By Terrianna Daniels
FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS
Mark D. Ross (April 4, 1966 – June 3, 2024), better known by his stage name Brother Marquis, was an American rapper and a Miami bass pioneer. Ross was born in Rochester, New York, in his teens, and with his mother, they moved to Los Angeles, California. By the early 1980s, Ross started to release music with his group The Cautious Crew, and shortly after he made an impression with DJ and producer David Hobbs (Mr. Mixx) due to his battle rap abilities. At the time, Hobbs was part of a group named 2 Live Crew, who had just created the Miami Bass blueprint, and were successful in Florida. Eventually a member of the group left, and Ross accepted an invitation to replace him. Due to his comedic sensibilities, Ross integrated easily into the direction the group was taking. Alongside Hobbs, Christopher Wong Won (Fresh Kid Ice), and Luther Campbell (Luke Skyywalker), they became the most well-known line up of the group. In 1986, they had a breakthrough with their Gold-certified debut album, The 2 Live Crew Is What We Are.
The group’s success came with controversies due to the explicit nature of their humor. They continued their rise to fame with their second album, Move Somethin’ (1988), which also went gold. Their third album, As Nasty As They Wanna Be (1989), was certified Platinum and found legally obscene by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida (soon overruled). In the press the group received national scrutiny. They were prosecuted and acquitted. Prior to separating, they made two more Gold albums: Banned in the U.S.A. (1990) and Sports Weekend: As Nasty as They Wanna Be, Pt. 2 (1991).
Ross died on June 3, 2024, at the age of 58.
