The Treacherous Three started in the late 70s with him and a couple buds from school. The group dissolved in the mid 80s, with Kool Moe Dee then going solo. His second album, 1987's How Ya Like Me Now, was his commercial breakthrough and endures as his most successful release. It went platinum on the strength of the singles "Wild Wild West" and the title track.
"How Ya Like Me Know" was directed at LL Cool J, who was seen as a cocky young buck on the scene with a similar rapping style who didn't properly pay respect to those who came before him. Their beef would last into the 90s, occasionally taking jabs at each other in tracks or interviews.
In 1989, Kool Moe Dee became the first rapper to perform at the Grammies, and while "Wild Wild West" didn't win, he ended up with a Grammy thanks to his collaboration on the Quincy Jones album Back on the Block that featured a wide array of big-name guests. Subsequent solo albums didn't do as well, and Kool Moe Dee hasn't released a studio album since 1994's Interlude.
I liked "Wild Wild West" fine when the video would come on MTV back in the day, but that's about the extent of me getting into Kool Moe Dee. Listening to more stuff now while working on this post, I can dig it, and some of the stuff is familiar thanks to the Beastie Boys, fans who sometimes referenced/sampled Kool Moe Dee in their tracks.
While "Wild Wild West" was a minor hit in the late 80s, it further worked itself into pop culture in 1999 when a big-budget film was released with the same name, complete with an updated version of the song by star Will Smith.
CUSTOM CORNER
Neither DJ Jazzy Jeff nor the Fresh Prince got MusiCards, surprisingly, so this seems like a good time to whip up a custom for them. Tracks like "Parents Just Don't Understand" and "Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble" served as like an Introduction to Rap for kids my age in the late 80s. Then 1991's "Summertime" was another banger.
I either bought that cassette (Homebase) or more likely scored it from my buddy Doug after he tired of it. Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was a pretty popular show for a while there, too. In recent years, my wife and I have been slowly doing a rewatch via streaming, the cheesy sitcom being good for a blast of 90s nostalgia. Will Smith has gone on to become a Hollywood heavyweight, with lots of successful movies and other projects under his belt. His public image took a tumble when he let frustration with his marriage cause him to lose his temper and slap Chris Rock at the Oscars after a dumb little joke a few years back.
Anyways, Kool Moe Dee's rival LL Cool J is coincidentally up next post.
