Redman

Known for his gruff style and lively delivery packed with unfiltered rhymes even in relaxed states, Redman ranks among hip-hop’s most singular presences, claiming Newark as home while upholding funk traditions across a lengthy run that has produced seven gold and platinum albums. Born Reginald Noble in that New Jersey city, he began spinning records at parties and fashion shows by age twelve before shifting into rhyming a few years afterward. Biz Markie became both mentor and guide, bringing him to parks and clubs where Noble honed his craft as a formidable battle rapper. Erick Sermon later encouraged him to grab the microphone during an EPMD show in Newark; at the time DJ’ing for Lords of the Underground, Noble accepted and essentially emerged as Redman that evening, surprising a crowd of acquaintances. A day after his father evicted him for dealing marijuana, he relocated to Sermon’s Long Island apartment and immersed himself in EPMD and the wider Hit Squad circle, touring with the group whose innovative, laid-back funk had motivated his full commitment to the genre. Although Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito aired a live Redman recording on WKCR, his commercial introduction arrived via EPMD’s 1990 album Business as Usual, where he appeared on “Hardcore” and “Brothers on My Jock.”

A five-track solo demo secured a Def Jam contract, placing Redman among a wave of bold, ambitious newcomers that also featured Onyx and Boss while strengthening a roster already containing Slick Rick, LL Cool J, EPMD, and Public Enemy. Whut? Thee Album, released in September 1992 and largely self-produced with Sermon, landed as one of the period’s most forceful rap debuts—playful yet aggressive—and its opening singles “Blow Your Mind” and “Time 4 Sum Aksion” both reached the top of Billboard’s rap chart, the latter displacing Onyx’s “Throw Ya Gunz.” Heavy street and campus promotion helped the project attain gold status inside nine months. Redman’s services were quickly in demand for guest spots, beats, and scratches, aiding EPMD on “Head Banger,” plus Boss, Jodeci, MC Eiht, and Def Squad colleagues Sermon and Keith Murray. Dare Iz a Darkside followed in November 1994, launching a run of four consecutive number-one rap albums that never fell below number thirteen on the Billboard 200. Redman again handled most of the murky production alongside Sermon and Rockwilder; “Rockafella” and “Can’t Wait” became rap-chart hits at numbers ten and eleven, while “Funkorama,” drawn from Sermon’s Insomnia compilation, peaked at number twelve.

Muddy Waters arrived in December 1996, trimmer and more incisive than its predecessor, yielding the number-eleven rap single “It’s Like That (My Big Brother)” with K-Solo and the number-three rap track “Whatever Man” assisted by Sermon, which nearly crossed into the pop top forty. The brighter, more buoyant Doc’s da Name 2000 landed in November 1998, highlighted by “I’ll Bee Dat!” and the Busta Rhymes collaboration “Da Goodness”; it reached platinum within four months and gave Redman his fourth top-ten rap hit as lead artist. That same year Def Squad released their sole album El Niño, which nearly topped the Billboard 200, with Redman prominent on “Check N’ Me Out” and trading lines with Biz Markie on “Rhymin’ wit’ Biz.” Three months before the decade closed, he and Method Man issued their debut joint LP Blackout!, which entered the Billboard 200 at number three and showcased their instinctive rapport. The set contained the number-two rap single “How High,” first heard on The Show soundtrack, and the number-fourteen rap single “Da Rockwilder,” both of which later appeared in the 2001 stoner comedy How High, in which the pair starred.

Redman’s profile rose further in the early 2000s through featured roles on two Grammy-nominated tracks: De La Soul’s “Oooh.” (Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group) and Christina Aguilera’s “Dirrty” (Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals). His fifth album Malpractice, released in May 2001, debuted at number four on the Billboard 200—his highest placement there—and returned him to the rap top ten with “Let’s Get Dirty (I Can’t Get in da Club),” featuring DJ Kool, while additional cuts included George Clinton, Scarface, and Treach. Six years elapsed before the next studio album, during which Redman issued several Gilla House mixtapes, appeared in Scary Movie 3 and Seed of Chucky, portrayed characters in Def Jam video games, and co-starred in the sitcom Method & Red alongside numerous other television spots. Red Gone Wild: Thee Album finally surfaced in March 2007, debuting at number thirteen on the Billboard 200 and number four on the R&B/hip-hop chart despite a multi-year delay; Timbaland supplied the energetic standout “Put It Down,” with further beats from Pete Rock, Scott Storch, Sermon, and Rockwilder.

Blackout! 2 arrived near the end of the decade, picking up where the duo’s first joint effort left off and entering the Billboard 200 at number seven and the R&B/hip-hop chart at number two. December 2010 brought Redman Presents…Reggie, his final Def Jam release after nearly two decades with the label; the guest-heavy project stood out for its extroverted tone and Auto-Tune usage while functioning like a mixtape with rotating producers. Mudface, his independent eighth album distributed by UMG, followed in November 2015 and likewise reached the rap-chart top ten. Additional screen work included hosting Scared Famous, appearing in Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, and a recurring role on Power Book II: Ghost. Muddy Waters Too, the long-awaited sequel to the 1996 album and Redman’s first full-length in nine years, emerged on Christmas Eve 2024; its festive spirit shone on the nostalgic posse cut “Lite It Up,” which united him with Queen Latifah, Rah Digga, Naughty by Nature, Lords of the Underground, and others.