The Whooliganz were an American 1990s hip hop music duo consisting of

Scott Caan Scott Andrew Caan (born August 23, 1976) is an American actor, director, photographer, writer, and former rapper. He received his breakthrough role in ''Ocean’s Eleven'' as Turk Malloy who he played in the ''Ocean's (film series), Ocean’s t ...

and Alan Maman (the latter of whom is known now as hip hop producer

The Alchemist An alchemist is a person who practices alchemy. Alchemist or Alchemyst may also refer to: Books and stories * ''The Alchemist'' (novel), the translated title of a 1988 allegorical novel by Paulo Coelho * ''The Alchemist'' (play), a play by Be ...

). The duo went by the names Mad Skillz and Mudfoot, respectively. Caan and Maman met as

teenagers Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...

in the wealthy neighborhood of

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. B ...

. The duo began performing throughout the

Los Angeles area Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Cou ...

and gained recognition. Maman's childhood friend

Evidence Evidence for a proposition is what supports this proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the supported proposition is true. What role evidence plays and how it is conceived varies from field to field. In epistemology, evidenc ...

introduced the group to

Quincy Jones III Quincy Delight Jones III (born 23 December 1968), better known as QDIII, QD3 and Snoopy, is an English-born Swedish-American music producer and film producer. Family Jones was born in Wimbledon, London, the son of Swedish model Ulla Andersson ...

and they began work on a

demo Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to: Music and film *Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release * ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes * ''Demo'' (Deafhea ...

. They eventually caught the attention of

B-Real Louis Mario Freese (born June 2, 1970), known by his stage name B-Real, is an American rapper. Since 1991, he has been one of two lead rappers in the hip hop group Cypress Hill, along with Sen Dog. He has also been a part of the rap metal band ...

Cypress Hill Cypress Hill is an American hip hop group from South Gate, California. They have sold over 20 million albums worldwide and have multi-platinum and platinum albums. They are considered to be among the main progenitors of West Coast and 1990 ...

, who invited the teens to join the collective

Soul Assassins Soul Assassins is a hardcore hip hop project of Cypress Hill member and producer DJ Muggs. Each album features a plethora of guest rappers and is primarily produced by Muggs; the second and third studio albums see contributions from other produ ...

, which also consisted of

House of Pain House of Pain was an American hip-hop trio that released three albums in the 1990s. The group consisted of DJ Lethal, Danny Boy, and Everlast. The group's name is a reference to the H. G. Wells novel '' The Island of Dr. Moreau'', a refer ...

and

Funkdoobiest Funkdoobiest was an American hip hop group from Los Angeles, California, United States, composed of rappers Jason "Son Doobie" Vasquez, Tyrone "Tomahawk Funk" Pacheco and DJ Ralph "Tha Phunky Mexican" Medrano. They are members of the Soul Assassi ...

. The Whooliganz toured the country with the Soul Assassins and their connection helped them land a record deal with

Tommy Boy Records Tommy Boy Entertainment is an American independent record label and multimedia brand founded in 1981 by Tom Silverman. The label is credited with helping and launching the music careers of Queen Latifah, Afrika Bambaataa, Stetsasonic, Digital U ...

. The Whooliganz recorded their debut album, ''Make Way for the W''. The album's first single was "Put Your Handz Up", which was produced by

DJ Lethal Leor Dimant ( lv, Leors Dimants, russian: Леор Григорьевич Димант, ; born December 18, 1972), better known as DJ Lethal, is a Latvian-American turntablist and producer and is best known as a member of the groups House of Pai ...

and released in 1993, but the single and music video did not receive much airplay. A second single, "Don't Mean Nothin'," was planned but then Tommy Boy decided to drop the group and not release the album. Another song, "Whooliganz," was released as a single in 1995 in the UK on

Positiva Positiva Records is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group and concentrates on releasing dance music in the UK. The record label was set up in 1993, by Nick Halkes, who previously ran XL Recordings. Its headquarters are at the Universal UK ...

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...

, but the duo had already gone its separate ways. Caan followed his father,

James Caan James Edmund Caan ( ; March 26, 1940 – July 6, 2022) was an American actor. He came to prominence playing Sonny Corleone in ''The Godfather'' (1972) – a performance which earned him Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Academy Award an ...

, into a successful acting career. Maman turned to making beats and found success as hip hop producer

the Alchemist An alchemist is a person who practices alchemy. Alchemist or Alchemyst may also refer to: Books and stories * ''The Alchemist'' (novel), the translated title of a 1988 allegorical novel by Paulo Coelho * ''The Alchemist'' (play), a play by Be ...

. In 2014, Caan and Maman reunited to collaborate on the song "Byron G." from Step Brothers' album ''

Lord Steppington ''Lord Steppington'' is the debut studio album by California-based hip hop duo Step Brothers (rapper/producers The Alchemist and Evidence). The album was released on January 21, 2014 by Rhymesayers Entertainment. The record was produced entir ...

''. According to Step Brothers, another collaboration was recorded featuring Caan and

Action Bronson Ariyan Arslani (born December 2, 1983), professionally known as Action Bronson, is an American rapper, songwriter, chef, wrestler, exotic olive oil taster, and television presenter. Born and raised in Queens, New York, he embarked on his musical ...

but it was not released.

References

Other sources

* *

External links

* The Whooliganz at Allmusicbr>The Whooliganz at Discogs
Hip hop groups from California Jewish hip hop groups Tommy Boy Records artists Musical groups established in 1991 Musical groups disestablished in 1994 Hip hop duos American musical duos 1991 establishments in California {{US-hiphop-band-stub