September 6 In Hip-Hop History: Foxy Brown Is Born

By the time she was 17-years-old, Foxy Brown's rhymes and flows already garnered her so much respect among Hip-Hop's finest from LL Cool J to JAY-Z. Her distinct voice and unforgettable verses are just part of the reason why her legacy should never be forgotten.

On September 6, 1978, Inga DeCarlo Fung Marchand aka Foxy Brown was born in Brooklyn, New York. The rapper of Trinidadian descent was discovered by veteran production team Trackmasters after she won a talent show in Park Slope. They thought she was dope enough to throw her on LL Cool J's historic "I Shot Ya" (Remix) in 1995. Although she was added without LL's knowledge, the Queens rapper was impressed and even brought her on for the video.

WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE

Brown went on to work with other established artists like Case and JAY-Z, who featured her on "Ain't No N***a" from The Nutty Professor soundtrack. Following a label bidding war that ensued after she rapped alongside LL and Hov, Brown was signed to Def Jam in 1996.

Later that year, she released her debut album Ill Na Na with features from JAY-Z, Method Man, and Kid Capri. The album’s lead single “Get Me Home” featuring Blackstreet was a major commercial success that made her a household name in hip-hop. Shortly after the album dropped, she joined Nas, Cormega and AZ to form the rap supergroup The Firm. After appearing on Nas’ It Was Written album, The Firm dropped their debut album through Dr. Dre's Aftermath Records, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts.

Foxy had an unprecedented amount of versatility. She cooked up gritty bars that fit a wide range of instrumentals from classic boom-bap to reggae-inspired beats. She continued to drop solo projects like Chyna Doll (1999) and Broken Silence (2001), which features the latter projects hit singles "Oh Yeah" featuring Spragga Benz and "BK Anthem." Broken Silence also contains contributions from Ronald Isley, Kelis, Capone-N-Noreaga, Wayne Wonder, Mystikal and more.

Following years of label disputes and legal drama, Foxy Brown dropped her first mixtape Brooklyn's Don Diva in 2008. Although she hasn't formally dropped any new projects since then, the illest rapper of the '90s still garners respect from plenty of women in the rap game today including Nicki Minaj, who invited her to hop on "Coco Chanel" for her Queen album. Brown even reunited with The Firm on "Full Circle" for Nas' 2020 album King's Disease.

Celebrate Foxy Brown's birthday by watching some of her best music videos below.

WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE