Anthony Cruz, known professionally as AZ, is an American rapper. Best known for his affiliation with hometown native and fellow East Coast rapper Nas, they formed the New York City-based hip hop group the Firm along with Foxy Brown, Cormega and Nature in 1996. Cruz first saw recognition for his guest appearance on Nas' 1994 single "Life's a Bitch", from his album Illmatic. Cruz was then signed by EMI to release his debut studio album, Doe or Die, which was met with critical acclaim. Its lead single, "Sugar Hill" peaked at number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 and received gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America. Moreover, The Firm's sole album peaked atop the Billboard 200 chart despite unfavorable critical response; the group disbanded two years later.
Upon EMI's dissolution, he was transferred to its sister labels, Noo Trybe Records and Virgin Records, through which he released his second album, Pieces of a Man to continued acclaim. Afterward, Cruz signed with Motown and Universal Records to release his third and fourth albums, 9 Lives and Aziatic.
From Wikipedia (