The 2 Live Crew - Original Albums Collection (1986-1992)

The 2 Live Crew was a hip-hop group from Miami, Florida. They caused considerable controversy with the sexual themes in their work, particularly on their 1989 album As Nasty As They Wanna Be.









The 2 Live Crew Is What We Are is the first album by hip-hop group the 2 Live Crew. It was released in 1986 on Luke Records to a great deal of controversy and promptly was certified gold by the RIAA. It includes the hits "We Want Some Pussy," "Throw the 'D'," and "Cuttin' it Up." Bob Rosenberg, a south Florida DJ who would later form the dance-pop group Will to Power, remixed and edited the song "Beat Box." In Florida, it was deemed obscene, and one store clerk was charged with felony "corruption of a minor" for selling it to a 14-year-old girl. The clerk was later acquitted.

The following year, the album reached #24 on Billboard's R&B charts and #128 on the Billboard 200 charts.

There was a time when many New York hip-hoppers refused to believe that rappers from Miami could record a gold or platinum album or give them any real competition. That was before 1986, when the 2 Live Crew's debut album, 2 Live Is What We Are, came out on Luther Campbell's Miami-based Luke Skyywalker Records (later renamed Luke Records). This LP did a lot to popularize Florida-style bass music, and like the gangsta rap that was coming from California, it demonstrated that rappers didn't have to be from New York to sell a lot of records. Musically, 2 Live Is What We Are was a definite departure from New York rap – the grooves are much faster – and lyrically, the album put booty rhymes on the map. The 2 Live Crew wasn't the first rap group to talk about sex, but this album did take sexually explicit rap lyrics to a new level of nastiness. With X-rated offerings like "Throw the D" and "We Want Some Pussy," Campbell and his colleagues popularized a style of rap that thrives on decadence for the sake of decadence. These tunes are as humorous as they are raunchy; Campbell has often compared the 2 Live Crew's booty rhymes to the off-color humor of Richard Pryor, Andrew Dice Clay, and Rudy Ray Moore – and, to be sure, there are some parallels. Like those comedians, the 2 Live Crew is genuinely funny – but only if you have a taste for X-rated humor. Anyone who finds Moore, Pryor, and Clay offensive should avoid the 2 Live Crew as well. But for those who do appreciate that type of humor, 2 Live Is What We Are is a classic of its kind. Reviewed by Alex Henderson allmusic.com

Track Listing

01. 2 Live Is What We Are… (Word)
02. We Want Some Pussy!!
03. Check It Out Y'all… (Freestyle Rappin')
04. Get It Girl
05. Throw The 'D'
06. Cut It Up
07. Beat Box… (Remix) (Edits By Bob Rosenberg)
08. Mr. Mixx On The Mix!!


Album Released: July 25, 1986
Lil' Joe CD Released: June 10, 1996













Move Somethin' is the second album by Miami hip hop group 2 Live Crew. The album was released in 1987 on Luke Records and was produced by Luke Skyywalker and Mr. Mixx. It was certified Gold and featured the singles "Move Somethin’" and "Do Wah Diddy Diddy." The album improved on the charts from the previous album, making in to #68 on the Billboard 200 and #20 on the Top R&B/Hip Hop chart. Musically, the album incorporates samples from such diverse sources as James Brown ("With Your Badself"), Manfred Mann ("Do Wah Diddy Diddy"), The Kinks ("One and One"), Yellow Magic Orchestra ("Mega-Mixx II"), Kraftwerk ("Drop the Bomb"), and Quadrant Six (the title track). On the song "Word II," 2 Live Crew's DJ Mr. Mixx scratches up Brian May's guitar solo (as well as the chorus) on "We Will Rock You" over the crowd stomp-and-clap beat, which was sampled from the same song. Its wide musical range is nonetheless all encompassed by the Miami Bass sound, in its heavy Roland TR-808 kicks and fast percussion, and as usual stamped with lyrics reflecting the group's sexually explicit humor.

Although the 2 Live Crew's debut album, 2 Live Is What We Are, went gold and sold more than 500,000 copies in the U.S., the LP wasn't without its detractors. Some New York hip-hoppers argued that Luther Campbell and his associates were pandering to the lowest common denominator, and everyone from church groups to feminists argued that their X-rated booty rhymes were nothing more than pornography with a beat. But the Crew's fans didn't care what their critics had to say, which is why their second album, Move Somthin', was also a big seller. Anyone who found 2 Live Is What We Are offensive was unlikely to be converted by Move Somthin'; booty rhymes like "HBC," "One and One" (an X-rated interpretation of the Kinks' "All Day and All of the Night") and "S&M" are as crude and sexually explicit as anything on the group's previous album. "S&M," as its title indicates, is an ode to kinky sex. The 2 Live Crew was hardly the first group to address the subject of bondage and sado-masochism – back in 1967, the Velvet Underground's "Venus in Furs" was among the kinkier rock songs of its day. Some of the Ohio Players' pre-Mercury album covers employed S&M/bondage imagery, and the 1980s heavy metal band Bitch had a female lead vocalist who loved to sing about the pleasures of being a whip-toting dominatrix. But kinky sex hasn't been a prominent subject in hip-hop, and "S&M" is unusually kinky for rap. Of course, the Crew didn't need to rap about whips and chains to offend people; even without "S&M," this LP would have been X-rated. Move Somthin' was trashed by the Crew's critics, but those who aren't offended by X-rated humor will find it to be a thoroughly entertaining sophomore effort. Reviewed by Alex Henderson allmusic.com

Track Listing

01.Introduction
02.Drop The Bomb
03. Move Somethin'
04. Ghetto Bass II
05. With Your Badself
06. P-A-N
07. H-B-C
08. S & M
09. Do Wah Diddy
10. Word II
11. Feel Alright Y'all
12. One And One
13. Mega-Mixx II


Album Released: August 31, 1987
Lil' Joe CD Released: June 10, 1996













As Nasty As They Wanna Be is the third album by Miami bass group 2 Live Crew. It was released in 1989 and became the group's largest seller, being certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. In 1990, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida ruled that the album was legally obscene; this ruling was later overturned by the Eleventh Circuit. It is the first album in history to be deemed legally obscene.

It would also be the final album to be released under the Skyywalker Records label. Following a successful lawsuit against Luther Campbell and Skyywalker Records by Star Wars creator and director George Lucas, the company was forced to change its name to Luke Records.

2 Live Crew's infamous – record store clerks were actually arrested for selling the album – and double platinum – a great example of how being banned can increase sales – As Nasty As They Wanna Be may be more talked about than listened to, but it's actually a thoroughly entertaining effort and as solid a album as the trashy party rap genre could have hoped for. In the first moments a sampled voice asks, "What do we get for ten dollars?." In a sleazy slow tone that might make Ron Jeremy blush, a hooker answers, "Everything you want" as the album begins to deliver on this street corner promise with the legendary "Me So Horny" ("me love you long time"). With a sample of Full Metal Jacket's Vietnamese hooker, a cheap drum machine, a fat bassline, and a simple set of rhymes that are filled with every cuss word, innuendo, and misogynist, knuckle-dragging reference to women imaginable, "Me So Horny" is the reason 2 Live Crew should exist. Nothing they or their leader Luke (Luther) Campbell recorded afterwards sounded as lean, as hook filled, and so instantly grabbing as the single. From the inner city strip clubs to the headphones of teenagers in the suburbs, the track was a massive guilty pleasure, one that could also fill the dancefloor in a second. The album that follows repeats and repeats this cheap and silly porno formula and miraculously stretches it as far as it can go. Divided into four sides – one for each member, the only reason anyone remembers their names – Nasty keeps it rolling with tracks that capture "Horny"'s energy, ("Put Her in the Buck"), its cleverness ("Dirty Nursery Rhymes"), and a whole bunch that are just as hooky. "The F**k Shop" is the best example of the latter with its easy to grasp chorus and wicked use of a loop from Van Halen's "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love." Other smart samples like Kraftwerk for "Dick Almighty" and Jimi Hendrix for "My Seven Bizzos" keep the album alive, while interludes lifted from Andrew Dice Clay, Rudy Ray Moore, Eddie Murphy, and Richard Pryor give away its true inspirations. A couple amusing left turns – the 12-bar "2 Live Blues" and the dancehall party "Reggae Joint" – round out the album, and suddenly the full-length that doesn't seem like it could ever suffer an injustice gets sold short by history, at least when it comes to remembering what a grand porno achievement Luke and his crew created. Reviewed by David Jeffries allmusic.com

Track Listing

01. Me So Horny
02. Put Her In The Buck
03. Dick Almighty
04. C'mon Babe
05. Dirty Nursery Rhymes
06. Break It On Down
07. 2 Live Blues
08. I Ain't Bullshittin'
09. Get Loose Now
10. The Fuck Shop
11. If You Believe In Having Sex
12. My Seven Bizzos
13. Get The Fuck Out Of My House
14. Reggae Joint
15. Fraternity Record
16. Bad Ass Bitch
17.Mega Mixx III
18. Coolin'


Album Released: February 7, 1989
Luke Records CD Released: February 19, 1991













Banned in the U.S.A. is the fourth album by the 2 Live Crew. It was originally credited as Luke's solo album. The album included the hits "Do the Bart" and the title track. It was also the very first release to bear the RIAA-standard Parental Advisory warning sticker.

The eponymous title single is a reference to the decision in a court case that its album As Nasty as They Wanna Be was obscene (the decision would later be overturned on appeal). Bruce Springsteen granted the group permission to interpolate his song "Born in the U.S.A." for it.

Displeased over the decision of Florida Governor Bob Martinez who, on being asked to examine the album, decided it was obscene and recommended local law enforcement take action against it and over the subsequent action of Broward County, Florida, sheriff Nick Navarro, who arrested local record-store owners on obscenity charges for selling the group's albums and the subsequent arrest of members of the group on obscenity charges, the group included the song "Fuck Martinez," which also includes multiple repetitions of the phrase fuck Navarro. The group found two other men with the same names, and had them sign releases, as they thought that this action would make it impossible for Martinez or Navarro to sue them.

When Florida attorney Jack Thompson did everything he could to have the X-rated music of 2 Live Crew outlawed, his assault on the First Amendment led many free speech advocates to take up the group's cause. Thompson's actions inspired quite a bit of anger from both white liberals and African-American rappers, who saw something obscene about a prosperous lawyer declaring war on a young black entrepreneur who had avoided the pitfalls of Miami's Liberty City ghetto. Luke was under attack for doing the very thing Republicans consistently advocate – using free enterprise to pull himself up by the bootstraps. Ironically, many of those who defended his First Amendment rights had little or no use for his lyrics. Banned in the USA, the Crew's first album for a major label and its first after the battle with Thompson, is for many, a guilty pleasure. Say what you will about Luke's high school locker-room lyrics; the Crew's Miami bass rap can be quite catchy, infectious, and amusing. Many New York hip-hoppers were quick to criticize the fast tempos employed by Miami rappers like Luke, but the fact that they did it their own way instead of emulating Northeastern MCs is something to admire instead of lambast. Reviewed by Alex Henderson allmusic.com

Track Listing

01. Banned In The U.S.A.
02. News Flash 'People In The News'
03. Man, Not A Myth
04. News Flash '350 Men'
05. Fuck Martinez
06. News Flash 'Super Snoop'
07. Strip Club
08. News Flash 'Nation By Storm'
09. Do The Bart
10. In Color-Men On Records
11. Face Down Ass Up
12. Hey Jack!
13. Bass 9-1-7
14. So Funky
15. News Flash 'Poll Results'
16. Mamolapenga
17. Video No Soul
18. I Ain't Bullshittin' Part 2
19. Commercial - Nasty M.F.'S
20. This Is To Luke From The Posse
21. News Flash 'British Youth'
22. Fuck A Gang
23. Commercial - Inquiring Minds
24. Arrest In Effect
25. Mega Mix IV


Album Released: July 13, 1990













Live in Concert is the fifth album by rap group, 2 Live Crew. This was 2 Live Crew's first and only Live album, and was also the only 2 Live Crew release under the Effect subsidiary label of Luke Records, a move that was deemed necessary for the company to be able to release additional 2 Live Crew material outside of their distribution deal with Atlantic Records, which was signed in 1990 – the same year they released Banned In The U.S.A..

A two-record sprawling set that's as lowbrow as humanely possible; deplorable sexist diatribes and lewd comments galore. Reviewed by Ron Wynn allmusic.com

Track Listing

01. H-B-C
02. C'mon Babe
03. Face Down Ass Up
04. Throw The 'D'
05. One And One
06. Mr. Mixx Turnable Show (Part I)
07. Sex, I Like - I Love
08. Mr. Mixx Turnable Show (Part II)
09. If You Believe In Having Sex
10. The Fuck Shop
11. Move Somethin'
12. We Want Some Pussy
13. Me So horny
14. Banned In The U.S.A.


Album Released: September 22, 1990
Lil' Joe CD Released: June 10, 1996













Sports Weekend: As Nasty As They Wanna Be, Pt. 2 is the sixth album by the 2 Live Crew and the sequel of As Nasty As They Wanna Be. This would be the last studio album by all original members of the 2 Live Crew.

As the proper follow-up to 2 Live Crew's infamous As Nasty as They Wanna Be album, Sports Weekend definitely delivered more of the same lewdness that had made its predecessor such a success. Unfortunately, though, by this point the joke had run its course, and 2 Live Crew seemed to have run out of creativity, especially in terms of songwriting. Reviewed by Jason Birchmeier allmusic.com

Track Listing

01. Intro
02. Pop That Pussy
03. For How Long
04. A Fuck Is A Fuck
05. Let It Rip
06. Baby Baby Please (Just A Little More Head)
07. Graveyard
08. Ugly As Fuck
09. A Hooker?
10. Fraternity Joint
11. Nigga's Comin' Up
12. Here I Come
13. I Like It, I Love It
14. Fuck Off
15. Mega Mix V
16. Sweet Suzy
17. Freaky Behaviour
18. 12' Long
19. Ain't No Pussy Like…
20. You Are Very Erect
21. Some Hot Head
22. Chesterfield Island
23. I Ain't Bullshittin' (Part 3)
24. 'Balls'
25. The Pussy Caper
26. Up A Girl's Ass
27. Who's Fuckin' Who
28. Pussy (Reprise) For Those Who Like To Fuck


Album Released: October 10 1991

Uncle Luke and company have made a career out of Miami bass/electro that's as raw, funky, and unforgivingly sexually explicit as humanly possible. This collection takes the highlights from four of their earliest and most controversial records and puts them together for a very convenient and near-accurate survey of their classic and most recognizable hits. Completists will note the glaring absence of such 2 Live staples as "Do Wah Diddy," "One and One," and "Banned in the USA," but this shouldn't deter anyone other than the cult followers. This is still by far the most comprehensive collection of their work on the market, and is the ideal place to start filling freaky needs. Reviewed by Rob Theakston allmusic.com

Track Listing

01. We Want Some Pussy
02. Throw The 'D'
03. Check It Out Ya'll
04. Move Somethin'
05. H-B-C
06. Me So Horny
07. C'mon Babe
08. If You Believe In Having Sex
09. Pop That Pussy
10. Some Hot Head
11. The Pussy Caper
12. The 2 Live Crew Mega Mix (From the LP "Luke's Hitmen For The '90's")
13. Boyz With Da Bass (New Song)
14. The Splak Shop (New Song)
15. We Like To Chill (New Song)


Album Released: October 7, 1992