's lyrical content.[2] However, this did not stop DJ Hines and MC Lee from accepting the offer and the two left Detroit's Most Wanted to form Ditch Diggers on Hammer's label, Leaving Motsi as the only remaining member left in the group.[2] On March 29, 1993, DMW released its third album and its final one as a group, Many Faces Of Death, Vol. III.[2] The album was not as successful as the previous two albums as it did not chart on any of the Billboard charts but the album still sold pretty well locally in the city of Detroit. It was the final DMW album to be released through Ichiban Records. Now a solo project, Motsi used the DMW name for the fourth album which was called Bow The F--- Down.[2] It was released on May 16, 1994.[5] In the album, Motsi dissed his former partners DJ Duncan Hines and MC Lee in a remix to Legalize It as retaliation for them leaving taunting messages on his answering machine,[2] and also make fun of them in the album's liner notes by saying: Special shout out to them hoe niggas for going bootie i got tired of carrying yall hoes anyway bitch ass niggas. Despite this, the three always respected each other and still managed to keep in contact with each other after the break-up of the group.[2] On November 15, 1994, a compilation entitled Early Days was released and it featured songs from DMW's first two albums.[6] The final DMW album, Ghetto Drama, was released on January 9, 1996.[7] Throughout the mid-1990s, Motsi began experiencing legal troubles as he was incarcerated on separate occasions for marijuana possession, violating probation, and carrying a firearm as a convicted felon.[2] The DMW name was officially retired after Ghetto Drama and Motsi re-surfaced with his own name as a solo artist in the 2000s.
Reunion, Tricks Of The Trade, Vol. II Anniversary Edition, and recent events (2004-present)
In 2004, Motsi reunited with DJ Dunkin Hines and MC Lee and reformed Detroit's Most Wanted.[2] Shortly after the reunion, the group re-released their most successful album Tricks Of The Trade Vol. II: The Money Is Made on December 28, 2004.[3] This re-release, known as the Special Anniversary Edition, featured an updated version of the original album's cover as well as a bonus disc of nine new songs. The group planned to release a new album entitled Timeless,[2] but as of 2019, that album has never been released. On June 16, 2011, a new song by DMW entitled "Pay Homage" was uploaded onto YouTube.[8] Today, DMW occasionally performs in their hometown of Detroit. On May 25, 2012, DMW released Greatest Hits, which contained 15 of their best-known songs.[9] On November 14, 2012, DMW performed at the Detroit Old School Legends Of Hip Hop reunion party alongside other Detroit rappers such as Awesome Dre, A.W.O.L., Dice, and many others.[10] On March 4, 2014, The group released a second Greatest Hits album entitled Anthology which celebrated the group's 25th anniversary and featured 26 of the group's most well-known songs.[11]
^. Amazon. 6 October 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
External links
Allmusic entry
Discogs entry
January 20, 2023
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Detroit s Most Wanted is an American hip hop group from Detroit Michigan Formed in 1986 the group pioneered Detroit hardcore hip hop 1 2 The group was one of the first Detroit rap groups to secure a national record label deal although they did not achieve national success 2 Detroit s Most WantedAlso known asD M W OriginDetroit MichiganGenresHardcore hip hop 1 Years active1986 1993 2004 presentLabelsBryant RecordsIchiban RecordsMembersMotsi SkiMC LeeDJ Dunkin Hines Contents 1 Formation 2 Tricks Of The Trades and Tricks Of The Trade Vol II The Money is Made 1990 1992 3 Break up DMW continuing on as a Motsi Ski solo project 1993 1997 4 Reunion Tricks Of The Trade Vol II Anniversary Edition and recent events 2004 present 5 Discography 5 1 Studio albums 5 2 Compilation albums 6 References 7 External linksFormation EditMotsi Ski met MC Lee at Cooley High School and DJ Dunkin Hines through a mutual friend 2 The guys originally hated each other for a little while until they were able to put their differences aside and stop competing with each other for the attention of girls 2 The trio formed Detroit s Most Wanted in 1986 and were financed by a local drug dealer through the making of their debut album 2 Tricks Of The Trades and Tricks Of The Trade Vol II The Money is Made 1990 1992 EditIn 1990 DMW released their debut album Tricks Of The Trades The album was independently released on Motsi Ski s label Bryant Records and the album became a local bestseller even reaching 83 on the Billboard Top R amp B Albums chart 3 DMW signed to Ichiban Records and secured national distribution through them some time after and released their most successful album to date Tricks Of The Trade Vol II The Money is Made on April 6 1992 3 Like their debut The album was well received in their hometown of Detroit and reached the Billboard Top R amp B Albums chart peaking at 58 3 A music video for The Money Is Made was made and was able to gain some airplay locally in Detroit and nationwide The video was shot on location in Atlantic City New Jersey and was the first rap video to be shot in a casino 4 At this point The group began gaining a cult following that went beyond their hometown of Detroit and eventually earned the attention of MC Hammer 2 Break up DMW continuing on as a Motsi Ski solo project 1993 1997 EditDJ Duncan Hines wanted to rap more on the group s songs but Motsi objected to this idea thinking that Hines should focus more on being a DJ instead of a rapper which would cause a rift in the group 2 Then MC Hammer began showing interest in the group and wanted to sign them to his record label Bust It Records 2 However group leader Motsi Ski turned down the offer citing a disapproval of Hammer s plans for the group which would involve a name change and a toning down of the group s lyrical content 2 However this did not stop DJ Hines and MC Lee from accepting the offer and the two left Detroit s Most Wanted to form Ditch Diggers on Hammer s label Leaving Motsi as the only remaining member left in the group 2 On March 29 1993 DMW released its third album and its final one as a group Many Faces Of Death Vol III 2 The album was not as successful as the previous two albums as it did not chart on any of the Billboard charts but the album still sold pretty well locally in the city of Detroit It was the final DMW album to be released through Ichiban Records Now a solo project Motsi used the DMW name for the fourth album which was called Bow The F Down 2 It was released on May 16 1994 5 In the album Motsi dissed his former partners DJ Duncan Hines and MC Lee in a remix to Legalize It as retaliation for them leaving taunting messages on his answering machine 2 and also make fun of them in the album s liner notes by saying Special shout out to them hoe niggas for going bootie i got tired of carrying yall hoes anyway bitch ass niggas Despite this the three always respected each other and still managed to keep in contact with each other after the break up of the group 2 On November 15 1994 a compilation entitled Early Days was released and it featured songs from DMW s first two albums 6 The final DMW album Ghetto Drama was released on January 9 1996 7 Throughout the mid 1990s Motsi began experiencing legal troubles as he was incarcerated on separate occasions for marijuana possession violating probation and carrying a firearm as a convicted felon 2 The DMW name was officially retired after Ghetto Drama and Motsi re surfaced with his own name as a solo artist in the 2000s Reunion Tricks Of The Trade Vol II Anniversary Edition and recent events 2004 present EditIn 2004 Motsi reunited with DJ Dunkin Hines and MC Lee and reformed Detroit s Most Wanted 2 Shortly after the reunion the group re released their most successful album Tricks Of The Trade Vol II The Money Is Made on December 28 2004 3 This re release known as the Special Anniversary Edition featured an updated version of the original album s cover as well as a bonus disc of nine new songs The group planned to release a new album entitled Timeless 2 but as of 2019 that album has never been released On June 16 2011 a new song by DMW entitled Pay Homage was uploaded onto YouTube 8 Today DMW occasionally performs in their hometown of Detroit On May 25 2012 DMW released Greatest Hits which contained 15 of their best known songs 9 On November 14 2012 DMW performed at the Detroit Old School Legends Of Hip Hop reunion party alongside other Detroit rappers such as Awesome Dre A W O L Dice and many others 10 On March 4 2014 The group released a second Greatest Hits album entitled Anthology which celebrated the group s 25th anniversary and featured 26 of the group s most well known songs 11 Discography EditStudio albums Edit 1990 Tricks Of The Trades 1992 Tricks Of The Trade Vol II The Money is Made 1993 Many Faces Of Death Vol III 1994 Bow The F Down 1996 Ghetto DramaCompilation albums Edit 1994 Early Years 2012 Greatest Hits 2014 AnthologyReferences Edit a b Santori Davison Kahn March 9 2016 An instant lesson in the history of Detroit hip hop Metro Times Retrieved 2022 08 24 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Still wanted Detroit Metro Times a b c d Album Search for tricks of the trades vol 2 the money is made AllMusic Detroit s Most Wanted Biography amp History AllMusic Bow the Fuck Down Detroit s Most Wanted User Reviews AllMusic Detroit s Most Wanted The Early Years Discogs com Ghetto Drama Detroit s Most Wanted Songs Reviews Credits AllMusic DETROITSMOSTWANTED PAY HOMAGE YouTube Archived from the original on 2021 12 21 Greatest Hits Amazon com Retrieved 22 June 2021 Detroit s Most Wanted DMW Facebook com Amazon com Anthology Explicit Detroit s Most Wanted MP3 Downloads Amazon 6 October 2014 Archived from the original on 2014 10 06 Retrieved 22 June 2021 External links EditAllmusic entry Discogs entry Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Detroit 27s Most Wanted amp oldid 1106699341, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
