Undoubtedly one of the most notable hip-hop groups in history, Cypress Hill first emerged in 1991 with their self-titled debut album. A record full of songs about marijuana and their trademark Latin hip-hop, it eventually went double Platinum thanks to its success with a younger demographic. To give you an idea of how much of a role they played in the cross-pollination of hip-hop and rock, they even made appearances on the Judgment Night soundtrack, and were also banned from Saturday Night Live due to lighting up a joint on stage. This was in an era where marijuana hadn’t been really legalized yet, so it was a big, big deal.
An extremely sample-heavy song, Cypress Hill lit up (lol) with their song “Insane In The Brain”. It was released as the first single off their sophomore album, 1993’s Black Sunday, and cemented Cypress Hill as genuine superstars as well. The album it stemmed from also included facts and history about hemp, as well as the positive attributes of cannabis. Again, this was a big thing as cannabis in California wasn’t even legalized on a medical level until 1996.
Now, the song has reached a new milestone. It’s now been certified 3x Platinum by the RIAA, for sales of over 3 million copies. It also joins their Black Sunday album (4x Platinum), “Hits From The Bong” (Platinum), and “(Rock) Superstar”, which have also been certified Platinum.
