It is rather surprising I haven’t covered the Living Legends yet since they were a very influential group in the CA underground hip hop scene in the 90’s. Consisting of emcees/producers Murs, Scarub, Eligh, Grouch, Bicasso, Luckyiam, Aesop, and Sunspot Jonz, they hustled to sell their tapes on the streets of the Bay Area and LA. They had raw raps and gritty beats, mixing party anthems, with conscious raps, and many of the members displayed dope rhyme patterns and lyrical skills. The collective spawned many offshoot groups and the individual members have all had varying solo success and have stayed consistent through the 2000’s but the Living Legends have since disbanded.
I would say Murs is the most successful of the group, but the Grouch and Eligh are up there too. They have an extensive catalog between the two of them, both with solo albums and as a duo, and they just released a triple album The Tortoise and The Crow earlier this year. It consists of a G&E album 333, an Eligh album Nomads, and a Grouch album Lighthouses. I haven’t liked much of what the Grouch and Eligh have put out recently, as they have moved towards a more poppy, corny but there are definitely some gems between these three albums. Check out some of my favorites below.
hiphopsme 