History Lake

There are at least five artists with this name:

1. LAKE (K Records NW Indie Pop/Rock)

2. Lake, aka "Lakey The Kid" (NYC Hip Hop/Rap)

3. Lake (70's Rock from Germany)

4. lake (japanese experimental/alternative band)

5. Lake (German HipHop-Artist)

1. The most currently active "Lake" is based in Olympia, WA and Los Angeles. LAKE is a group of cloudy individuals brought together through lines drawn along Interstate-5, intersecting in Olympia around 2005. Since forming, they have gained and lost members, recorded 12 full length albums (only 3 of which have seen proper release), played across the world supporting such talented acts as Adrian Orange and Her Band, Half Handed Cloud, Laura Veirs, and Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy. The sounds they craft are straight from the playbook of the good parts of Billy Joel, Fleetwood Mac, and Turkish psychedelic music. Caressing the Rhodes piano, endearing drum fills, guitars that don’t sound like guitars, and some slamming bass lines: listening to LAKE is like pouring sugar in your ears. They’ll turn your brain into chocolate, 67% cacao. Lake began as a Fleetwood Mac cover band with the intention of touring casinos around the Northwest and Alaska. A freak invitation from Karl Blau to record “original” material led to a reformation of the band and a whole new game plan. The members of Lake are also involved in other musical projects such as: Kickball, Palisades, Live Active Cultures, Lindsey Schief, Ashley Eriksson, Swimming, Adam Oelsner, Your Heart Breaks, Cold Comfort Orchestra, Micah Davis-Wheeler, -a, and Eli Moore.

2. Lake, aka "Lakey The Kid", is a rapper from Queensbridge, New York. In 1999, Lake was released from prison after serving a seven year sentence. He had been writing rhymes while in prison and attempted to get into the hip-hop industry once he was released. Lake is famously known as a friend of fellow Queensbridge rapper Nas. He appeared on the song "Revolutionary Warfare" on Nas' album, God's Son. Since he appeared on Nas' album, Lake's relationship with Nas has folded.

The first album Lake released was Lake Entertainment Presents: The 41st Side, a compilation album featuring fellow Queensbridge rappers. The album was released under Lake's label, Lake Entertainment and sold over 100,000 copies with little promotion. Many compare the album to Nas' compilation album, QB Finest, which also featured Queensbridge rappers.

Lake is now signed to Death Row East, a subsidiary of Death Row Records. His album entitled "The Big Ride" is expected to be released in late 2008. On August 22, 2006, Lake released a collaborative album with Cormega entitled "My Brother's Keeper".

2. Lake was a German rock music band that formed in the early 1970s under the name Tornados, changing their name to Lake in 1973. They mostly covered material by other bands in their early years, but released three singles, Come Down/We're Gonna Rock, King Of The Rock'n Roll Party, and Sailor. In 1975 they were joined by lead singer James Hopkins-Harrison, who gave them their signature sound for the remainder of their recording career. They achieved modest success in much of Europe from the mid-1970s through the early 1980s, particularly in Germany where they were named artist of the year by the German Phono Academy in 1977. That same year, their self-titled debut album reached #92 in the US and the single Time Bomb reached #83, which would prove to be their greatest success in the US. They toured the US in the late 1970s as the opening act for various headline acts, including Lynyrd Skynyrd, Black Oak Arkansas, and Neil Young. By the early 1980s, their albums were no longer as successful as their earlier efforts and the group somewhat disbanded about 1981. Hopkins-Harrison and keyboardist Achin Opperman reformed the band in 1984 to record three more albums but failed to achieve renewed success. In 1992, lead singer James Hopkins-Harrison died of a heroin overdose.

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