Popular music history is rife with stories documenting an artist's meteoric rise, brief success and the supposedly inevitable crash. The usual suspects, youth, arrogance and substance abuse almost always have a hand in extinguishing the brightest lights and silencing the biggest voices.

In 1985, Matthew Knights, just a little over 20 years old, was looking at a promising music career. He signed with a Raleigh, NC management company, that also managed indie darlings Flat Duo Jets, and Accelerators, and was opening for national acts, shopping tunes, and attracting major label interest.

Actor, Producer, and most notablely, Rapper, Ice Cube took the stage as the sun set at the King Of The Mics concert in Simpsonville, SC. The entertaining artist performed a full spectrum of crowd favorites spanning both his solo songs and songs from collaborations with others. "Check Yo Self", "We Be Clubbin", and "Straight Outta Compton" (N.W.A.) all had the crowd waving their hands in the air and singing along. Ice Cube closed out his set with the befitting "It Was A Good Day".

Public Enemy - Chuck D, Flavor Flav, Professor Griff, Terminator X, DJ Lord & The S1W's - roared into Simpsonville, SC and took the Charter Amphitheater by storm during their portion of the Kings of the Mic Tour. The East Coast Rap Group formed in New York in 1982, and proceeded to take Hip Hop to a new level with politically charged lyrics and tricky beats and rhythms. Their first 4 albums were all certified either Gold or Platinum, and their album, "Fear of a Black Planet", is considered to be one of the top 100 albums of any genre.

There was no doubt that LL Cool J is appropriately named, as the Ladies do love him, judging by the screams from the audience and the line to get a rose during "Doin' It". LL didn't disappoint, performing songs like "Hey Lover", "I Need Love", and "Around The Way Girl". But LL appeals to the guys as well, with his hard hitting rap anthems that include "I'm Bad" and "Mama Said Knock You Out".

De La Soul entertained the crowds at Charter Amphitheater as part of the Kings of the Mic Tour. The hip hop threesome came out if New York in 1987, and their debut album, "3 Feet High and Rising", is one of the key components to any true hip hop cd collection. The group did not disappoint, performing a greatest hits set with songs spanning from "Me, Myself, and I" to "A Roller Skating Jam Named 'Saturdays'".

Shot of Love performed at Shady's in Union, SC as part of the SOS Bash (Support Our Shriners), and we were fortunate to have been able to attend and capture some of their performance. Shot of Love is based out of Lexington, SC, and plays all over the southeast with their blend of classic rock, beach, country, and original songs. All of the band members sing, so the variety of music blew us away during their set.

The SOS Bash wasn't just some random event that the band decided to play at.