Today marks 31 years since Redman dropped one of the wildest, most unhinged albums in hip-hop history. November 22, 1994, the Funk Doc released Dare Iz A Darkside, and let me tell you, this joint was like nothing anyone had heard before or since.
While dudes were playing it safe in ’94, Redman said “nah” and dove headfirst into pure chaos. This wasn’t just his sophomore album: this was his artistic middle finger to anyone expecting him to follow a formula. Coming off the success of Whut? Thee Album, Red could’ve easily played it safe. Instead, he went completely left field and gave us something that still sounds ahead of its time three decades later.
Thirty-one years later, Dare Iz A Darkside still sounds like it could’ve been recorded yesterday. Maybe that’s because the themes are timeless: mental health struggles, feeling lost, trying to make sense of the world when nothing makes sense. Or maybe it’s because Redman tapped into something so raw and honest that it transcends any specific time period.
For real hip-hop heads, this album represents everything the culture is supposed to be about: creativity over commerce, authenticity over accessibility, artistic vision over market research. Red took a chance, put his whole self into the music, and created something that’s still inspiring artists decades later.
Whether you’re discovering it for the first time or revisiting it after years away, Dare Iz A Darkside remains a masterclass in what happens when an artist has complete creative freedom and uses it to explore the darkest corners of their mind. Not every experiment works, but when they do, you get albums like this: ones that change how you think about what hip-hop can be.
Happy 31st to one of the wildest rides in rap history. If you’ve never taken the journey through Redman’s dark side, now’s the perfect time to dive in. Just make sure you’re ready for whatever you might find in there.
