Very few groups can claim to have gone at least gold on every album they released. Even fewer can lay claim to the title of “cultural phenomenon.” And smaller still is the amount of people that can say that they were invited out on tour with the legendary Michael Jackson. Chris Kelly and Chris Smith, better known as the duo Kris Kross, weren’t the first kid act in the history of Hip-Hop but they definitely left their mark on the genre.
Discovered in 1991 by Jermaine Dupri in an Atlanta mall the two would go on to one of the most successful debuts by anybody in the decade. Totally Krossed Out was released in 1992 on Ruffhouse Records and was virtually an overnight success. Preceded by the lead single “Jump” the album would go on to sell over 4 million copies worldwide and be certified Platinum multiple times over. “Jump” would set a record for the most weeks spent at number one by a Hip-Hop single on the Billboard Hot 100 (8 weeks.)
The success of their first album would lead to the King of Pop himself inviting the duo to not only tour with him but to also cameo in his video for “Jam” off of the Dangerous album. The group would have continued success outside of the world of Hip-Hop with guest appearences on A Different World, the Hip-Hop whodunit Who’s The Man? and music videos for Run D.M.C. and TLC.
The would group would go on to release two more albums in the decade, Da Bomb (1993 – Platinum), and Young, Rich and Dangerous (1996 – Gold) before eventually hanging up their mics. They left behind a legacy that would last however. Kris Kross will forever be known as the youngest rap duo to chart with a platinum album and you can still hear “Jump” played in stadiums across the country.
Kris Kross is our Artist of the Week
-kp
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