Lord Finesse (February 23, 1970) is a Hip hop artist and producer,
hailing from The Bronx, New York, best known as the leader of the
D.I.T.C. rap crew.
In 1989, Finesse and his former partner DJ Mike Smooth signed to
Wild Pitch Records, home to other popular Hip Hop artists like Gang
Starr, Main Source, Chill Rob G, Percee P and O.C.. In 1990, the
duo released their debut album Funky Technician.[1] The album featured
production from future star beat-makers DJ Premier, Diamond D and
Showbiz. Soon after, Finesse formed the popular New York underground
crew D.I.T.C., an acronym for 'Diggin In The Crates', together with
Showbiz & AG and Diamond D. Future members included Fat Joe,
O.C., Buckwild and the late Big L.
Finesse returned as a solo artist in late 1991 with his second effort,
Return of the Funky Man. The album featured guest appearances from
Percee P and AG. The album's title track peaked at #13 on the Hot
Rap Singles chart. Return of the Funky Man also included a couple
of songs that were produced by Finesse himself, and this would be
the start of a career as a much respected hip-hop producer. In 1994
Finesse made a production appearance on The Notorious B.I.G.'s classic
debut Ready to Die, on the track Suicidal Thoughts. In 1995, he produced
a big portion of Big L's debut album Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous,
including the single M.V.P. and also made an appearance on one of
the album's highlight songs "Da Graveyard". He finally
returned as an artist in 1996 with the now rare 12" single Check
The Method and then the acclaimed album The Awakening. Finesse produced
the entire album himself, and enlisted a large number of guests,
including O.C., KRS-One, MC Lyte, Akinyele, Showbiz and A.G., Diamond
D and Kid Capri. The underground single Actual Facts, featuring Sadat
X, Grand Puba and Large Professor, was included as a hidden track
on the album.
Finesse hasn't released a studio album since this effort, but has
continued his production work. In 1997, he produced the title track
to O.C.'s acclaimed effort Jewelz and also the track "Channel
10" off of Capone-n-Noreaga's debut The War Report. Finesse
released a mixtape called Diggin' On Blue in 1999. Later in the year,
he produced the track The Message on Dr. Dre's seminal 2001 album.
Finesse is currently working on a Funky Technician remix project,
as well as a new D.I.T.C. album. Along with these projects, he and
DJ Premier are working on a posthumous Big L album.
In 1998, Finesse provided the vocal sample on the hook to The Rockafeller
Skank, a hit single by British musician Fatboy Slim from his album
You've Come a Long Way, Baby. The song features Finesse's repeated
line "Right about now, the funk soul brother. Check it out now,
the funk soul brother".
Lord Finesse returned to the mic on Handsome Boy Modeling School's
album White People in 2004. He was featured on the song entitled "Rock
'N' Roll (Could Never Hip-Hop Like This) pt. 2, collaborating with
famous old-school DJ's Grand Wizard Theodore and Jazzy Jay. Chester
Bennington and Mike Shinoda from Linkin Park make appearances, as
well as Rahzel of The Roots.
[edit] Discography
Album information
Funky Technician
* Released: June 7, 1990
* Billboard 200 chart position: -
* R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #93
* Singles: "Baby, You Nasty"/"Track the Movement", "Funky
Technician"/"Bad Mutha", "Stricly for the Ladies"/"Back
to Back Rhyming"
Return of the Funky Man
* Released: January 28, 1992
* Billboard 200 chart position: -
* R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #95
* Singles: "Return of the Funky Man"/"Fuck Em", "Party
Over Here"/"Save That Shit"
The Awakening
* Released: February 20, 1996
* Billboard 200 chart position: -
* R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: #36
* Singles: "Hip 2 Da Game"/"No Gimmicks", "Gameplan"/"Actual
Facts"