AZ

Anthony Cruz (born March 9, 1973 in Brooklyn, New York), better known as AZ, is a Grammy nominated East-Coast rapper currently residing in Englewood, New Jersey. Originally k

Anthony Cruz (born March 9, 1973 in Brooklyn, New York), better known as AZ, is a Grammy nominated East-Coast rapper currently residing in Englewood, New Jersey. Originally known as AZ The Visualiza, AZ has achieved a strong fanbase in spite of little mainstream success. He is of African-American and Dominican descent

AZ first came to prominence by appearing on Nas' landmark album Illmatic on the song "Life's A Bitch" (1994) - he was the only guest rapper to appear on the critically acclaimed album. After a bidding war, AZ was signed to Virgin Records, and soon released Doe Or Die (1995) to more critical acclaim than commercial sales, (it only sold 326,000 units). The album's lead single, "Sugar Hill (featuring Missjones)", became AZ's only major commercial success as a solo artist, reaching the top 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and achieving Gold status.