First Priority Music (FPM) was an American

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

record label of the late 1980s and early 1990s, which later released

contemporary R&B Contemporary R&B (or simply R&B) is a popular music Music genre, genre, originating from African Americans, African-American musicians in the 1980s that combines rhythm and blues with elements of Pop music, pop, Soul music, soul, funk, Hip-hop, ...

and

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

, among others.

Record label

A small independent, it formed distribution relationships first with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

, and later on with Jive/Zomba. First Priority was founded by Nat Robinson in 1987, to release music by his son Kirk better known as Milk Dee of Audio Two. FPM's first release was Audio Two's "Make It Funky"/" Top Billin'", which was successful enough to secure the label a distribution deal with

. MC Lyte's debut album ''

Lyte as a Rock ''Lyte as a Rock'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop recording artist MC Lyte. It was released on April 19, 1988, via First Priority and Atlantic Records, and was produced by Audio Two, Prince Paul, and King of Chill and his group, ...

'' (1988) was followed by her records, ''

Eyes on This ''Eyes on This'' is the second studio album by American hip hop recording artist MC Lyte. It was released on October 3, 1989, via First Priority and Atlantic Records, and was produced by Audio Two, Grand Puba, the King of Chill, Marley Marl, ...

'' (1989) and '' Act Like You Know'' (1991). "Ruffneck", from 1993's '' Ain't No Other'', was the first gold single by a solo female rap artist. Other members of the hip hop roster of the period include Positive K,

Michie Mee Michelle Ann Camille McCullock (born November 1, 1970), better known by her stage name Michie Mee, is a Canadian rapper and actress. Canada's first notable female Master of Ceremonies, MC, she is considered a national hip hop music, hip-hop pionee ...

, Alliance, Kings of Swing, and Barsha. A compilation featuring FPM artists, '' The First Priority Music Family: Basement Flavor'', was released by the label in 1988. A short-lived sub-label called Bum Rush was distributed by Atlantic then-sister label

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...

from 1989 to 1991. Recent years saw releases by Jason Downs and the 2004 single by Eamon called " Fuck It (I Don't Want You Back)," which were released through Jive/Zomba.

Artists

* Alliance *

Audio Two Audio Two was the Brooklyn, New York hip hop duo of rapping, emcee Kirk "Milk Dee" Robinson and DJ Nat "Gizmo" Robinson, best known for their first hit "Top Billin'". History The duo's debut single, "Make it Funky", was released in 1987, bu ...

MC Lyte Lana Michele Moorer (born October 11, 1970), better known by her stage name MC Lyte, is an American rapper. Considered one of the pioneers of female rap, MC Lyte first gained fame in the late 1980s, becoming the first female rapper to release a ...

Eamon (singer) Eamon Doyle (born September 19, 1983 or 1984), known mononymously as Eamon, is an American singer and songwriter. He is mainly known for his 2003 hit single " I Don't Want You Back". Early life Eamon Doyle was born in Staten Island, New York ...

* Positive K * Proven Innocent * Jason Downs *

Mekhi Phifer Mekhi Phifer ( ; born December 29, 1974) is an American actor. Beginning his career in the mid-1990s, Phifer was known for a few notable roles in films including ''Clockers (film), Clockers'', ''Soul Food (film), Soul Food'', ''High School High' ...

References

*Peter Shapiro, ''Rough Guide to Hip-Hop'', 2nd ed., Rough Guides; London, 2005 (p. 18, pp. 253–254). *Simon Price, "Rock and Pop", '' The Independent Sunday'', June 24, 2001. *https://www.abc-7.com/story/41138393/hip-hops-first-priority-music-hits-reset-button-announces-expansion

External links

Official site
{{Authority control American independent record labels American hip-hop record labels Atlantic Records