Early years Trevor Smith is of Jamaican heritage. At the age of 12, his family moved to Uniondale, a suburb of New York City on Long Island, where he was raised and eventually met up with other MCs from the growing New York area hip hop community. He attended and graduated from George Westinghouse High School in Downtown Brooklyn.

Leaders of the New School Busta Rhymes' musical career began as a member of the Hip Hop crew Leaders of the New School along with fellow Long Island, natives C. Brown, Dinco D, Cut Monitor Milo. They began recording in 1991 with the album A Future Without a Past (Elektra Records) and soon gained limited fame and acclaim for their danceable beats and clever humorous lyrics on songs like "(Just Another) Case of The PTA" and "Sobb Story".

First impression He made a boisterous debut on "Case of the P.T.A.", his first solo verse literally beginning with a roar:

"Arrrrggh! Busta Rhymes the mighty infamous! Always misbehaving and mischievous..." For many that roar became the first hint of the animated characteristics that would come to be synonymous with Busta Rhymes, since "Case of the P.T.A." was the first and most successful release of the album.

Native Tongues Posse Many influential and successful Hip Hop crews of the early 90's with styles comparable to The Leaders of The New School were located in and around the border between the Queens borough of New York City and counties of Long Island. Soon after their debut The leaders of The New School became associated with the Native Tongues Posse which led to the group's collaboration with A Tribe Called Quest on the Hip Hop classic single "Scenario" released on "A Tribe Called Quest's" second album, The Low End Theory.

Busta Rhymes' performance on "Scenario" is arguably thought of as the breakout performance which led to his becoming a fan favorite and eventually going solo. The Leaders Of The New School released their last album T.I.M.E. in 1993, after which Busta Rhymes began his solo career.

Solo career Busta Rhyme's debut solo album The Coming was released by Elektra Records in 1996. The album's mix of ragga and hip hop made it a success, and it included the US and UK top 10 single "Woo-Hah!! Got You All In Check", with the remix performed with equally eccentric MC Ol' Dirty Bastard. The follow-up, When Disaster Strikes... was successful in the US and sold well overseas. The album produced two hugely popular singles and videos in America, "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See" and "Dangerous". The third single, "Turn It Up (Remix)/Fire It Up" (which featured a sample from the 'Knight Rider' theme) was less popular, but only just failed to top the UK charts and was a top 10 hit in Germany, establishing Rhymes as an international star.

The same year he released The Imperial as part of the Flipmode Squad, a collaborative project with rappers Rampage, Lord Have Mercy, Spliff Star, Rah Digga and Baby Sham. Rhymes' fascination with film informed the same year's Extinction Level Event: The Final World Front, which took its title from the disaster movie Deep Impact. The frenetic "Gimme Some More," which sampled Bernard Herrmann's theme from Psycho, reached number 5 in the UK singles chart in January 1999 (see 1999 in music). Rhymes enjoyed further transatlantic success in April when the single "What's It Gonna Be?!', featuring Janet Jackson, reached the US and UK Top 10. Rhymes has kept up his work rate, juggling his music career with his acting roles. In 2000 he worked on several movie projects, including the remake of Shaft, and released his final album for Elektra, Anarchy.

After leaving Elektra, Rhymes signed to J Records, a new label started by recently ousted Arista chief and founder Clive Davis. In 2001 he released a greatest hits record alongside a new album of original work. Continuing the apocalyptic theme of his previous albums, he titled his record Genesis. Genesis gave Busta Rhymes a rebirth of success with the hit singles "Break Ya Neck" and "Pass the Courvoisier" produced by well-known hip-hop producers Dr. Dre and The Neptunes.

On November 26, 2002, Busta Rhymes released his sixth studio album It Ain't Safe No More. Its first single, "Make It Clap," was a moderate hit and had a popular remix featuring a sample from Eric B. and Rakim's hit song "Eric B. is President", along with a remix video, which featured Sean Paul and gave the song an even more reggae-inspired flavor. The second single, a duet with Mariah Carey, entitled "I Know What You Want" has been more successful. It reached the top ten of Billboard's pop singles chart and the top ten in rap radio airplay.

Busta Rhymes has recently signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment and will release his newest album, The Big Bang. Some of the album was leaked over the Internet, forcing the record label to place the album in high security to prevent it from being leaked again. He announced on 106 & Park that the album's official release date will be 4 days before his birthday on May 16th. He has appeared in several films, including Higher Learning, Full Clip, Finding Forrester, Halloween: Resurrection and the 2000 version of Shaft, among others.

Over the years Busta Rhymes style has changed significantly. His earlier work is generally considered more creative, displaying his talent for unique wordplay and subject matter. It was only after friend and mentor Sean "Diddy" Combs convinced him that his efforts on his first solo album were too spastic for the club that he changed his focus. Currently his style and subject matter differs little from other mainstream rap acts. As a result his recent albums are not held in as high esteem as his earlier works although they have sold significantly better.

In November of 2005, Busta Rhymes cut off his trademark dreadlocks during a photo shoot in a New York barbershop owned by producer Cory Rooney. The shop is featured on an MTV show titled The Shop. “I started growing in December '89. I was 17,” he said. “I signed my deal and said I ain't combing my hair no more. I don't have to." He now sports a "ceasar" style hair cut.