X-Clan

A pioneering crew from New York, the X-Clan stormed onto the scene with their 1990 debut, To The East, Blackwards. Comprising Brother J, Paradise, Sugar Shaft, and Professor X, they released two albums fusing irresistably funky production with powerful pro-Black lyricism. (Professor X is Sonny Carson's son and very active in the Blackwatch Movement.) They were well received by dedicated hip-hop heads though they failed to really blow up in the mainstream. After their second LP, X-Odus, dropped in 1992, the group broke up and embarked on solo careers. A long-awaited comeback album is rumored to be in the works.