Run DMC Then: Run-D.M.C. were natives of the middle-class New York borough, Hollis, Queens. Run (Joseph Simmons) was the brother of Russell Simmons (of Rush Productions and Def Jam with Rick Rubin.) Russell encouraged his brother Joey and his friend, Darryl McDaniel to form a rap duo. The pair of friends did just that, adopting the names Run and D.M.C. respectively. After they graduated from high school in 1982, the pair enlisted their friend, Jason Mizell (Jam Master Jay), to scratch turntables. In 1983, Run-D.M.C. released its first single, "It's Like That" / "Sucker M.C.'s," on Profile Records. The single sounded like no other rap at the time with hard beats and powerful, literate, and daring overlapping vocals as they finished each other's lines. "It's Like That" became a Top 20 R&B hit as with three others in early 1984 before the group's eponymous debut appeared. By the time of their second album, 1985's King Of Rock, Run-D.M.C. had become the most popular and influential rappers in America. Besides releasing the King of Rock album and scoring the R&B hits "King of Rock, "You Talk Too Much" and "Can You Rock It Like This" in 1985, the group also appeared in the rap movie Krush Groove, which also featured Kurtis Blow, the Beastie Boys, and the Fat Boys. Run-D.M.C.'s fusion of rock and rap broke into the mainstream with their third album, 1986's Raising Hell. The album was preceded by the Top Ten R&B single "My Adidas," which set the stage for the group's biggest hit single (#4), a cover of Aerosmith's "Walk This Way" recorded with Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and Joe Perry. Raising Hell became the first rap album to reach #1 on the R&B charts, to chart in the Pop Top 10, the first to go platinum, and Run-D.M.C. was the first rap act to receive airplay on MTV. The album also spawned the hit singles "You Be Illin'" and "It's Tricky." Run-D.M.C. spent most of 1987 recording Tougher Than Leather which would be accompanied by a movie of the same name starring Run-D.M.C. Although Run-D.M.C. had been at the height of their popularity when they were recording and filming Tougher Than Leather, by the time the project was released, the rap world had evolved towards more hardcore political rappers like Public Enemy. Consequently, the film bombed and the album only went platinum, failing to spawn any significant hit singles. Now: Two years after Tougher than Leather, Run-D.M.C. returned with Back From Hell, which became their first album not to go platinum. Following its release, both Run and D.M.C. suffered personal problems as Daniels suffered a bout of alcoholism and Simmons was accused of rape. After Daniels sobered up and the charges against Simmons were dismissed, both of the rappers became born-again Christians, touting their religious conversion on the 1993 album, Down with the King. Featuring guest appearances and production assistance from artists as diverse as Public Enemy, EPMD, Naughty By Nature, A Tribe Called Quest, Neneh Cherry, Pete Rock, and KRS-1, Down With The King became the comeback Run-D.M.C. needed. The title track became a Top Ten R&B hit and the album went gold, peaking at number 21. Although they were no longer hip-hop innovators, the success of Down With The King proved that Run-D.M.C. were still respected pioneers. They are set to release a new album Crown Royal that has been hit with delays.