John R. Austin II (born September 26, 1973), better known by his stage name Ras Kass, is an American rapper. He is a member of the hip hop supergroup The HRSMN, along with Canibus, Killah Priest, and Kurupt in 2014. He is also a member of the group Golden State Warriors with Xzibit and Saafir. About.com ranked him No. 30 on their list of the Top 50 MCs of Our Time (1987–2007), while Pitchfork Media called him "one of the best rappers of all time."
Austin was born on September 26, 1973 and grew up in Carson, California. In 1996 he and R&B and soul singer-songwriter Teedra Moses had twin sons, Ras and Taj, both of whom are founding members of the rap group Coast Contra. BMF Entertainment artist Barima "Bleu DaVinci" McKnight is Austin’s cousin.
Ras Kass took his stage name from the legendary Ethiopian Emperor Yohannes IV whose name was Ras Kassa Mircha before he was crowned as an emperor. In 1991, he made his debut appearance on the single "Trick or Treat" by Wild West Corral alongside B.O.X., Ganjah K, Torche and produced by DJ Battlecat. Ras Kass sent waves through the hip-hop world with his debut independent single release "Remain Anonymous," earning him a Hip-Hop Quotable in The Source Magazine. Before his signing with Priority/EMI Records, Ras Kass began making guest appearances on several records and freestyles on numerous radio shows, further solidified the emerging lyricist's notoriety. Recorded guest appearances include Sway & King Tech's "Come Widdit" (feat. Ras Kass, Ahamad and Saafir) (Priority Records) and their "Wake Up Show Anthem '94" (feat. Ras Kass, Nas, Lauryn Hill, Chino XL, Organized Konfusion and Saafir), as well as Chino XL's "Riiiot" (American Recordings), and KeyKool and Rhettmatic's "E=MC5" (feat. Ras Kass, LMNO, and Meen Green) Up Above Records.

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