"Firm Biz" is the first single by the Hip hop

Hip hop music

Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...

 supergroup The Firm from their singular collaborative LP The Album

The Album (The Firm album)

The Album, also known as The Firm: The Album, is the debut studio album of American hip hop supergroup The Firm, released October 21, 1997 on the Interscope-subsidiary label Aftermath Entertainment.-Background:...

. The song was produced by L.E.S

L.E.S. (producer)

Leshan David Lewis, better known as L.E.S., is a hip hop producer commonly associated with Nas. His first production credit was for Nas' popular song "Life's a Bitch" from the Illmatic album in 1994. He soon produced a single, "Sugar Hill", for AZ's album Doe Or Die...

, who based the song's track on a sample of Teena Marie

Teena Marie

Mary Christine Brockert, better known by her stage name Teena Marie, was an American singer, songwriter and producer...

's 1981 hit "Square Biz

Square Biz

"Square Biz" is a song by American R&B singer, Teena Marie. The song was released as a single in 1981 from the album It Must Be Magic. It would go on to become one of Marie's signature songs.- Chart performance :...

". "Firm Biz" also features a chorus performed by former En Vogue

En Vogue

En Vogue is an American female R&B vocal group from Oakland, California assembled by music producers Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy.The group has won more MTV Video Music Awards than any other female group in MTV history, a total of seven, along with four Soul Train Awards, six American Music...

 singer Dawn Robinson

Dawn Robinson

Dawn Robinson is an American R&B/soul/Dance-pop singer best known for her work as a member of hit Urban/Dance-pop group, En Vogue....

, reworked from the "Square Biz" chorus. AZ

AZ (rapper)

Anthony Cruz , better known as AZ is a Grammy-nominated American rapper of Dominican & African American descent. He is known for being a long time and frequent rhyme partner of Nas, and also a member of hip-hop group The Firm alongside Nas, Foxy Brown, Cormega and Nature.In a countdown of the 10...

 raps the first verse of the song, Nas

Nas

Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...

 the second, and Foxy Brown the third and final verse. The song never reached any US chart positions, but was a UK Top 20 hit in 1997. A remix of the song was released, featuring a verse from Half-A-Mill and a chorus by Mary J. Blige

Mary J. Blige

Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...

. The word "feds" is censored in the explicit version, in verse 2, performed by Nas, when he says "Never that though Black .4-4's for feds".

Music video

A music video was released soon after the release for the single. In the beginning it shows a man trying to rob a bank. While the man is riding on his car and trying to flee, Nas and AZ are planning to catch him. The video was premiered on MTV

MTV

MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 and was directed by Hype Williams

Hype Williams

Harold "Hype" Williams , previously known as HYPE, is an American music video and film director of African-American and Honduran descent. His nickname "Hype" comes from his hyperactive nature as a child....

.