Jerry Buddy Long Jr. (born March 10, 1969), better known by his stage name Kokane, is an American recording artist best known for his distinctive vocal style and numerous

guest appearance In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other ...

s, such as on

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

's ''

Tha Last Meal ''Tha Last Meal'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was released on December 19, 2000. It was his third and final studio album released on No Limit, his first album on his newly founded label Doggy Style in the United St ...

''.

Early life

Long Jr. was born on March 10, 1969, in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

, New York City, the son of

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

composer Jerry B. Long Sr. and singer Debra Long. His family soon relocated to

Pomona, California Pomona is a city in Los Angeles County, California. Pomona is located in the Pomona Valley, between the Inland Empire and the San Gabriel Valley. At the 2020 census, the city's population was 151,713. The main campus of California State Polyt ...

, where he would grow up surrounded by his father's work and later joined the gang 357 Gangster

Crips The Crips is an alliance of street gangs that is based in the coastal regions of Southern California. Founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1969, mainly by Raymond Washington and Stanley Williams, the Crips were initially a single alliance ...

. He started his career at

Eazy-E Eric Lynn Wright (September 7, 1964 – March 26, 1995), known professionally as Eazy-E, was an American rapper who propelled West Coast rap and gangsta rap by leading the group N.W.A and its label, Ruthless Records. He is often referred ...

Ruthless Records Ruthless Records was an American record label founded by Eric "Eazy-E" Wright and Jerry Heller in Compton, California in 1986, where all of the Ruthless trademarks have been owned by Comptown Records, Inc. since 1997. Several artists on the la ...

in 1989, co-writing songs for

N.W.A N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip hop group whose members were among the earliest and most significant popularizers and controversial figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, and the group is widely considered ...

and Above the Law, before releasing his first album, ''

Addictive Hip Hop Muzick ''Addictive Hip Hop Muzick'' is the debut studio album by American recording artist Kokane, and the only one released under his 'Who Am I?' alias. It was released on July 2, 1991 through Ruthless Records and Epic Records. Recording sessions took p ...

'', in 1991.

Career

He began his career as a vocalist in the mid-1980s before eventually signing to

label in late 1989. His debut album, ''

'', was released in 1991, on which he was credited as "Who Am I?" to avoid infringing on laws which forbade the use of his usual moniker. His first solo single, "Nickel Slick Nigga", appeared on the ''Deep Cover'' soundtrack. In addition to co-writing "

Appetite for Destruction ''Appetite for Destruction'' is the debut studio album by American hard rock band Guns N' Roses. It was released on July 21, 1987, by Geffen Records. The album was released to little mainstream attention in 1987. It was not until the following ...

" for

's ''

Niggaz4life ''Niggaz4Life'' (also known as ''Efil4zaggin'' as per album cover art, stylized in all caps and horizontally mirrored) is the second and final studio album by gangsta rap group N.W.A, released on May 28, 1991. It was their final album, as the g ...

'', Long also contributed to other West Coast

gangsta rap Gangsta rap or gangster rap, initially called reality rap, emerged in the mid- to late 1980s as a controversial hip-hop subgenre whose lyrics assert the culture and values typical of American street gangs and street hustlers. Many gangsta rappe ...

albums such as Above the Law's ''

Black Mafia Life ''Black Mafia Life'' is the second studio album by American hip hop group Above the Law. This album is what would be considered the blueprint of the G-Funk sound similar to Dr Dre's The Chronic. The album was recorded in 1991 into 1992 but was ...

''. For his second album, 1994's ''

Funk Upon a Rhyme ''Funk Upon a Rhyme'' is the sophomore studio album by American recording artist Kokane. It was released in 1994 through Ruthless Records with distribution by Relativity Records. Recording sessions took place at the Edge Studio and Echo Sound in L ...

'', Long drastically changed his style, incorporating a great deal of singing and an eccentric form of G-funk. He would leave Ruthless Records shortly after Eazy-E's death in 1995. He was supposed to be on

Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

's ''One Nation'' collaboration album, alongside others, before Shakur's murder in 1996 cut plans for the album short. He continued to make guest appearances until releasing his third solo album through Eureka Records in 1999, entitled ''

They Call Me Mr. Kane ''They Call Me Mr. Kane'' is the third studio album by American rapper Kokane. It was released on November 16, 1999 via Eureka Records. The record featured guest appearances from Bad Azz, Big Tray Deee, C-Bo, Mr. Short Khop, Spice 1, Too $hort ...

''. It was on the Los Angeles

posse cut A posse cut is a popular form of song in hip hop music that involves successive verses by four or more rappers.Edwards, Paul, 2009, '' How to Rap: The Art & Science of the Hip-Hop MC'', Chicago Review Press, p. 221. Tracks described as posse cu ...

"Some L.A. Niggaz", from

Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and w ...

's ''2001'' album, that Long's career found a second wind. While Long had been involved with

West Coast hip hop West Coast hip hop is a regional genre of hip hop music that encompasses any artists or music that originated in the West Coast region of the United States. West Coast hip hop began to dominate from a radio play and sales standpoint during the e ...

since the dawn of gangsta rap, he had been unable to secure any substantial success for himself. This changed after his work on ''2001'', through which Long developed a relationship with

and Tha Eastsidaz. He soon became involved in Tha Eastsidaz' debut album, and went on to play a significant role in the success of Snoop Dogg's ''

''. Long spent the next few years signed to Dogghouse Records, working on ''Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Kane''. He later signed with

Koch Records MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch", formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had ...

, forming a new group, The Hood Mob, comprising himself and fellow rappers Cricet and Contraband. They released their only self-titled album ''

The Hood Mob ''Kokane Presents The Hood Mob'' is the only studio album by American hip hop group The Hood Mob, consisted of Kokane, Contraband and Cricet. It was released on March 21, 2006, via Siccness.net. Track listing #"Intro" #"Invasion of the Body Snatch ...

'' on July 3, 2006. His eighth solo studio album, ''The Legend Continues'', peaked at number 196 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart. Over the course of his career Long has worked with artists such as Above the Law, Bad Azz, C-Bo,

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 ...

Daz Dillinger Delmar Drew Arnaud (born May 25, 1973), known professionally as Daz Dillinger (formerly Dat Nigga Daz and commonly Daz), is an American rapper and record producer. In the 1990s at Death Row Records, aided the catapult of West Coast rap and gang ...

, Doggy's Angels,

E-40 Earl Tywone Stevens Sr. (born November 15, 1967), better known by his stage name E-40, is an American rapper. He is a founding member of the rap group The Click, and the founder of Sick Wid It Records. He has released 26 studio albums to date, ...

, Eazy-E,

Goldie Loc Tha Eastsidaz is a hip hop trio consisting of Snoop Dogg, Tray Deee and Goldie Loc. Their first appearance was on Tommy Boy Records' ''The Ride: Music from Dimension'' with Crooked Eye Q on a Battlecat-produced song called "Feels So Good" in ...

Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be p ...

Kurupt Ricardo Emmanuel Brown (born November 23, 1972), better known by his stage name Kurupt, is an American rapper and record producer who aided gangsta rap's rise via 1990s verses helping set lasting trends. He is one half of the rap duo Tha Dogg Po ...

, Mr. Short Khop, Nipsey Hussle, Roscoe,

Brotha Lynch Hung Kevin Danell Mann (born January 10, 1970), better known by his stage name Brotha Lynch Hung, is an American rapper, songwriter and record producer from Sacramento, California who has been described as "the creator of horrorcore rap." He is al ...

, Snoop Dogg, Spice 1, Suga Free,

Alchemist Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim ...

Big Tray Deee Tracy Lamar Davis (born April 27, 1966), better known by his stage name Big Tray Deee (formerly Tray Deee and Tracy Deee), is an American rapper signed with Snoop Dogg's label Dogghouse Records. Career Before becoming a rapper, Davis was an a ...

Too $hort Todd Anthony Shaw (born April 28, 1966), better known by the stage name Too Short (stylized as Too $hort), is an American rapper and record producer. He became famous in the West Coast hip hop scene in the late 1980s, with lyrics often based on ...

, WC, Weazel Loc, George Clinton, Ras Kass,

Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. is an American hip hop band from Carson, California, consisting of the American Samoa Devoux brothers Paul (died 2020), Ted (died 2018), Donald, Roscoe, Danny (died 2022), David and Vincent. It is noted for its use of a liv ...

Ab-Soul Herbert Anthony Stevens IV (born February 23, 1987), better known by his stage name Ab-Soul, is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. Raised in Carson, California, he signed to indie record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2007, where ...

Young Buck David Darnell Brown (born March 15, 1981), best known by his stage name Young Buck, is an American rapper. He heads his own record label, Cashville, and was a member of the former hip hop group G-Unit. Early life Brown was born in Nashville, ...

, The Game,

Tony Yayo Marvin Bernard (born March 31, 1978), better known by his stage name Tony Yayo, is an American rapper. He is best known as a member of G-Unit, a hip hop group he formed with his childhood friends 50 Cent and Lloyd Banks. Yayo released his debu ...

and many others.

Personal life

Long married Alicia Long in 1991. The couple has eight children, including Aanisah C. Long, who is a singer signed to Bud E Boy Entertainment, a record label owned by Kokane.

Discography

Studio albums

*''

'' (1991) *''

'' (1994) *''

'' (1999) *'' Mr. Kane, Pt. 2'' (2005) *''

Back 2 tha Clap ''Back 2 tha Clap'' is the fifth solo studio album by American rapper Kokane. It was released on July 18, 2006 via SMC Recordings. Audio production of the entire record was handled by Fingazz. It featured guest appearances from Kurupt, Roscoe, P ...

'' (2006) *''Pain Killer'z'' (2006) *'' Gimme All Mine'' (2010) *'' The Legend Continues...'' (2012) *''Shut da F Up & Cut da Checc'' (2014) *''Lady Kokane Presents: Kokane Love Songs'' (2015) *''King of GFunk'' (2016) *''Lady Kokane Presents: Kokane Love Songs Vol. 2'' (2017) *''It's Kokane Not Lemonhead'' (2017) *''Finger Roll'' (2019) *''Da White Album'' (2022)

Collaboration albums

*''Gangstarock'' with Chris Gentry (2002) *''

'' with Contraband & Cricet (2006) *''Raine n Lane n Kokane'' with Raine n Lane (2008) *''The New Frontier'' with Traffik (2012) *''Tha Kemistry!! (Joint Album)'' with Tonik Slam (2018)

Filmography

*''

The Wash The Wash is a rectangular bay and multiple estuary at the north-west corner of East Anglia on the East coast of England, where Norfolk meets Lincolnshire and both border the North Sea. One of Britain's broadest estuaries, it is fed by the riv ...

'' (2001) *'' Old School'' (2003)

References

External links

Kokane's biography
at Bud E Boy Entertainment
Kokane's discography
at

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the ...

{{Authority control 1969 births Living people G-funk artists Rappers from California Ruthless Records artists West Coast hip hop musicians People from Pomona, California 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians Crips