N2Deep

In the early 1990s, trailblazing Chicano gangsta rap duo N2Deep secured a contract with Profile Records while sustaining an underground foothold across Northern California for the balance of the decade. The act, formed by James Trujillo (Jay Tee) and Timothy Lyons (TL), introduced itself through the 1992 album Back to the Hotel before parting ways with the still-developing Profile label. Although N2Deep’s follow-up projects fell short of the promise first displayed on Profile, the pair kept issuing underground albums embraced by dedicated listeners, with prime selections later gathered into two rival best-of sets—one assembled by Soul Town in 1999 and the other by 40 Ounce in 2002.