Kool G Rap & DJ Polo – Road To The Riches T-Shirt

Description

Before Raekwon, before Nas, before Jay-Z ran the numbers, G Rap was already on the road to the riches.

March 14, 1989. Cold Chillin’ and Warner Bros. put out the debut from Corona, Queens’ Kool G Rap and DJ Polo, with Marley Marl producing every track. It’s the Juice Crew at its hardest. Marley swapped the bounce for grit, and G Rap stacked multisyllables tighter than anybody outside of Kane and Rakim. “It’s a Demo,” “Poison” and the title track all ride here, and Polo gets his own showcase on “Cold Cuts.”

The title track is the jewel. It’s a rags-to-riches tale, from a Key Food paycheck to the courtroom, and it gets cited as the blueprint for mafioso rap. Everybody from Biggie to AZ to Raekwon took notes. Then there’s the deep cut: per the Phrenology liners, “Men at Work” is the song that brought The Roots together over a high school lunch period. The Source put it on its 100 Best Albums list in 1998. George DuBose shot the cover.

Product Details

• Premium Bella Canvas 3001 – 100% combed and ring-spun cotton
• Lightweight (4.2 oz) with retail fit
• Pre-shrunk fabric
• Side-seamed construction
• Tear-away label for comfort
• Available in Black, Navy, and Chocolate

For the heads who know where mafioso rap really started. For the Juice Crew loyalists and the multisyllable purists. Queens built this.