This Day in Hip Hop & R&B History: October 8
Oct. 8 is associated with some of hip-hop and R&B’s culture-defining moments. One prominent industry figure who was born on this day is G Herbo, born in 1995. He shot…
Oct. 8 is associated with some of hip-hop and R&B's culture-defining moments. One prominent industry figure who was born on this day is G Herbo, born in 1995. He shot to mainstream prominence on the back of his 2014 single "Kill S**t" featuring friend and long-time collaborator Lil Bibby. He has since dropped six solo studio albums, his highest-charting being his fourth, 25, which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200.
Herbo shares his birthday with Bruno Mars, who was born in 1985. Mars has sold more than 150 million records, making him one of the best-selling artists in the world. He's also a 16-time GRAMMY Award winner and was the first artist in history to have six Diamond-certified songs.
Notable Recordings and Performances
Several influential hip-hop and R&B artists released career-defining albums on Oct. 8:
- 1980: Prince's seminal third album, Dirty Mind, came out. Although it only reached No. 45 on the Billboard 200, it was hailed by critics, with NME and Rolling Stone ranking it among the greatest albums of all time.
- 1991: The soundtrack album to Vanilla Ice's debut film, Cool As Ice, was released. Featuring four songs from the rapper, the compilation peaked at No. 89 on the Billboard 200.
- 1991: The American hip-hop group 2 Live Crew dropped their fifth studio album, Sports Weekend (As Nasty As They Wanna Be Part II), their last release featuring the original band members.
- 2002: Jurassic 5 released their third album, Power In Numbers, through Interscope Records. It reached No. 15 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at No. 13 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
- 2021: Don Toliver dropped his sophomore album, Life of a DON, featuring Travis Scott, Baby Keem, SoFaygo, and Kali Uchis. It debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, selling 68,000 album-equivalent units in its first week.
- 2021: Tech N9ne released his 23rd album, ASIN9NE, via Strange Music. It peaked at No. 82 on the Billboard 200 and at No. 41 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
Industry Changes and Challenges
This day has been marked by tragic news:
- 2020: Tory Lanez was charged with shooting Megan Thee Stallion. The incident occurred on July 12 that same year after an argument while the pair was leaving a party in the Hollywood Hills. The rapper was convicted on three felony charges related to the incident three years later and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
- 2022: Blueface shot and injured a man following an altercation at the Euphoric Gentlemen's Club in Las Vegas. He was arrested the following month and charged with attempted murder.
Oct. 8 is a memorable day in hip-hop and R&B history. It celebrates the release of numerous critically acclaimed albums that continue to inspire fans to this day. However, it also saw two popular rappers get caught up in firearm-related legal troubles.
