People Under The Stairs - Mixtape

1. People Under The Stairs - Yield 0:00
2. People Under The Stairs - Reach Out 3:40
3. People Under The Stairs - Talkin' Back To The Streets 6:54
4. People Under The Stairs - The Effects of Climate Change on Densely Populated Areas 10:53
5. People Under The Stairs - Give Love A Chance 14:47
6. People Under The Stairs - We Get Around 19:13
7. People Under the Stairs - The Hang Loose 23:48
8. People Under the Stairs - The L.A. Song 27:34
9. People Under the Stairs - Acid Raindrops 31:59
10. People Under The Stairs - We Got It 36:23
11. People Under the Stairs - The Grind 38:23
12. People Under The Stairs - Uprock Boogie 41:40
13. People Under The Stairs - Earth Travelers 45:17
14. People Under The Stairs - Left Foot, Right Foot (PL70 Exclusive) 49:30
15. People Under the Stairs - The Breakdown 52:14
16. People Under The Stairs - San Francisco Knights 57:09
17. People Under The Stairs - Empty Bottles Of Water 1:01:41
18. People Under The Stairs - Los Angeles Daze 1:05:31

People Under the Stairs was an American hip hop duo from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1997 and disbanded in 2019. Since their inception, the group consisted solely of Christopher Portugal (Thes One) and Michael Turner (Double K). The group employed a DIY work ethic of sampling, MCing, DJing, and producing all of their output.

Despite difficulties achieving mainstream or chart successes, the group rejected the label of underground hip hop. They achieved prominence and acclaim, along with praise from fellow musicians.

While attending high school in Mid-City Los Angeles, group members Thes One and Double K were independently sampling music, creating beat tapes, and DJing local events. Thes One attended Loyola High, and Double K attended Hamilton High and was a part of the Log Cabin Crew, a hip hop collective that also included fellow Hamilton High students Murs, Eligh and Scarub (of Living Legends). They met while looking for sample material in a record store and were impressed by each other's work, forming a friendship.

The group decided to use the name "People Under the Stairs" because they felt it represented their music aesthetic; during a time when most other hip hop artists were forming large crews or collectives, they wanted to stay out of the spotlight and concentrate on the music, only coming out from "under the stairs" to perform before they went back again. The group's name does not originate from the 1991 Wes Craven film The People Under the Stairs, as they were not aware of it when conceiving the group.

In 1998, while Thes One was attending the University of Southern California, People Under the Stairs used Thes One's student loan funds to create, package and release their first 12-inch single, entitled The Next Step II. Nearly 500 copies were pressed, and the record sold well. They would go on to release their first album, The Next Step, in 1998. The album was recorded on an 8-track ADAT digital recorder, mostly at Thes One's home in Los Angeles, and was engineered entirely by Thes One and Double K. This album failed to make an impact in the Los Angeles hip hop scene,though the group found a larger fan base in Europe, embarking on a tour in August 1999. They signed to Om Records, a music label generally known at the time for electronic music and club music, for a four-album deal. The European leg of the tour, though it began as an Om Records tour, evolved into a solo act for People Under the Stairs.

Their sophomore album, Question in the Form of an Answer, was released in June 2000. Like The Next Step, the album was self-recorded and used an eclectic and diverse range of beats rooted in jazz and psychedelic rock, as well as filtering techniques learned from studying analog sound equipment. The album was supported by singles "Youth Explosion", "The Cat" and "We'll Be There". People Under the Stairs embarked on a second world tour to support the record, including performances at the 2000 Glastonbury Festival and Essential Music Festival, alongside Biz Markie, Ice-T, Gerry "Jeru" Mulligan, Masta Ace and De La Soul. During this tour, the group released their first compilation album, American Men Vol. 1, sold at concert venues, while Om Records also re-released The Next Step in 2001.

The group enjoyed a degree of success in the Los Angeles hip hop scene, including Thes One's participation in a beat battle against fellow Los Angeles recording artist will.i.am on April 25, 2002. Their third album, O.S.T., was released in June 2002. The album was again produced in Thes One's home by the duo and released on Om records. O.S.T. proved to be more complex than the group's first albums; the track "Montego Slay" used over 20 minuscule sections of music from Jamaican tourist souvenir records.

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