One of the hallmarks of the Bad Boy sound in the mid-90s, through the early 2000s, was the in house production from Diddy's hand picked team of producers - The Hitmen.
4 out of 5 of Bad Boy's Hot 100 #1 singles were produced by The Hitmen. In fact, 12 of Bad Boy's 15 Top 5 singles, on the same chart, were also produced by The Hitmen or, at least, Bad Boy managed producers. On top of that, 21 of Bad Boy's 28 top 10 Hot 100 singles were produced or co-produced by someone in this group. Suffice to say, the majority of Bad Boy's biggest hits were crafted by it's in house production team.
In addition to Diddy himself, the team has consisted of such decorated producers as Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie, Steven "Stevie J" Jordan, Chucky Thompson, Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence and Mario Winans, as well as a number of others.
But, in recent years, in house production on Bad Boy albums has dwindled. The old members of The Hitmen had, presumably, moved on and, though we heard the group's name brandied about in numerous interviews ( some of those related to Jay-Z's "American Gangster"), on MySpace pages and elsewhere, we really weren't sure: who are The Hitmen now? Does such a thing even exist any longer?
The album booklet credits certainly weren't doing anyone any favors, since none of the producers we thought might be apart of the collective were credited as producing for The Hitmen. For example, in his production work on "American Gangster", Mario Winans is credited as "Yellow City Entertainment/The Senate", while Diddy, LV and Sean C were credited as "Grind Music/The Hitmen/Bad Boy Entertainment".
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According to a bulletin posted on JC's MySpace, Yung Joc and Gorilla Zoe will be appearing (it sounds like they'll be performing, but I'm not 100% sure) at the Cotton Club in Atlanta tonight (June 28) as part of 95.5 THE BEAT's Down South Flava! concert series. The show is from 8 PM to 11 PM. JC and Three 6 Mafia will also be there.
The video fro Day26's "Since You've Been Gone" features a cameo by Dawn from Danity Kane who plays Que's love interest, if you will, during a portion where he sings.
The Billboard 200
134. "Welcome to the Dollhouse" by Danity Kane (down from 133).
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
41. "Welcome to the Dollhouse" by Danity Kane (up from 42).
63. "Day26" by Day26 (down from 52).
Top Reggae Albums
15. "Let's Get Physical" by Elephant Man (down from 7).
The Billboard Hot 100
17. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 14).
Pop 100
5. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (same as last week).
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
61. "Since You've Been Gone" by Day26 (up from 65).
Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles
14. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 10).
20. "On The Corner" by Gorilla Zoe (re-entry).
HipHopDX.com has an interesting interview with D-Dot where he talks about his Bad Boy days, why he left and the current state of The Hitmen. Definitely worth a read.
DX: When American Gangster [click to read] dropped last fall, Sean C and LV were being hailed as the ‘new’ Hitmen. You were considered captain of the Hitmen back in the day, was that like a slap in the face being that the days of the real Hitmen are a pivotal point in Hip Hop?
DD: I don’t think, as I haven’t worked at Bad Boy since 1998. I haven’t been a Hitman since 2000. Puffy and I have been best of friends since 1987. I am going to be 40 years old in July. It wasn’t a slap in the face, it was just time for Puffy to move on, but by the way, Sean C and LV ... are not Hitmen, that was just Puffy trying to reinvigorate an era that a lot of people like yourself, and from MTV and BET and all these various magazines, that era was very special to people and a lot of people to these days cherish those times. A lot of people don’t want to let that go, and Puffy is trying to capitalize off that by finding new Hitmen, but those days are kind of over. Sean C and LV are like best friends to me, they helped Puffy make a Jay-Z album that he needed the help with, and that was it. They are not Hitmen to this day, they don’t move as Hitmen, and there are no Hitmen at this point right now and anyone who wants to be a Hitmen, the first question they ask is about me.
"Slap in the face?" What, there can never be a Hitmen production team without D-Dot? That was Diddy's team of producers - not D-Dot's. Diddy gave D-Dot an opportunity and D-Dot was a talented individual who took advantage of it and was successful. Would I like it if D-Dot were still working with Bad Boy? Sure. But, that's life. People move on. He doesn't have to be a part of a production team for it to be called The Hitmen. It was a special time, a special group of people that Diddy assembled. It's a rare thing and nothing lasts forever. It doesn't mean that Diddy can't assemble a new team.
Anyway, D-Dot's answer doesn't seem farfetched - necessarily. Afterall, how many producers would actually be a part of it right now, presumably? Diddy, Sean C, LV and Seven Aurelius? Mario Winans? Anyone else? It's not immediately clear who is and who isn't - there are mixed signals coming from MySpaces, from album booklet credits and elsewhere. In their interview with UGO.com earlier this month, Sean C and LV said they are only considered Hitmen when they work with Diddy on a track. Their own projects are not considered to be as part of The Hitmen. So, are they partial Hitmen? Who knows.
However, this much is true: on the most recent season of Making the Band 4, Diddy said ( view video), "... one of my go to producers from The Hitmen, Seven." So, there is something there. What it is, I don't know, because Bad Boy is seemingly pretty tight lipped about it and I've asked before. So, I'm not sure if what D-Dot is saying is accurate. By his own admission, he hasn't worked with Bad Boy since 1998 or been one of The Hitmen since 2000.
I've reached out to someone at Bad Boy who could comment on it and we'll see what I can find out.
Unfortunately, neither Danity Kane nor Day26 took home the Best Group award in the BET Awards '08. UGK won it.
On a Bad Boy note, Cassie joined David Banner, Randy T. Jackson, Soulja Boy and Solange on stage to present the award for Best Collaboration and to urge people to vote.
Ciroc had a number of ad spots and is sponsoring the after party.
From The FINANCIAL:
Ford's distinctive all-new vehicle - the 2009 Ford Flex - will bring some of the hottest names in Hip Hop & R&B to the red carpet Tuesday evening for events surrounding the BET Awards '08—often dubbed as the "hottest ticket on television."
Danity Kane, Day26 and Janelle Monae will be some of the celebrities included.
The Billboard 200
133. "Welcome to the Dollhouse" by Danity Kane (down from 117).
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
42. "Welcome to the Dollhouse" (down from 39).
52. "Day26" by Day26 (up from 56).
Top Reggae Albums
7. "Let's Get Physical" by Elephant Man (up from 8).
The Billboard Hot 100
14. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 13).
Pop 100
5. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (same as last week).
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
65. "Since You've Been Gone" by Day26 (up from 73).
Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles
10. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (up from 15).
The nominations are in and both Danity Kane and Day26 are nominated for this year's Teen Choice Awards. Danity Kane has received a nomination in the category for "Best R&B Track" for "Damaged" and Day26 is nominated for "Breakout Group". Making the Band 4 also received a nomination for "Best Reality Music Competition". The 2008 Teen Choice Awards are scheduled to air August 4th at 8 PM Eastern on Fox.
Danity Kane and Day26 want you to vote for your favorite track from Day26's self titled album, as well as "Welcome to the Dollhouse". You can cast your vote for Danity Kane and Day26 on their respective MySpace pages.
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