Born and raised in the Bronx, rapper Hell Rell is a member of the Diplomats crew who made his solo debut in 2006 with the mixtape Streets Wanna Know. Rell's solo career was delayed a couple years by a two-year jail sentence on drug charges, although he was still able to contribute to the 2004 Diplomats album Diplomatic Immunity, Vol. 2 by rapping into his jail house phone. In 2007 he signed with the Koch label and began working on his proper debut, For the Hell of It. Black Mask Black Gloves followed in 2008, and then 2009 saw the release of two albums, Hard as Hell in the spring and Live from Hell in the fall.