A.N.M.
“Trigger Happy Cop” (JR Records)

“Trigger Happy Cop,” a single from A.N.M.’s (Anti Nigger Machine) 1991 album Let the Message Rize, is a protest track broadcast straight from “South Park News.” Rasul and Mike D rap forcefully over a funky beat and turntable cuts assembled by Bruce “Grim” Rhodes, and their angry voices ride over melodies from Vaughan Mason and Crew’s “Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll” and Sly & The Family Stone’s “You Can Make It If You Try.” “They say they protect and serve, that’s bullshit!” they shout in unison. “It’s a shame, you could lose the life ya got/Shot, popped by a trigger-happy cop.” Despite its raw power, the single went nowhere.

A.N.M. was signed to the late Lil’ Troy’s Short Stop production company, and Miami bass imprint Joey Boy Records distributed “Trigger Happy Cop.” When asked in 2014 about his Short Stop experience by the Houston Chronicle, Mike D responded, “I came with more money than I left with!” He later found regional fame as a key contributor to DJ Screw’s Screwed Up Click. Rhodes went on to produce Lil’ Troy’s national hit, “Wanna Be a Baller.” It’s unclear what happened to Rasul.

Read More: The 100 Best Rap Singles of 1990

Originally published on criticalminded.com.

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