Like many underground rappers in the Midwest, Tech N9ne specialized in bizarre hardcore rap and stood as one of the few recognized rappers based in Kansas City when he debuted in the late '90s. He made the major-label jump with Anghellic (2001), which Jcor Entertainment released with the backing of Interscope Records. The album didn't find a large audience, though, and Tech N9ne returned to the underground and prepared his next album, Absolute Power (2002). A year later Tech N9ne's new label, Strange Music, re-released Anghellic, which had gone out of print in the wake of Jcor's fallout with Interscope.