KRS-One

Released: May 20, 1997

Songwriter: KRS-One Commissioner Gordon

Producer: Commissioner Gordon

Right now as we rockin' they shootin' outside
Now we have got to chill
We have got to chill
We can't have no gunfire because hip-hop can't build

Let's leave all the shootin' and the violence outside
I know there's some people in here, armed to the teeth
But understand
It is the conciousness behind the gun
That determines if the gun is positive or negative
So let's not blame it on no pistols, no guns, no gats
Let's blame it on the conciousness of the mind holding the gat

The legendary MC from the South Bronx, New York, Lawrence “KRS-One” Parker has been steadily rapping since 1985. His name stands for “Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone”.

KRS came to rapping only by chance. In the Something from The Art of Rap documentary, he recalls watching an MC cypher when suddenly “a dude” randomly picked him out of the crowd and made fun of him. Feeling compelled to defend himself, KRS performed a little freestyle which impressed the crowd and eventually kicked off his rapping career.

His breakthrough onto the hip hop scene began with “The Bridge Is Over” – an answer record to the popular Queens rapper MC Shan’s song “Queensbridge”. From 1986 to 1992, KRS-One fronted the groundbreaking hip hop group Boogie Down Productions, scoring six top 20 hits on the US Rap Chart. In 1993, he began a solo career spanning three decades, racking up six more top 20 Rap Chart hits with “Sound of da Police”, “MCs Act Like They Don’t Know”, “Step Into A World” and “Men Of Steel” also achieving mainstream pop success on the Hot 100.

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