Organized Konfusion

Though they never garnered commercial success, Organized Konfusion were one of the most influential groups of the early '90s. The duo's production work bridged the gap between the goofy, jazz hop of early Native Tongues and the darker, nihilistic appropriations of mid-'90s boom bap, but it was Prince Poetry and Pharoahe Monch's vocal performances that defined the group. Veering from the whimsical ("Sugah Shorty") to the apocalyptic ("Stress"), the group was intense in its eclecticism, and the juxtaposition between Prince's gruff bark and Pharoahe's high-pitched, stabbing flows was pure butter.