Shyne Gangland

The near 10-year jail sentence Shyne served for his role in a shooting at a Mahattan night club, in which Diddy and his then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez were also involved, has to a certain extent overshadowed the content of the rap career that came before it. Fortunately for Shyne, he's not Martha Stewart, so a long stint in the joint only bolsters his bonafides. This is even more fortunate because the list of big-name collaboroatros for his first post-prison album, Gangland, is short or non-existent: The man's gotta have something to live up to after the seven-figure deal he signed with Def Jam.

Abstract by Matthew Richardson