While many '90s rappers rely on braggadocio and gang posturing to reach the masses, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony one-up the competition with vocal skills that are wildly inventive and totally original. A fast, rhythmic, complex rapping style known as "flowing" combines with group harmonies to provide a vocal attack that is stunning--add to that the stark imagery and true-life tales of hard times on the streets of Cleveland, Ohio, and the result is mind-numbing.

The group adopted Bone as a surname, hence cousins Layzie Bone and Wish Bone joined with Bizzy Bone and Krayzie Bone. (Original fifth Bone, Flesh-N-Bone, has since broken away.) The band headed to L.A. on minimal savings and auditioned for rap star/label head Eazy-E over the telephone. The Bone later rapped for Eazy in person backstage when he appeared in a Cleveland concert. Eazy released the Bone's first EP, Creepin On Ah Come Up,  in '94; it has since gone quadruple-platinum. While many rap stars prove to be one-hit-wonders, Bone came back hard the following year with a full-length LP that eulogized their late mentor Eazy-E, who died from AIDS complications. Entitled E. 1999 Eternal, the LP smacked Michael Jackson from the No. 1 spot on the album charts and has sold five million units to date. Its single, "Tha Crossroads," won a Grammy and tied the Beatles' "Can't Buy Me Love" as the fastest-rising pop single ever.

Bone established Mo Thugs Records and began developing and releasing Cleveland artists, as well as their own solo LPs. Krayzie in particular has gone into production with recordings by Graveyard Shift, Poetic Hustla'z and others. As of this writing, they are preparing for the August '97 release of the highly-anticipated The Art Of War, a 2-CD package divided into "World War I" and "World War II" discs.