Enta da Stage

Black Moon originated in Brooklyn in the late 1980s as a group called Unique Image, which consisted of high school students Ewart "Evil Dee" Dewgrade, Karim "5ft" Reid, Walter "Finsta" Giddens, and Kenyatte "Buckshot" Blake. After briefly changing their name from Unique Image to High Tech, the group settled on Black Moon, which was the name Evil Dee's older brother–Walter "Mr. Walt" Dewgrade–used for his record production company. Initially, all four members rapped, but by 1991 Evil Dee and Finsta stopped rapping and instead focused on production. According to Evil Dee: "Once we did that and got focused, that's when we started getting really serious about it ... 5ft and Buckshot just stepped up their game and got nice on the rhymes." Black Moon began shopping a five-track demo to various record labels, although they were consistently rejected for a perceived lack of commercial viability. During this period, Finsta left the group. In the spring of 1992, Black Moon performed at a party, and audience member DJ Chuck Chillout arranged for the group to meet with Nervous Records owner Mike Weiss. At the insistence of A&R representative Gladys Pizarro, Weiss signed Black Moon, and gave them enough money to record their first single, "Who Got da Props". "Who Got da Props" was released in October 1992, and reached number 86 on the Billboard Hot 100. The group members were surprised by the success of the single, and in February 1993, Weiss convinced them to record an album. Buckshot soon formed a close relationship with Nervous employee Drew Friedman, later known as Dru Ha. The two formed a management company named "Duck Down Management", and oversaw the release of Enta da Stage as co-executive producers. The group finished recording Enta da Stage at New York City's D&D Studios between late 1992 and early 1993, and prepared it for a late 1993 release date. ==Music==

Much of the acclaim the album received was due to the performance of lead MC Buckshot, who originally went by the name Buckshot Shorty. Ten of the fourteen tracks on the album are Buckshot solo tracks, and he appears on every song but "Son Get Wrec". Buck, who was eighteen at the time of the recording, was a young man trying to establish himself and his crew in the hip-hop world. In a 2005 interview with MVRemix, Buckshot described a day in his life while recording his debut: Lyrics The album's lyrics are filled with violent narratives and braggadocio. AllMusic's Chris Witt stated that "Emcees Buckshot and 5ft Accelerator attack their verses with an aggressive nihilism not heard since Kool G Rap's peak." In a 2005 interview with AllHipHop, hip-hop producer 9th Wonder stated that Buckshot's style strongly influenced his current sound, and that the singles "Who Got da Props?" and "How Many MC's..." changed his life. The album's choruses involve multiple voices yelling the lyrics. These vocals were provided by Smif-n-Wessun, Mr. Walt, Mobb Deep's Havoc and the trio themselves. "Niguz Talk Shit", "Who Got da Props?", "Ack Like U Want It", "Buck Em Down", "Black Smif-n-Wessun", "Son Get Wrec", "Make Munne" and "U da Man" all feature "Black Moon hooks". Production DJ Evil Dee and Mr. Walt of Da Beatminerz, who produced the album, put their samplers to use here, lacing the album with their signature basement sound, filled with hard drums, grimy horn arrangements and deep basslines. In the album's liner notes, DJ Evil Dee stated: "This album was done on blunted terms. Anyone who is offended by the contents of the album, FUCK YOU. Nuff said." AllMusic describes the dark production: "The Beatminerz production crew craft subterranean beats to match Buckshot's mayhem. The tracks are dark, layered with muted jazz samples, and seemingly bottomless." A few of the samples used here were later recreated by a number of hip-hop artists in the 1990s. The single "Buck Em Down" features a sample from Donald Byrd's "Wind Parade", a sample which was later re-used for Organized Konfusion's 1994 concept track "Stray Bullet". "How Many MC's..." features a sample from Grover Washington, Jr.'s "Hydra", which was used for earlier hip-hop tracks like EPMD's "Underground". The iconic "Who Got Da Props" heavily utilizes a looped sample from Ronnie Laws's jazz classic "Tidal Wave", which was featured in several hip-hop and R&B tracks, including Usher's "Think Of You" from his self-titled 1994 album. Evil Dee and Walt take a portion of the sample and craft it into a different loop. An Enta da Stage review on OhWord.com praises the production work, stating "Though the album's success is largely attributable to Buckshot's performance, one cannot ignore the phenomenal production from the Beatminerz. They took the already dark sound of The Low End Theory and one-upped it, filtering out almost all treble and using spare, hardcore drum samples. The compositions of Mr. Walt and Evil Dee are also cleverly structured, propelling Buckshot's raps directly into the listener's psyche."..."The crackle of scratched vinyl pervades the album, contributing to the feel of warmth and timelessness. Thanks to the Beatminerz, there is something inviting about Enta da Stage, despite its confrontational lyrics." ==Singles==

Enta da Stage featured four singles and music videos, including their debut "Who Got da Props?". In mid-1993, the "How Many MC's..." single was released; it became popular in the underground rap circuit, but was not able to find success with mainstream audiences, barely breaking into the Top 50 on the Hot Rap Singles chart. The third single from the album was a remix of "I Got Cha Opin", which utilized a smooth jazz sample, courtesy of Barry White's "Playing Your Game Baby". The single became the group's second Billboard Hot 100 hit in 1994, peaking at number 93. ==Reception==

Enta da Stage has received generally favorable reviews from most music critics and publications. Chris H. Smith of Vibe highlighted Black Moon's lyrics for their blunt "sincerity", noting that they avoided tropes such as "self-conscious intermissions between songs" and "cartoonish renderings of ghetto life". Reviewing the album in the November 1993 issue of The Source, journalist Cheo H. Coker stated: Though praised for its originality and production, Enta da Stage has also seen criticism for its monotony and lack of lyrical substance. Rolling Stone writer Touré criticized the release for "ignorance" and felt that it failed to capitalize on its promise, stating that Black Moon "leave blank the ultimate canvas – the self." In 1998, Enta da Stage was selected as one of The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums. In naming it the fourth greatest album on About.com's list of the Best Rap Albums of 1993, columnist Henry Adaso noted that "Unlike most hip-hop albums of its era, Enta Da Stage eschewed confrontational raps and opted for brooding, electrifying brand of hip-hop." Commercial performance In Brian Coleman's book Check the Technique, Buckshot says the album has sold over 400,000 copies. ==Influence==

Though not as widely heralded as similar groundbreaking East Coast albums with commercial success such as Nas' Illmatic, The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die, Wu-Tang Clan's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), Onyx's Bacdafucup and Mobb Deep's The Infamous, Enta da Stage was critically acclaimed on a similar level. AllMusic described the importance of the album: "It set the tone for much of the hip hop to follow. Biggie Smalls' suicidal thoughts and Noreaga's boisterous thuggery both have their roots here. The album marked a turning point in hip hop." and was one of the pioneering releases during the return of New York City's street hip-hop resurgence of the mid 1990s, after the West Coast's reign of the early 1990s. Enta da Stage is still prominent among hip-hop artists today, such as lyrics from "How Many MC's..." being used as a hook for Jedi Mind Trick's song "Speech Cobras". The album also served as the introduction of the supergroup Boot Camp Clik. The collective was a prominent underground rap group in the 1990s – also producing the acclaimed Smif-n-Wessun's ''Dah Shinin''', Heltah Skeltah's Nocturnal, and O.G.C.'s Da Storm. Enta da Stage heralded the debut of Da Beatminerz. After producing here, and on other Boot Camp albums Dah Shinin', Nocturnal and Da Storm, Mr. Walt and Evil Dee went on to expand their sounds, and produce for popular artists like Afu-Ra, Big Daddy Kane, Craig G, De La Soul, Dilated Peoples, Eminem, Flipmode Squad, Jean Grae, KRS-One, M.O.P., Naughty by Nature, O.C. and Black Star. The album is extensively broken down track-by-track by Buckshot, DJ Evil Dee, and Mr. Walt of Da Beatminerz in Brian Coleman's book Check the Technique (2007). ==Track listing==

Track listing and producer information is taken from the CD. Notes • "Ack Like U Want It" and "Slave" were not on the vinyl release. "Shit Iz Real" is also not on digital streaming music platforms. ==Personnel==

Credits for Enta da Stage adapted from liner notes. • Buckshot – vocals, background vocals, producer, executive producer • 5ft – vocals, producer, background vocals • DJ Evil Dee – producer, background vocals • Mr. Walt – producer, background vocals • Tek – vocals, background vocals • Steele – vocals, background vocals • Havoc – vocals, background vocals • Dru Ha – vocals, background vocals, executive producer • Everette Lawson – background vocals • Lynn Blackwell – background vocals • Leo "Swift" Morris – main engineer • Eddie Sancho – assistant engineer • Luke Allen – assistant engineer • Luis Tineo – assistant engineer • Dave Carpenter – assistant engineer • Joe Quinde – assistant engineer • Merge One – art direction • C² – art direction, photography • Chi Modu – photography ==Chart history==