Some may know The Last Emperor from the collabo he did with KRS-One and Zach De La Rocha on Lyricist Lounge Vol. 1, released via Rawkus Records in 1998. Some may know him from his brilliant Secret Wars records in which he assumed the voices and flows of some of his favorite rappers, as he set up verbal fights between them and famous comic book superheroes. And some may know him from his short term stay as an Aftermath Entertainment artist.

But unfortunately, what most people don’t know him from is his brilliant out-of-print debut (and only) album Music, Magic, Myth.

With both Ayatollah and the amazingly underrated production team Da Beatminerz producing multiple tracks to go along with a few other underground producers, this album is drenched in dense soundscapes that sound dusty and vibrant at the same time.

Lots of strings and hard hitting drum patterns keep the pace consistent from song to song without getting boring. But the star of this album is the mysterious man himself. The Last Emperor is as fucking solid as any other MC that has ever touched the microphone. He’s not flashy and he’s not overly intricate with his rhyme schemes, but he has an amazing talent that too many people are unaware of. Unfortunately, that has lead to his absence from the music scene for the last few years.

I saw him live in 2005 and not only were the fans entranced by him (especially during a set-ending freestyle session), but the other artists on stage were equally as astonished as the crowd.

Freestyle legend Breeze Evaflowin and Brooklyn-bomber Pumkinhead praised the Emperor onstage as if Rakim or Big Daddy Kane were up there with them. It was a very cool moment to have been a witness to. In the years since that show I’ve heard nothing from the man, and that saddens me. Once, in an interview about the Greatest MC’s of all time, Mos Def mentioned The Last Emperor in the same breath as Jay-Z.

If the amount of music was there I would be hard-pressed not to agree. But The Emperor has blessed us with so little that it’s hard to talk about his legacy. I just hope that more people come across his music. Maybe as they get fed up with the bullshit that continues to come out in the musical realm they will tread backwards and stumble upon this tremendous piece of art.

Bonus: The song “One Life” off this album features the last recorded verse by The Gravediggaz MC Poetic before he succumbed to his battle with colon cancer, and it’s hauntingly beautiful.

Bonus Part 2: (or why I’m cooler than you…) When I bought this album it came with a lost track’s CD that contains some of the songs he recorded with Dr. Dre while signed to Aftermath.

– Some of the featured appearances by The Last Emperor can be found on… Lyricist Lounge Vol. 1 Eastern Conference All Stars II Mass Movementz Featured Material Vol. 3 and German Lugers