Ma$e

Mase, born Mason Betha in 1975, is a rapper from Harlem best known for his run of hits with Bad Boy Records in the late 1990s. He started out as a teenager under the name Murda Mase, part of the Children of the Corn crew alongside Big L and his childhood friend Cam'ron, before signing to Bad Boy after being introduced to Puff Daddy by his manager.

Mase's laid-back, melodic flow set him apart from harder East Coast rap styles of the era and became a defining sound of Bad Boy's shiny-suit period. He appeared on Puff Daddy's number-one hit «Can't Nobody Hold Me Down» and The Notorious B.I.G.'s «Mo Money Mo Problems» in 1997, and scored his own top-ten pop hits with «Feel So Good», «What You Want», and «Lookin' at Me».

After his commercial peak, Mase stepped away from rap for a period before later returning to music, including tracks like «Welcome Back» and «24 Hrs. to Live». His smooth delivery and pop-friendly hooks helped define the crossover sound of late-90s hip-hop and left a lasting mark on the genre's mainstream era.