Born to parents Geraldine Green (1947) and Trevor George Smith Sr, and he has a younger brother, Paul Smith. His parents divorced when he 10 years old. Busta’s time during the year of 1983 was that of change, his parents got divorced and his way of thinking was altered, during that year he also changed his religious beliefs and re-named himself ‘Born Justice God Allah’ because of the supreme sorts of names that he now believed in and looked up to. He discovered hip hop music through listening to the Zulu Beats Radio Show, something influenced him from that show and three years later he would form a group. Busta also went to school in the United Kingdom, where he lived in Blackpool, Preston and Morecambe. Ended up graduating from George Westinghouse High School in downtown Brooklyn.
As a youngster he played basketball, football and soccer.
His Panamanian baby-sitter, Aunt Mitzi, made him listen to all the rap radio stations. So, He would sit there at 2 in the morning rapping when he was supposed to be sleeping. I just couldn't be too loud or Mitzi's poodle would start dancing around and barking. One night, the poodle barked and Mitzi took my radio away. So he said, "I don't need that radio. I'll write my own rap songs." Busta Rhymes later became part of a B-Boy crew with mainly latinos, a couple of white kids, and Busta, the only black one. When he was about 10 years old after he moved from Brooklyn to Long Island, where he became a member of the crew when it was a big contest happening which the leader of the crew, Johnny Juice watched. Busta just came up to him like, "Are you Johnny Juice?" and Johnny answered like "Yeah." and he said he wanted to be down with this crew. He started poppin' and Johnny said he was dope so he said "We're about to do this contest" and they wanted to put him down with them, but he didn't know the routines. But they put him down anyways and they lost the contest because they didn't know where to put him in the routine. The next contest they had was more of a battle, for the crown of best b-boys in Long Island and they had their crew there and they won. Busta destroyed these other guys, when he was poppin. Johnny Juice says "even if you listen to his rhymes now, you can tell by the way he rhymes and the way he moves around he's really dope on the popping shit".
Before his leap to stardom, Rhymes, was a rambunctious middle-class kid from Long Island who wrote "rap poetry" and dropped out of high school to pursue a music career. "I really thought he'd be a dancer," says his mother, Geraldine Green. "At family cookouts he would win all the dance contests. He was always a showman." He reminds his worst job: “I used to work as a stock boy at a department store called Cheap John’s,” he says. “I knew that I couldn’t really wrap my head around doing that kind of work. Even if your heart is not in something, your mind has to at least be able to be willing to do it. So, I took the job and I worked for about two weeks, and then I quit.” Why?
“They just had me doing too much. I had to line up the roach sprays on the shelves and make sure they were all in order, facing the same way, with the logos facing the front. The dishwashing liquids, the detergents, the boxes that they came in when they came from the actual shipping companies that they were manufactured at. After I lined them up on the shelves, I had to cut up the cardboard boxes, fold them up neatly and tie them up so that they could do the recycling thing with them. After a couple paper cuts too many, and hands that were calloused and ashy and bruised, I said ‘this is definitely not the thing for me to continue to be doing.’”
Busta adds, “I used that as inspiration to go into the studio all the time when I had a free moment. After work, during my lunch break, traveling back and forth to work … to just apply myself creatively, and the opportunity finally came one day when I was downtown.” At 17, Rhymes landed a six-figure record deal.
LONS signing with Elektra
His first name as a rapper was Chill-o-ski, but he thought it was a corny name, and Chuck D from Public Enemy gave him a new name, Busta Rhymes. He got the name from an american football player from the eighties, George "Buster" Rhymes, and people always asked him to "Bust-a-rhyme", so the choice was easy. In the end of the eighties he met Charlie Brown at Turtlehook Middle School and they formed Leaders of the New School with Dinco "The rhyme scientist" D and Milo In De Dance (aka The Cut Monitor). They were on Rush Management. They was signed to Elektra Records December 12th 1989. First Recorded Appearance: “Mt. Airy Groove” from the Rubaiyat compilation, Elektra 1990. A&R Dante Ross heard about Leaders of the New School from Hank Shocklee [Bomb Squad] and Chuck D [Public Enemy] and them.He says "I knew they were one of their burgeoning groups and I also knew they didn't have a record deal. I heard they were performing and I went to check them out. I had just got my A&R gig at Elektra. I went there, saw them perform, grabbed them right after the performance and told them they had a record deal if they wanted one. LONS released 2 albums, "A future without a past" in 1991, and "T.I.M.E." in 1993. In 1992 Busta's girl was pregnant, but the baby died right after he was born, and Busta had big personal problems after that, but he got great support from his group members. In 93 they where divided because of ego in the group.
A couple of other things that made him well known before his solo career was a couple of cameo performances, among them A Tribe Called Quest's remix of "Scenario" with Leaders Of The New School, and the "Flava in ya ear remix" with Craig Mack and Rampage.
It took Busta three years before he released an album for Elektra, in 1996 he released "The Coming" with the hits "Woo hah! Got you all in check" featuring Rampage and "It's a party" featuring Zhane. while recording his debut album, he left the studio to check on his new SUV. He'd recently purchased the Toyota Land Cruiser, a giant vehicle that gives the impression of driving on an elevated track, for $40,000. Rhymes took the elevator down and came out on Broadway, in lower Manhattan, at 11:30 p.m. His ride was gone. Furious, he marched back inside and closed the door in the recording booth. "There was nothing I could do at that point, so I just vented that angry energy into three songs," he says. Woo-Hah!! Got You All in Check, one of the tracks he completed by morning, went on to become a street anthem and crossover hit, his first ever.
There was a short gap between the release of Busta’s first album and his second album, but it came sooner than people imagined it to. Busta was sceptical about bootleggers copying the new album so for reviewing purposes he only sent out album samplers. In 1997 he released his second album, "When Disaster Strikes", and after that, his popularity exploded. 1998 became a very good year for Busta, he started his own clothing line, BUSHI designs, and released his third album "Extinction Level Event (The final world front)" and Flipmode Squad's debut "The Imperial". Flipmode Squad at that point included Busta Rhymes, Rah Digga, Spliff Star, Rampage, Baby Sham & Lord Have Mercy.
1999 became a year with problems for Busta, he had to visit the courthouse a couple of times because of child support, and police stopped his car and found an unregistered gun. He lost the case about child support, and he got a 5 year probation for the other case. Now Elektra started to shut him down with less studio time and promotion for his next album. Busta didn't like that, and took his squad over to J Records in 2001 after his fourth release in 2000, "Anarchy".
J Records
His first album at J was "Genesis", with the hits "What it is" featuring Kelis, "Break ya neck" & "Pass the courvoiser part 2" featuring Pharrell and P. Diddy. Now he is CEO for Flipmode Records. In november 2002 he released his most fervent album so far, "It Ain't Safe No More" with the singles "Make it clap" featuring Spliff Star, and a remix of it featuring Spliff Star and Sean Paul. Other achievements in 2002 was the movie roles he had in "Halloween: Resurrection" and "Narc". In 2003 his SUV was shot up with 6 bullets while he was in the Violator offices, that happened just a month after a couple of people shot inside their offices. The collaboration with Mariah Carey & Flipmode Squad named "I know what you want" on "It ain't safe no more" became Busta's biggest hit so far.
Aftermath
In February 2004, Flipmode Squad joined Aftermath Records, New members was added to the squad: M. Dollars, Labba and former Blackstreet Chauncey Black joined them. In March he got a six month probation sentence after pleading no contest to a charge that he assaulted a woman during a concert in Fall River, Massachusetts, in December 2002.
In November 2005 the first official single off the album "Touch it" was released to radio. The video premiered in December. He is now the father of four children (born in 93, 99, 00 and 02). In February, while making the second video for "The Big Bang"- the "Touch it remix" ft. Mary J. Blige, Missy, Rah Digga, Lloyd Banks, Papoose and DMX, one of his bodyguards, Israel Ramirez, who recently started working security for Busta as his jewelry handler, was shot and killed shortly after midnight outside of the Kiss The Cactus Production studio in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn, NY. According to eyewitnesses, the shooting was a result of an argument that began inside the studio and continued outside.
The Aftermath chief Dr. Dre said before the release of The Big Bang that ”All of sudden I’m hearing people in the streets talking about hos Busta’s back. In my mind, he never left, and that’s why I wanted to fuck with in the first place. He’s got that drive, and he never stops trying to top himself. Anybody who knows Busta knows that he’s always gonna come with heat." His third video from "The Big Bang" was released 10th May, "I love my bitch". The video features actress Gabrielle Union and the Black Eyed Peas' Will.i.am, who produced the song, but Kelis who is featured on the song, was not in the video. The single also features Kelis, but she's not featured in the video. Also changed is his appearance, as he has cut off his trademark dreadlocks as part of a personal renewal. "Eight years of court appearances later and I was awarded custody of my children," he explained. "My hair was remindful of the unnecessary rocks in my career and life. So it was time to shed the locks... I've got my career and family right." "The Big Bang" was released 13th June. The fourth video was released in July, "New York shit" and the fitth video came out in August, "In the ghetto". The album was certified Gold in that month too. This month he was also charged with an assault after the Amsterjam Music Festival on Randalls Island, and he was ticketed after police saw him talking on his mobile while driving past a Manhattan police station.
On January 3rd 2007 he turned himself in to police custody after he allegedly attacking someone on Boxing Day. Lt. John Grimpel said a man told police that Rhymes, had punched and kicked him repeatedly after an argument over money. On May 3rd was arrested on a drunk driving charge by police in New York City. Officers stopped Rhymes at about 12:40 a.m. because the sport utility vehicle he was driving had overly tinted windows, officers then smelled alcohol on the rapper's breath and he was subsequently arrested. was released on $7,500 bail, set by Judge Tanya Kennedy. After a 8th May court appearance, he was free to drive. Rhymes' lawyer said a judge ruled against a prosecution motion to suspend the rapper's license following the driving-while-intoxicated arrest. He also turned down a plea deal that day that would have sent him to jail for one year, the Manhattan district attorney's office said.
Bus appeared in a Super Bowl finale commercial for Pepsi Max Diet in February. Busta Rhymes pleaded guilty on 23rd January to assault, two driving infractions and weapons possession, avoiding a trial and the yearlong prison sentence recommended by prosecutors. But Judge Larry Stevens disagreed with prosecutors that Rhymes deserved time behind bars. Instead, he sentenced him to three years' probation and 10 days of community service for beating a fan who reportedly spat on his car in August 2006, and then assaulting his driver, Larry Hackett, that December. Rhymes was also fined $1,250 for driving with a suspended license in 2006 and driving while intoxicated in 2007. "I just want to say that I'm very grateful to the judge, I'm very grateful to the system. I believe in the system. It hasn't failed me personally yet," Rhymes, dressed in a crisp black pinstripe suit, said outside the courtroom.
"I'm just glad that all of this is finally behind me and I can go back to doing what I do best - making great music and great films and being a people person," he said.
His 8th solo album "Blessed" was set for a release in July 2008. First he called it "When Hell Freeze Over" then he changed it to "Back On My B.S.", a title Pharrell helped him come up with, last it was changed to "Blessed" in April 08. Rhymes was added to Projekt Revolution 2008 (summer tour), He was joining Linkin Park, Chris Cornell, The Bravery, and Ashes Divide on the main stage. After the first week of touring he had to leave the tour because of business matters; Late July he left Interscope, because they couldn't agree with Busta how to handle the final version of the album.
Motown
In September 08 he his new deal was announced, with Motown/Universal. He then re-titled his album to "Back On My B.S." The first single was released in October 2008, called "Arab Money" featuring Ron Browz. 2 remix videos with different guests were later releases in February 09. The second single, "Hustler's Anthem 09" was released in Febuary too. The third single's video "Respect My Conglomerate" was released in March. "Back On My B.S." was released May 19th 09, and entered the Billboard chart at #5, after a lot of delays; 1st July 08, 9th Dec. 08, 10th Feb. 09, 24th March 09). In June, the video for "If you don't know" was released. The video for "World Go Round" will be released soon.
Extinction Level Event
Busta Rhymes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Here we here we here we go y'all
Busta rhymes Flipmode y'all
Yeah yeah y'all extinction level event shit
Bomb threat to the whole world
What what what is going on
What the fuck going on here
Check it out yo
Holy amazing grace about face
Total erase you niggas off the face of the place
Such a shame I had to go grab the calico
Pass the dough before you find out what I had to blast you for
Extreme laws for ones who did try to go against this
Wet your shit up like a sloppy tongue kiss
But don't know what you talking about
Without a doubt where my live niggas give me a shout
On the strength shit niggas check for
Connect the four shots and guess who blew it from next door
Time after time we gonna shine again
Feel it like a broad getting fucked from behind again
Ay yo, I be the closest thing to the next
Like the pain and suffering of about a million deaths
I'm only here to present
And bring the impact of the extinction level event
Sing the song of salvation
La la la la la la la
(What y'all gonna do where the fuck you gonna go)
La la la la la la la
(Where the fuck y'all niggas gonna run
Where y'all niggas think y'all running to son)
La la la la la la la
(Bomb threat to the world
What the fuck going on with y'all niggas out here)
La la la la la la la
(We are now a soldier at dawn
Of glory emergency motherfuckers)
Yo, disregard your whole assignment
Crooked ass nigga need some realignment
Now all refinement
Crazy shit that do make me wanna know where my mind went
Blacking out building hostillity getting violent
Straight giving niggas an ass whipping on consignment
Then I bust your shit 'til the day of my whole retirement
Shaking and rattle like we ready to battle
Fight seeing at every angle like a motherfucking satellite
Quickly bust up your crotches and fuck up your process
Bouncing in like even saying adios or even buenos notches
Have y'all niggas wilding having a fit
Flame throwing lyrics like a bunch of blowtorch in this shit
Grand spectacular, chainsaw massacre
Thug fanatics street shit that be on the creep coming after you
Then we hit you with the most significant time bomb
Ready to designate at the slightest wave of a white arm
Best form of advice I could give is remain calm
The repercussion is something you could never imagine would be going on
Never believe in your eyes
When my squad some through at an astronomically large size
Moving the mountains
Keeping all of my niggas bouncing
Big up my bitches in the place who be screaming and shouting
I'm only here to present
And bring the impact of the extinction level event
Sing the song of salvation
La la la la la la la
(Once again as we welcome all motherfuckers in the world)
La la la la la la la
(To experience the extinction level event)
La la la la la la la
(The dawn of global emergency)
La la la la la la la
(The moment where we all come together as one unison)
La la la la la la la
(And completely dominate all global events)
La la la la la la la
(We about to completely destroy all the whack bullshit)
La la la la la la la
(That we got going on in our every and any reach)
La la la la la la la
(All my live niggas all my live bitches it's motherfucking on)
La la la la la la la
(As we enter the new millenium with this rap shit)
In Busta Rhyme’s song Extinction Level Event, he is referring to the end of the world as we know it. Busta speaks about his experiences, survival and domination in a world where there is a bomb threat and he has to grab his calico to eradicate his enemy. He makes reference to the fact that it is a holy amazing grace, life after life with the impact of the extinction level event.
Busta Rhyme’s song Extinction Level Event was one of three albums released with the same name and contains themes of end times, judgment days and the apocalypse. The song was inspired by Samuel L. Jackson's role in the film Deep Blue Sea. Interestingly, the song was released on December 15th, 1998, which Busta called “the day the world is supposed to end.” He believed it was the perfect day to release his album. Below are some more interesting facts about the song:
· The song features Busta's crew, Flipmode Squad, who play a prominent role on the track.
· The album had a limited edition packaging with the album cover in 3-D.
· The song went Gold and peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200 chart.
· Busta Rhymes worked with some of the most prominent producers during the production of the album such as Swizz Beatz, J Dilla, DJ Scratch and Pete Rock.
· The single versions of the song were edited versions that excluded the more explicit language.
· The album features a track called “There’s Only One Year Left! (Interlude)” which sends a chilling message about what is to come.
· The album contains a total of 19 tracks and was produced by Elektra Records.
· Busta Rhymes went on a 50-city tour after the release of the album.
· The album purchase came with an Extinction Level Event Survival Kit.
Unfortunately, the chords for this song are not available as it is a rap song, but it does feature a catchy beat that captures the dystopian nature of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
Holy amazing grace about face
This is a moment of transformation so significant it's like a spiritual awakening
Total erase you niggas off the face of the place
I'm going to come in and wipe out everyone and everything in my path
Such a shame I had to go grab the calico
I'm saddened that I have to use such a deadly weapon to accomplish my mission
Pass the dough before you find out what I had to blast you for
Give me the money or suffer the consequences
Extreme laws for ones who did try to go against this
Anyone who opposes me will face harsh and severe punishment
Wet your shit up like a sloppy tongue kiss
I'm going to shoot you until you're drenched in blood and you won't even be able to tell what hit you
But don't know what you talking about
You're clueless and you have no idea what's really going on
Without a doubt where my live niggas give me a shout
My loyal supporters will always have my back and help me when I call out to them
On the strength shit niggas check for
People are aware of my reputation and they know not to mess with me
Connect the four shots and guess who blew it from next door
I'm going to shoot you from a nearby location and you won't even be able to figure out where the shots came from
Time after time we gonna shine again
I'm going to keep making a big impact and getting recognition and success
Feel it like a broad getting fucked from behind again
The thrill I get from this is just like the pleasure a woman would feel during sex
Ay yo, I be the closest thing to the next
I'm so talented and innovative that I'm like nothing anyone has ever seen before
Like the pain and suffering of about a million deaths
My impact is so huge that it's like it could cause the same amount of pain and loss as a massive catastrophe
La la la la la la la
Just a catchy refrain
(What y'all gonna do where the fuck you gonna go)
Asking a rhetorical question about what people can do in the face of such overwhelming force and aggression
(Where the fuck y'all niggas gonna run
When everyone is trying to flee and escape)
(Bomb threat to the world
A warning that a major attack is imminent)
(What the fuck going on with y'all niggas out here)
Shocked and perplexed at the situation unfolding
(We are now a soldier at dawn
A metaphor for the idea of being at the beginning of a battle or conflict)
(Of glory emergency motherfuckers)
This is a critical moment and we need to act urgently to overcome it
Yo, disregard your whole assignment
Forget everything you think you know and be prepared to face a new reality
Crooked ass nigga need some realignment
People who are out of line with my way of thinking need to be adjusted
Now all refinement
We have reached a point of perfection and sophistication
Crazy shit that do make me wanna know where my mind went
This is such an intense situation that I'm questioning my own sanity and state of mind
Blacking out building hostillity getting violent
Losing control and feeling rage building up and ready to escalate into violence
Straight giving niggas an ass whipping on consignment
I'm punishing people on behalf of the higher-ups who want them dealt with
Then I bust your shit 'til the day of my whole retirement
I'll keep doing this to you until the end of my career
Shaking and rattle like we ready to battle
We are so tense and ready to fight that we're shaking with anticipation
Fight seeing at every angle like a motherfucking satellite
We're always on guard and looking for threats in every direction
Quickly bust up your crotches and fuck up your process
I'm going to ruin your ability to reproduce and make sure you can't continue with whatever you were trying to do
Bouncing in like even saying adios or even buenos notches
I'm arriving and making my presence known in a big way, with energy and style
Have y'all niggas wilding having a fit
I'm driving people crazy with my actions and causing them to react in intense ways
Flame throwing lyrics like a bunch of blowtorch in this shit
My words are like a fiery weapon that I'm using to attack and overpower my opponents
Grand spectacular, chainsaw massacre
What I'm doing is epic and impressive in scale, like something out of a horror movie
Thug fanatics street shit that be on the creep coming after you
I'm part of a group of rough and intimidating people who are lurking about and ready to confront and intimidate you
Then we hit you with the most significant time bomb
We are going to set off a major event that will have far-reaching consequences for everyone involved
Ready to designate at the slightest wave of a white arm
We are watching and ready to act as soon as we detect any kind of signal or movement
Best form of advice I could give is remain calm
The only thing that might help you now is to stay calm and try to think clearly
The repercussion is something you could never imagine would be going on
The consequences of all this will be worse than anything you could possibly imagine
Never believe in your eyes
What's happening is so crazy and intense that it's hard to even comprehend it or believe it's happening at all
When my squad some through at an astronomically large size
My group is so huge and overwhelming that it's like a massive force of nature
Moving the mountains
We are capable of great feats of strength and have the power to force even the biggest obstacles out of the way
Keeping all of my niggas bouncing
We are powerful and exciting enough to keep everyone energized and enthusiastic
Big up my bitches in the place who be screaming and shouting
I'm showing love and appreciation for the women in the room who are expressing their excitement and enthusiasm
We about to completely destroy all the whack bullshit
Our mission is to eliminate all the crappy and unimpressive stuff out there and leave only the best and most exciting things behind
That we got going on in our every and any reach
We are going to pursue this goal with relentless determination, going after anyone or anything that doesn't meet our standards
All my live niggas all my live bitches it's motherfucking on
This is a call to all my loyal supporters to get ready for a wild ride and be prepared to face anything that comes our way
As we enter the new millenium with this rap shit
This is a bold new era for our genre of music and we are leading the charge into the future
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Eddie Seago, Mike Leander
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind