Richard Andrew Thorburn (born January 10, 1974), better known by his stage name R.A. the Rugged Man, is an American rapper and producer.

Thorburn signed with major label Jive Records at age 18, but his debut album, Night of the Bloody Apes, was never released.

[6] In addition to his hip hop career, Thorburn has contributed to Vibe, King, Complex, Rides, XXL,[7] The Source, The Ring, among others.

He has cameos in several music videos including Havoc from Mobb Deep's I'm the Boss, Sadat X's Throw the Ball and Masta Killa's Old Man featuring RZA and Ol' Dirty Bastard.

[11] Thorburn wrote a monthly movie column for Mass Appeal Magazine, was a contributor to The Ego Trip Book of Rap Lists (St. Martin's Press) and Ego Trip's Big Book of Racism (HarperCollins), and has written numerous articles for other magazines including Vibe, King, Complex, Rides and XXL.

The film has an original score by Josh Glazer (J. Glaze) with additional production by Prince Paul, and cameos by Playboy model Jelena Jensen and Penthouse Pet Krista Ayne.

[13][better source needed] Guest appearances include Brother Ali, Masta Ace, Tech N9ne, Talib Kweli, Hopsin, Eamon, and Krizz Kaliko.

It features artists like Ghostface Killah, Eamon, Atmosphere, Ice-T, Vinnie Paz, Brand Nubian, Chino XL, M.O.P.