BOOGIE DOWN PRODUC-TIONS - BY ALL MEANS NECESSARY

KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions moved away from the violent themes of their debut Criminal Minded for their second album By All Means Necessary in 1988, following the murder of their DJ/producer Scott La Rock the previous year. Featuring minimal, hard-hitting production accompanied smart, socially conscious lyrics, it should be regarded as a landmark of political hip-hop, but it often dwells unfairly in the shadows of Public Enemy’s It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back that came out at the same time.