1992 was a transitional year for R&B and hip-hop. The first wave of bass was coming to an end, New Jack swing was beginning to wane, and East Coast and mainstream hip-hop had yet to transition between the golden age of the ‘80s and the boom bap of the mid-90s. One era hadn’t quite ended, and another hadn’t quite begun, and there was a bit of schizophrenia; the charts were populated by Southern rap bohos (Arrested Development), and Northwestern rappers who appropriated the sound and subjects of Miami bass. This truly awesome playlist by Spotify user John Cunningham is interesting because it captures this dynamic and operates from a very specific critical perspective and rejects the usual nostalgia associated with these type of playlist. It also really bangs. His original playlist was originally named simply “B96,” and we cleaned the title up a little bit to be more descriptive.
