Hieroglyphics

The Oakland-based Hieroglyphics are a long-running, influential underground rap collective who combine an offbeat sensibility with a strong grounding in battle rhyming, freestyling, and other hip-hop traditions. All the members enjoy their own separate careers -- founder Del tha Funkee Homosapien, Casual, the Souls of Mischief, Extra Prolific, producer/manager Domino, Pep Love, and producer Jay Biz (the latter two of whom have also worked together as the Prose). Thanks to a significant online presence and constant touring, Hiero gained a healthy following among rap fans seeking an alternative to the increasingly commercialized state of the genre, and the group's signature logo (a three-eyed, straight-lipped face similar to the Mayan numeral for 8) became ubiquitous at rap shows, record stores, and college radio stations. Active as a collective since the early 1990s, the members produced acclaimed albums such as Del's I Wish My Brother George Was Here (1991) and Souls of Mischief's 93 'Til Infinity before founding the independent label Hieroglyphics Imperium in 1997 and releasing 3rd Eye Vision in 1998. While mainly active as a label, Hiero regrouped for two additional crew full-lengths, 2003's Full Circle and 2013's The Kitchen.