Black on Both Sides was the debut album of Mos Def,. The album features an emphasis on live instrumentation and socially conscious lyrics and has features from Q-Tip, Busta Rhymes and Talib Kweli.
It seems like we've been hearing from R.A. The Rugged Man for years now, and, well, we have. R.A. has a storied background in hip-hop (doing joints with Mobb Deep and Biggy in the early 90's) but to no avail an album. Until now (2004).