In the mid-90s, when New York's underground was overflowing with raw talent, few names stood out with such an impact in so little time as AK Skills. Hailing from Edgemere Projects in Far Rockaway, Queens, he dropped only a handful of records, but what records they were !! Released on the cult imprint Tru Criminal Records, his two 12-inches are now considered essential pieces for any hip-hop vinyl collector.
The first, "Check The Flava / Nights of Fear" immediately set the tone... razor sharp rhymes over heavyweight productions. With Lord Finesse behind "Check The Flava" and Buckwild lacing "Nights of Fear", the record stands as a perfect snapshot of the D.I.T.C. golden era sound.
Both songs are available in their Clean, Dirty and Instrumentals versions. The 12" was reviewed in the Sure Shot Singles section of the Source Magazine in June 1996, and in the Please Listen To My Demo section of Beat Down Magazine.
The follow-up, "One Life Ta Live / East Ta West" only reinforced his reputation. "One Life Ta Live" is a raw Queens anthem, while "East Ta West" carries a heavy rolling vibe that resonated far beyond New York's borders. Both tracks were produced by Eddie James (of Mad Pack).
Eddie James shared a lot of information about AK Skills and the production of this 12" in an article written by Gino Sorcinelli in 2018. You can read it here.
What makes these two records so remarkable isn't their rarity today, but the way they capture a moment in New York hip-hop where underground talent thrived outside the mainstream spotlight. Tru Criminal Records, which was an independent record label founded in 1996 by Lee "Skill" Resnick and one of his friend named Alex Groothius a.k.a Gru Da Mastamind, may not have had a massive catalog but their releases are revered and AK Skills sits right at the heart of that legacy. Moreover, AK Skills dropped another single,"One Thing Or Another" produced by Buckwild, on the dope Tru Criminal Records EP released a year later. It also includes tracks from other groups that were part of the Tru Criminal Records roster : Street Smartz & God Sunz.
By the way, the Rap Is Outta Control Radio Show, with DJ Eclipse and DJ Riz, recently did a tribute show to Tru Criminal Records, which aired on December 7th 2025. AK Skills, FT of Street Smartz, Smokescreen of God Sunz and Lee "Skill" Resnick were in the studio. If you haven't had a chance to check it out yet, I definitely recommend it... they drop some cool stories about the crew members and the record label. They also played some unreleased material.
For record collectors, all these 12"s above are mandatory digs, not only do they represent the essence of 90s East Coast underground rap, but they also preserve the voice of an MC who deserved far more shine than he got. If you stumble upon these records in the bins, don't hesitate... they're true classics of 90s indie hip-hop. Peace
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