Dilated Peoples

Los Angeles, 1992

Dilated Peoples came together in Los Angeles in 1992: Evidence (Michael Perretta) and Rakaa Iriscience (Rakaa Taylor) on the mic, with DJ Babu (Chris Oroc) of the Beat Junkies on turntables. Their first album, Imagery, Battle Hymns & Political Poetry (1995), was never released, but tapes of it got passed around. The real start was a pair of 12-inches on ABB Records, “Third Degree” (1997) with Defari and “Work the Angles” (1998), which made them an underground name and came out of the same West Coast circle as the Likwit Crew and Tha Alkaholiks.

Capitol years

Capitol signed them for The Platform (2000). The Alchemist produced five songs on it, including the title track, and Evidence and Babu produced much of the rest. Expansion Team (2001) went to No. 36 on the Billboard 200 behind the Alchemist-produced “Worst Comes to Worst” with Guru, built on a vocal sample from Mobb Deep’s “Survival of the Fittest.” The video includes a shot filmed at the World Trade Center four days before 9/11. Neighborhood Watch (2004) had the Kanye West-produced “This Way,” and 20/20 (2006) closed out the four-album deal. The group was always bigger in the UK, where “This Way” and “Worst Comes to Worst” both went top 40.

Directors of Photography

After Capitol they worked on solo records, but came back on Rhymesayers with Directors of Photography in 2014, which reached No. 41 on the Billboard 200 and featured production from the Alchemist and DJ Premier. They went quiet in 2017 and returned to performing in 2022.