Gang Starr - Step in the Arena LP record (white vinyl)

Step in the Arena is the second studio album by hip-hop duo Gang Starr, printed as a 1990 release, and commercially released on January 15, 1991. In 2007, it was named the greatest hip-hop album of all time by IGN. HipHopDX called it "the album that cemented Gang Starr as a timeless tag team." Filmmaker Spike Lee was a fan of Gang Starr's debut No More Mr. Nice Guy, particularly the song "Jazz Music". As Lee was filming Mo' Better Blues at the time of the album's release, he felt the duo needed to expand on the song's theme - which became the single "Jazz Thing". Lee introduced them to a poem written by Lolis Eric Elie, which group member Guru converted to a rap, as the poem didn't rhyme. The song caught the attention of Chrysalis Records, who offered them a deal based on "Jazz Thing". However, DJ Premier said the label had gotten the wrong idea of the group, stating: "When they signed us, they thought we were going to do records like "Jazz Thing" all the time. When we were just doing that for Mo' Better Blues".