Follow the Leaders: Busta Rhymes
Follow this leader of the new school on his 20+ year career.
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Follow the Leader: Busta Rhymes - From his stand out verses with Leaders of the New School to his current show stealing guest appearances with his YMCMB fam, Busta Rhymes has managed to retain both his visibility and credibility with each hip hop generation. Take a look back at the career of a New York legend who has earned a spot amongst rap's most elite.(Photo: Joe Kohen/Getty Images)
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School Daze - Born Trevor Tahiem Smith Jr. on May 20, 1972, Busta Rhymes was raised in Brooklyn, where he attended George Westinghouse High School alongside other future rap legends such as Jay-Z and the Notorious B.I.G. He would later move to Long Island.(Photo: Courtesy MTV)
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Future Leaders - Busta first broke through as the standout member of Long Island–based crew Leaders of the New School, whose acclaimed first album, Future Without a Past, included the hits "Case of the P.T.A." and "Sobb Story."(Photo: Courtesy Elektra Records)
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Jack Move - Busta began his long tradition of outshining other MCs on their own records with "Scenario," the 1991 Tribe Called Quest classic featuring LONS. Busta's frantic, edge-of-your-seat closing verse is undoubtedly one of the most memorable rhymes of all time.(Photo: Courtesy Jive Records)
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Umma Do Me - In an infamous Yo! MTV Raps appearance, Busta and Charlie Brown, another member of LONS, began arguing, and the group broke up soon after. Busta launched his solo career in 1995 with The Coming and its lead single "Woo-Hah (Got You All in Check)," which was accompanied by an eye-popping video from Hype Williams — the first of his and Busta's many off-the-wall collabos. (Photo: Courtesy Elektra Records)
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Second Time's a Charm - Busta found his wheelhouse on his second solo LP, When Disaster Strikes, which struck platinum on the back of the kinetic, dance-floor-packing hit "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See" and its bonkers Coming to America–inspired video.(Photo: Courtesy Elektra Records)
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Futuristic - Busta killed it again with his 1998 album E.L.E. (Extinction Level Event): The Final World Front, which featured "What's It Gonna Be," his hit duet with Janet Jackson. The song, which featured a $2 million Hype Williams video and some of Busta's most nimble, tongue-twisting rapping yet, peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard charts.(Photo: Courtesy Elektra Records)
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Giving You More - Busta updated his sound for his fourth album, 2001's Genesis, by collaborating with Dr. Dre and Mary J. Blige, and on his party-starting hit "Pass the Courvoisier Part II," he collaborated with Diddy and the Neptunes.(Photo: Courtesy Elektra Records)
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Roots - Busta Rhymes paid homage to his West Indian heritage in 2002 when he hopped on the remix of "Gimme the Light" with dancehall artist Sean Paul. (Photo: Scott Gries/ImageDirect)
Photo By Photo: Scott Gries/ImageDirect
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Welcome to the Aftermath - Busta took his career in a new direction by signing with Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment. The move paid off — Big Bang topped the Billboard 100 when it debuted in 2006, landing Bussa-Bus his first No. 1 album.(Photos from left: John Sciulli/Getty Images,Bryan Bedder/Getty Images)
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Middle East Heat - Busta struck black gold with his 2009 Ron Browz–helmed hit "Arab Money," though the song's topic and use of Quran quotes prompted a backlash from many Arabs and Muslims. (Photo: Courtesy Universal Records)
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New Generation - Save 2009's "Arab Money," Busta had been rather quiet — until he stole the show yet again on Chris Brown's 2011 smash "Look at Me Now," which also featured Lil Wayne. Busta's breathtaking, inhumanly agile verse is one of the most impressive, acrobatic rhymes in recent memory.(Photo: Vince Bucci/PictureGroup)
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Still Got It - Buss proved his comeback was no fluke when he dominated The Cypher at the 2011 BET Hip Hop Awards. Joined by the likes of 2 Chainz, Reek da Villain and Ludacris, it was a perfect mix of East coast and dirty south lyricism in one cut.
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New Money - Bussa Bus capped off a banner year by announcing he was signing to Cash Money Records. He's currently working on his ninth solo LP, E.L.E. (Extinction Level Event) 2: End of the World, and we can't wait to hear it. Look at him now.(Photo: Courtesy Cash Money Records)