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Venue

O2 Forum Kentish Town

9-17 Highgate Rd, NW5 1JY, London, UK

www.academymusicgroup.com/o2forumkentishtown/

Capacity: 2,350

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Additional details

Doors open: 18:00

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D12 biography

D12 (formed in 1996) is an American hip-hop group known for the songs “My Band” and How Come” that rose to prominence following the success of member Eminem, hailing from Detroit, Michigan, U.S.

Originally formed of members Proof, Bizarre, Kuniva, Kon Artis, Bugz, and Eminem in 1996, D12 is short for The Dirty Dozen. In order to make up twelve members, each rapper had a alter-ego, which transformed into a character in its own right, most notably Eminem's Slim Shady. In 1997 D12 released their debut EP “The Underground” and began raising their profile across Detroit. As their reputation was building Eminem left to pursue his solo career, later releasing his first album, “Infinite”, in November 1996. The Detroit hip-hop duo Da Brigade, comprised of Kuniva and Denaun Porter, subsequently joined D12, after which rapper Bugz was shot and killed at a picnic. Eminem returned to serve as his replacement and the group recorded and released the full-length “Devil’s Night” in his honour.

Debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and No. 2 in the UK, the record spawned the singles “Purple Pills”, “Ain’t Nuttin’ But Music”, and “Fight Music”. The album blended the playful and parodic with the serious hip-hop production that Eminem fans have come to expect, later selling over four million copies worldwide. Three years later the group issued their sophomore album “D12 World” with Dr. Dre, Eminem and Kanye West on production duties. Finding the top spot once again in the U.S., the record was led by the smash hit single “My Band”, which rose to No. 1 in Australia, New Zealand and the U.S. Featuring guest appearances from Obie Trice and B-Real, the record maintains the playful nature of its predecessor however loses some of the childlike humour.

In anticipation for the group’s third album, rapper Proof died from a gunshot wound in a Detroit club. Swift, who had been on probation, failed to attend a court appearance on the same day as Proof’s funeral and was sentence to 93 days is jail. Four years passed without any new D12 releases, however in 2011 the mixtape “Return of the Dozen, Vol. 2” found its release.

Live reviews

Here’s a chicken and the egg scenario for you - did D12 rise to wider commercial success because of Eminem, or did his involvement with the Dirty Dozen establish a platform for him to become the biggest rapper in the world? Either way, the Detroit group will always be intrinsically tied to Slim Shady - officially speaking, he remains a member - and those huge bangers that he was such an important part of, with ‘Purple Pills’ and ‘My Band’ springing to mind, will likely continue to be the group’s calling card. Excluding Eminem, then, who generally has bigger fish to fry, the current lineup is a four-piece, after the death of Proof in 2006 and the departure of Mr. Porter two years ago. Bizarre, Kuniva, Swifty McVay and Fuzz Scoota have toured the UK as recently as 2009, when they hit the road for a slew of club shows with Obie Trice and Royce da 5’9”, but haven’t released an album since D12 World back in 2004; their first full-length in a decade, as-yet untitled, is slated for release later this year. Expect new material, then, as well as a run through the classics if they return to promote the new LP; I wouldn’t hold your breath for an appearance from Marshall Mathers, though.

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Joeg_67

Onyx are one of the most intimidating hip-hop acts I’ve come across. Every other word that they say is a curse word, so I’ll just say nice things in this review.
Seriously though, this band are fantastic at what they do having been together for over a quarter of a century now, with their material charting in the U.S.A, their highest chart position being number 10 in the US charts, which is of course an amazing achievement. It is fair to say that they dominate the hip-hop charts and are hailed as hip-hop veterans of the music world. “Bacdafucup” is one of the biggest songs of the set too. I don’t know where they draw the energy from, managing to maintain their energy for the whole set, almost shouting every word throughout. Fair play! This is such a new and memorable experience, with every single person in the audience lapping up what they’re about. Great times.

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