Since its inception and over the span of its now 50 years, hip hop in all its forms has permeated every aspect of mainstream popular culture. Rap music’s rise was keenly felt in its first ‘Golden Age’ of 80s innovators. Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Public Enemy, Queen Latifah, De La Soul, Run DMC, BDP, Big Daddy Kane, and Roxanne Shante would set the lyrical benchmark for the next generation of emcees to follow.

By the turn of the decade, a new stream of artists would fully embrace and expand on that legacy, in a second golden age. The likes of Wu-Tang Clan, The Notorious B.I.G, Nas and Outkast, would continue to elevate and propel hip hop’s reach far beyond its park jam origins, into the billion-dollar industry of today.

One lover of the culture would pick up a camera in order to document many of the 90s now iconic figures. Alder White, known to most as Tee Max, accumulated a photographic archive of many of the decade's mic officiators - the aforementioned Biggie Smalls, Nas and Outkast, as well as Mary J. Blige and Beyonce, all in their early formative years.

Having kept the vast majority of his work out of the public gaze for almost 30 years, Tee has now chosen to begin sharing his iconic work with fellow lovers of the culture and art collectors. Hip hop aficionados and music historians viewing this collection of images, many being seen for the first time, will be transported back to an era of foreshadowed greatness.

You can find out more about Tee Max on his website teemaxphotography.com and follow him on Instagram @teedilla71