![]() ![]() Now, to be fair, Cam and company had released a mixtape a bit before 50 I believe, but it didn't take off as much as the G-Unit. One crew also from New York that began to use the mixtape strategy was the Harlem based Diplomats crew led by Cam'ron. We'll revisit the G-Unit impact a little bit later however. G-Unit would go on to release two more tapes to complete a trifecta, with the amazing "No Mercy, No Fear" and "God's Plan" following up and continuing the trend of G-Unit dominance of the streets. ![]() From flipping a Raphael Saadiq and D'Angelo track to a random freestyle from Banks that would take off titled "The Banks Workout", this mixtape was the beginning of something very special. It began with the classic 50 Cent Is The Future tape which would show 50 and the Unit remixing popular songs to put their brand of murder and street flare on it. Now, with the Unit, you had the trio of Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo, and of course the leader of the crew 50 Cent, who would rise to prominence via these very mixtapes. Outside of the DJ led mixtapes, which were infamous for having your favorite(or least favorite DJ) yell their catchphrase or random shoutouts all over, there began a rise of more artist led mixtapes and though the official origin is impossible to trace, one crew is undoubtedly credited with starting the wave and trend: G-Unit. ![]() The mecca of hip hop, New York, is where the mixtape truly became known and appreciated. While a mainstream album might be all over the networks and sell a million copies, the mixtape would get passed around and shared through neighborhoods with the possible chance that the tape would see one of the freestyles played on New York Radio. The whole concept became alluring for your average listener because it was music delivered right to your ears that you had to be immersed within the culture to get access to. Freestyles would pop up all the time and exclusives would pop up on the new DJ Clue tape, the new Funk Flex tape, even DJ Ron G and Tony Touch would have mixtapes that captivated the streets as well. For others, it served as an avenue to stay relevant and continue to supply music to the fans that wanted to hear it. There were artists who had not been given a proper shot via their label and turned to the streets to truly get their name and point across. In hip hop, there are some vital movements that came from the mixtape. ![]()
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