Lords of the Underground
| Lords of the Underground | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Newark, New Jersey |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Labels | Pendulum Records, Jersey Kidz Records |
| Members |
DoItAll Mr. Funke DJ Lord Jazz |
The Lords of the Underground (L.O.T.U.G.) is a hip-hop trio based in Newark, New Jersey. MCs Mr. Funke and DoItAll Dupré met DJ Lord Jazz (a native of Cleveland) when all three were undergraduates at Shaw University. Fellow New Jersey rapper Redman served as one of the groups early DJ's.
The group released their debut album, Here Come the Lords on March 9, 1993 with production handled by Marley Marl and K-Def. The album peaked at 66 on the Billboard 200 and featured five charting singles, including the group's signature song, "Chief Rocka".
The group released their second album, Keepers of the Funk the following year on November 1, 1994. Keepers of the Funk peaked at 47 on the Billboard 200 and featured three charting singles, the most successful of which was "Tic Toc". As stated in a 2013 interview, the group had never disbanded.
They reunited for a third album with 1999's Resurrection. Released via Queen Latifah's Jersey Kidz imprint, was so small-scale a release that few realized it had been recorded. The Lords returned again in 2007 for a fourth album entitled House of Lords, but like Resurrection, it failed to reach the Billboard charts.
The Lords are best remembered in connection with the golden age of hip hop. As such, when Nas decided in 2007 to do a remix of his song "Where Are They Now?", which asked of the fates of several long-forgotten golden age rappers, the Lords were among those requested to appear. DoItAll Dupré performed eight bars on the track.
DoItAll appeared briefly in the final scene of the final episode of The Sopranos credited as Du Kelly, as one of a series of potentially ominous figures entering the diner. He also appeared on other TV shows; Law & Order as Two Tone, on Oz the HBO series, and on the Christmas episode of 30 Rock on NBC (2008). He has also been in independent movies such as Somewhere in the City with Bai Ling, Rhyme & Reason, and with Treach of Naughty By Nature. He has also starred in an off Broadway play entitled Diss, Diss, & Diss, Dat.
Discography
Studio albums
| Year | Title | Chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. | U.S. R&B | ||
| 1993 | Here Come the Lords
|
66 | 13 |
| 1994 | Keepers of the Funk
|
57 | 16 |
| 1999 | Resurrection
|
175 | 42 |
| 2007 | House of Lords
|
– | 89 |
| 2014 | Lotug 20: The 20th Anniversary Collection, Vol. 1
|
– | – |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Hot 100 | U.S. R&B | U.S. Rap | |||
| 1992 | "Psycho" | – | – | 17 | Here Come the Lords |
| 1993 | "Chief Rocka" | 55 | 35 | 1 | |
| "Funky Child" | 74 | 52 | 2 | ||
| "Here Come the Lords" | 93 | 67 | 18 | ||
| 1994 | "Flow On" | – | – | 36 | |
| 1994 | "Tic Toc" | 73 | 52 | 17 | Keepers of the Funk |
| 1995 | "What I'm After" | 111 | – | 42 | |
| "Faith" | – | – | 49 | ||