Though unknown to the mainstream hip-hop world, the Detroit rapper Esham helped lay the foundations for the rise of some of the more notable acts to arise out of the Motor City. Releasing his debut album, Boomin' Words from Hell, in 1989, Esham interjected elements of rock music into his hip-hop beats and filled his raps with themes about drug use, death, violence and paranoia, which in turn would go on to influence other Detroit artists like Eminem, Kid Rock and Insane Clown Posse.
