As a member of
Brand Nubian,
Sadat X (born Derek Murphy) was one of the key MCs whose messages were inspired by the Five Percent Nation. Two years after
Brand Nubian's third album,
Everything Is Everything, he made his solo debut with
Wild Cowboys, which built on his lyrical reputation on top of tough, jazz-inflected arrangements. The album, featuring production from
Diamond D and
Buckwild, was a solid solo debut that didn't quite scale the heights of his legacy with
Brand Nubian. No Better Way, also released in 1996, improved on the debut and was produced by a cast that opened up to include
Da Beatminerz and
Pete Rock.
Sadat teamed back up with
Brand Nubian for 1998's
Foundation, but he didn't appear again as a solo artist until
The State of New York vs. Derek Murphy, an EP released on Relativity in 2000. With a full-time job as a special-education teacher, it took five years before his next album, 2005's
Experience & Education, was released, but 2006 saw another full-length,
Black October, land on the shelves. The sequel to his debut album, Wild Cowboys II appeared in 2010, then Love, Hell or Right followed in 2012. A three-year gap warranted the title of his next album, 2015's
Never Left, then
Agua landed in 2016 along with its accompanying single, "Freeze." Early 2017 saw the release of "The Devil Is Near," the first single from the
Diamond D-produced full-length
Sum of a Man. ~ Andy Kellman