Shakur was born in the Manhattan borough of New York City but relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1988. He later moved to Los Angeles in 1993 to further pursue his music career. By the time he released his debut album 2Pacalypse Now in 1991, he had become a central figure in West Coast hip hop, introducing social issues in the genre at a time when gangsta rap was dominant in the mainstream. Shakur achieved further critical and commercial success with his follow-up albums Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z... (1993) and the critically acclaimed Me Against the World (1995), which has been considered as his magnum opus.

In later 1995, after being convicted of molestation and becoming a victim of a robbery and shooting, Shakur became heavily involved in the growing East Coast-West Coast hip hop rivalry. His double-disc album All Eyez on Me (1996) became certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). On September 7, 1996, Shakur was shot four times by an unknown assailant in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas; he died six days later and the gunman was never captured. The Notorious B.I.G., Shakur's friend turned rival, was at first considered a suspect, but was also murdered in another drive-by shooting several months later. Five more albums have been released since his death, all of which have been certified Platinum.

Shakur is one of the best-selling music artists of all time having sold over 75 million records worldwide. In 2002, he was inducted into the Hip-Hop Hall of Fame. In 2017, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Rolling Stone named Shakur in its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. Outside music, Shakur also gained considerable success as an actor, with his starring roles as Bishop in Juice (1992), Lucky in Poetic Justice (1993) where he starred alongside Janet Jackson, Ezekiel in Gridlock'd (1997), and Jake in Gang Related (1997), all garnering praise from critics.

Early life

Tupac Amaru Shakur was born on June 16, 1971, into an African-American family in the East Harlem section of Manhattan in New York City. His birth name was Lesane Parish Crooks. Lesane was born a month after his mother was acquitted of more than 150 charges of "Conspiracy against the United States government and New York landmarks" in the New York Panther 21 trial. His parents, Afeni Shakur (born Alice Faye Williams in North Carolina) and Billy Garland, were active members of the Black Panther Party in New York in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

At one year old, his mother renamed him after Túpac Amaru II, the 18th-century Peruvian revolutionary who was executed after leading an indigenous uprising against Spanish rule. "Tupac" derives from the Quechua language word "thupaq", meaning "royal".

I wanted him to have the name of revolutionary, indigenous people in the world. I wanted him to know he was part of a world culture and not just from a neighborhood ...

? Afeni Shakur

Many people in Shakur's life were involved with the Black Liberation Army; some were convicted of serious criminal offenses and imprisoned, including his mother. His godfather, Elmer "Geronimo" Pratt, a high-ranking Black Panther, had been convicted of murdering a school teacher during a 1968 robbery, although his sentence was later overturned. His stepfather, Mutulu Shakur, spent four years at large on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, beginning in 1982. Mutulu was wanted for having helped his friend (no relation) Assata Shakur (also known as Joanne Chesimard), Tupac's godmother, to escape from a penitentiary in New Jersey in 1979. Mutulu was caught in 1986 and eventually convicted and sentenced to prison for the 1981 robbery of a Brinks armored truck, during which two police officers and a guard were killed.

Shakur had an older stepbrother, Mopreme "Komani" Shakur, and a half-sister, Sekyiwa, two years his junior. Mopreme performed in many of his recordings.

In 1984, the family moved from New York to Baltimore, Maryland. In Baltimore, Shakur attended Roland Park Middle School for the eighth grade, and then attended Paul Laurence Dunbar High School for two years. After completing his second year at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School, Shakur transferred to the Baltimore School for the Arts, where he studied acting, poetry, jazz, and ballet. He performed in Shakespeare plays and in the role of the Mouse King in the ballet The Nutcracker. Shakur, accompanied by one of his friends, Dana "Mouse" Smith, as his beatbox, won many rap competitions and was considered to be the best rapper in his school. He was remembered as one of the most popular kids in his school because of his sense of humor, superior rapping skills, and ability to mix with all crowds.

Shakur developed a close friendship with Jada Pinkett (later Jada Pinkett Smith) that lasted until his death. In the documentary Tupac: Resurrection, Shakur says, "Jada is my heart. She will be my friend for my whole life." Pinkett Smith calls him "one of my best friends. He was like a brother. It was beyond friendship for us. The type of relationship we had, you only get that once in a lifetime." A poem written by Shakur, titled "Jada", appears in his book, The Rose That Grew from Concrete, which also includes a poem dedicated to Pinkett Smith called "The Tears in Cupid's Eyes."

During his time in art school, Shakur became affiliated with the Baltimore Young Communist League USA. He began dating the daughter of the director of the local chapter of the Communist Party USA.

Move to California

In 1988, Shakur and his family moved from Baltimore to Marin City, California, a small unincorporated suburban community located 5 miles (8 km) north of San Francisco. He attended Tamalpais High School in nearby Mill Valley. Shakur contributed to the school's drama department by performing in several productions. In an English class, Shakur wrote a paper, "Conquering All Obstacles", in which he said:

our raps, not the sorry story raps everyone is so tired of. They are about what happens in the real world. Our goal is [to] have people relate to our raps, making it easier to see what really is happening out there. Even more important, what we may do to better our world.

He began attending the poetry classes of Leila Steinberg in 1989. That same year, Steinberg organized a concert with Shakur's group, "Strictly Dope"; the concert led to his being signed with Atron Gregory. Gregory set him up as a roadie and backup dancer with the hip hop group Digital Underground in 1990.

Music career

1989-93: Beginnings

Before using his first name as his rap name, Shakur went by the alias MC New York when starting his career. Although Shakur began recording in 1989, his professional entertainment career did not take off until the early 1990s when he debuted in Digital Underground's "Same Song" from the soundtrack to the 1991 film Nothing but Trouble; Shakur also appeared with the group in the film. The song was later released as the lead song of the Digital Underground extended play (EP) This Is an EP Release, the follow-up to their debut hit album Sex Packets. Shakur appeared in the accompanying music video. After his rap debut, he performed with Digital Underground again, on the album Sons of the P. Shakur went on to feature Shock G and Money-B from Digital Underground in his track "I Get Around", which ranked #11 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

In November 1991, Shakur released his debut solo album, 2Pacalypse Now. Though the album did not generate any hit singles, 2Pacalypse Now has been acclaimed by many critics and fans for its underground feel, with many rappers such as Nas, Eminem, Game, and Talib Kweli having pointed to it as inspiration. Although the album was originally released on Interscope Records, the rights to its distribution are now owned by Amaru Entertainment, the label owned by Shakur's mother. The album's name is a reference to the 1979 film Apocalypse Now.

2Pacalypse Now generated significant controversy for numerous reasons. The songs "Trapped" and "Brenda's Got a Baby" were widely noted both for their poetic qualities and their strong critiques of unjust social policies. Dan Quayle criticized the album after a Texas youth's defense attorney claimed he was influenced by 2Pacalypse Now and its theme of police brutality before shooting a state trooper. Quayle said, "There's no reason for a record like this to be released. It has no place in our society." Shakur stated that he felt he had been misunderstood. He said, "I started out saying I was down for the young black male, you know, and that was gonna be my thang," Shakur said. "I just wanted to rap about things that affected young black males. When I said that, I didn't know that I was gonna tie myself down to just take all the blunts and hits for all the young black males, to be the media's kicking post for young black males. I just figured since I lived that life I could do that, I could rap about that." The record was important in showcasing Shakur's political conviction and his focus on lyrical prowess. On MTV's Greatest Rappers of All Time list, 2Pacalypse Now was listed as one of Shakur's "certified classic" albums, along with Me Against the World, All Eyez on Me and The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. 2Pacalypse Now went on to be certified Gold by the RIAA. It featured three singles: "Brenda's Got a Baby", "Trapped", and "If My Homie Calls".

His second studio album, Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z..., was released in February 1993. The album did better than its predecessor both critically and commercially, debuting at number 24 on the Billboard 200. The album contains many tracks emphasizing Shakur's political and social views, and there are noticeable differences in production from his first effort. While 2Pacalypse Now had an indie-rap-oriented sound, Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z... is generally considered Shakur's "breakout" album. It spawned the hits "Keep Ya Head Up" and "I Get Around", and reached platinum status. On vinyl, Side A (tracks 1-8) was labeled the "Black Side" and Side B (tracks 9-16) the "Dark Side". It is Shakur's tenth-biggest selling album, with 1,366,000 units moved as of 2004.

1993-95: Rise to prominence

In late 1993, Shakur formed the group Thug Life with a number of his friends, including Big Syke (Tyruss Himes), Macadoshis (Diron Rivers), his stepbrother Mopreme Shakur, and the Rated R (Walter Burns). The group released their only album Thug Life: Volume 1 on October 11, 1994, which went Gold. The album featured the single "Pour Out a Little Liquor", produced by Johnny "J" Jackson, who went on to produce a large part of Shakur's album All Eyez on Me. The group usually performed their concerts without Shakur. The album was originally released by Interscope Records, Amaru Entertainment has since gained the rights to it. Among the notable tracks are "Bury Me a G", "Cradle to the Grave", "Pour Out a Little Liquor" (which also appears on the soundtrack to the 1994 film Above the Rim), "How Long Will They Mourn Me?" and "Str8 Ballin'". As a result of criticism of gangsta rap at the time, the original version of the album was scrapped and re-recorded with many of the original songs being cut. The album contains ten tracks because Interscope Records felt many of the other recorded songs were too controversial to release. Although the original version of the album was not completed, Shakur performed the planned first single from the album, "Out on Bail" at the 1994 Source Awards. Thug Life: Volume 1 was certified Gold. The track "How Long Will They Mourn Me?" later appeared on 2Pac's posthumous Greatest Hits album.

Shakur's third album, Me Against the World, was released in March 1995 and was very well-received, with many calling it the magnum opus of his career. It is considered one of the greatest and most influential hip-hop albums of all time. It is Shakur's fourth-best-selling album with 3,524,567 copies sold in the United States as of 2011. Me Against the World won best rap album at the 1996 Soul Train Music Awards.

"Dear Mama" was released as the album's first single in February 1995, along with the track "Old School" as the B-side. It would become the album's most successful single, topping the Hot Rap Singles chart and peaking at the ninth spot on the Billboard Hot 100. The single was certified platinum in July 1995, and later placed at #51 on the year-end charts. The second single, "So Many Tears", was released in June, four months after the first single. The single would reach number six on the Hot Rap Singles chart, and number 44 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Temptations", released in August, was the third and final single from the album; it would be the least successful of the three released, but still did fairly well on the charts, reaching number 68 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 35 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks, and number 13 on the Hot Rap Singles charts.

1995-96: Final recordings

All Eyez on Me was the fourth studio album by Shakur, recorded in October 1995 and released on February 13, 1996, by Death Row Records and Interscope Records. The album is frequently recognized as one of the crowning achievements of 1990s rap music. Steve Huey of AllMusic stated that "despite some undeniable filler, it is easily the best production 2Pac's ever had on record". It was certified 5× platinum after just two months in April 1996 and 9× platinum in 1998. The album featured the Billboard Hot 100 number one singles "How Do U Want It" and "California Love". It featured five singles in all, the most of any 2Pac album. Moreover, All Eyez on Me (which was the only Death Row release to be distributed through PolyGram by way of Island Records) made history as the first double-full-length hip-hop solo studio album released for mass consumption. It was issued on two compact discs and four LPs. Chartwise, All Eyez on Me was the second album from 2Pac to hit number one on both the Billboard 200 and the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. It sold 566,000 copies in the first week of its release and was charted in the top 100 for one-week Soundscan sales since 1991. By the end of 1996, the album had sold 5 million copies. The album won the 1997 Soul Train R&B/Soul or Rap Album of the Year Award. Shakur also won the Award for Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist at the 24th Annual American Music Awards.

The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory, commonly shortened to The 7 Day Theory, is Shakur's fifth and final studio album and was released under his new stage name Makaveli. The album was completely finished in a total of seven days during the month of August 1996. The lyrics were written and recorded in three days and mixing took an additional four days. In 2005, MTV.com ranked The 7 Day Theory at #9 on their greatest hip hop albums of all-time list and, in 2006, recognized it as a classic. The emotion and anger showcased on the album have been admired by a large part of the hip hop community. George "Papa G" Pryce, former Head of Publicity for Death Row, claimed that "Makaveli, which we did was sort of tongue-in-cheek and it was not really to come out and after Tupac was murdered, it did come out. But before that, it was going to be a sort of an underground [record]." The album peaked at number one on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and the Billboard 200. The album generated the second-highest debut-week sales total of any album that year. It was certified 4× Platinum on June 15, 1999.

Other ventures

Death Row Records

In October 1995, Shakur was released from prison after serving nine months of a sentence for sexual assault and formed a new group called Outlaw Immortalz. Shakur joined the Death Row label, under which he released the single "California Love".

On February 13, 1996, Shakur released his fourth solo album, All Eyez on Me. This double album was the first and second of his three-album commitment to Death Row Records. It sold more than nine million copies. The record was a general departure from the introspective subject matter of Me Against the World, being more oriented towards a thug and gangsta mentality. Shakur continued his recordings despite increasing problems at the Death Row label. Dr. Dre left his post as in-house producer to form his own label, Aftermath. Shakur continued to produce hundreds of tracks during his time at Death Row, most of which would be released on his posthumous albums Still I Rise, Until the End of Time, Better Dayz, Loyal to the Game and Pac's Life. He also began the process of recording an album, One Nation, with the New York-based Boot Camp Clik and their label Duck Down Records. On June 4, 1996, he and Outlawz released the diss track "Hit 'Em Up", a scathing lyrical assault on The Notorious B.I.G. and others associated with him. In the track, Shakur claimed to have had sexual intercourse with Faith Evans, the wife of Wallace, and attacked Bad Boy's street credibility. Shakur was convinced that some members associated with Bad Boy had known about the 1994 attack on him due to their behavior that night and the information that his sources gave to him. According to a 2005 interview with Jimmy Henchman, in Vibe magazine, after the attack, Shakur immediately accused Henchman, an associate of Bad Boy CEO Sean Combs, of orchestrating the attack. Shakur, therefore, aligned himself with Suge, Death Row's CEO, who was already bitter towards Combs over a 1995 incident at the Platinum Club in Atlanta, Georgia, which culminated in the death of Jake Robles, the friend and bodyguard of Suge Knight; Knight was adamant in voicing his suspicions about Combs' involvement. In the years following their killings, associates of both Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. made comments indicating that the pair, were it not for their deaths, would have reconciled.

Collaborator Buckshot claimed in 2015 that Shakur defended him against Suge Knight, who had insisted that the East Coast rapper could not come with him to Las Vegas on the grounds of the ongoing hip hop rivalry. Shakur asserted that he would not board the plane unless accompanied by Buckshot and was described by the fellow rapper as looking "discomforted" while they recorded a song together in a studio after Shakur "tore up the plane tickets".

During an August 15, 1996, appearance at the Brotherhood Crusade Rally, which featured several artists discussing the importance of voting, Shakur compared the sales of Death Row records to voters in the U.S. and the influence he and other artists had over an adoring fanbase.

Outlawz

When Shakur recorded "Hit 'Em Up", a diss track directed at The Notorious B.I.G., he recruited three members from the group Dramacydal, with whom he had worked previously and was eager to do so again. Shakur, with the three New Jersey rappers and other associates, formed the original lineup of the Outlawz. When Shakur signed to Death Row after his release from prison, he recruited step brother Mopreme Shakur and Big Syke from Thug Life. Hussein Fatal, Napoleon, E.D.I. Mean, Kastro, Yaki Kadafi, and Storm (the only female Outlaw) were also added, and together they formed the original lineup of the Outlaw Immortalz that debuted on All Eyez on Me. They later dropped the Immortal part of their name after the untimely deaths of Shakur and Yaki Kadafi and moved on as Outlawz without the members of Thug Life. Young Noble was later added and appeared on Shakur's second Death Row release The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. It was on this album that Outlawz first came to the greater rap community's notice, appearing on a few songs. The idea behind the group was for each member to have a rap name coinciding with the names of various tyrants or enemies of America, past, and present. Outlawz chose in later years to make a backronym out of the letters of their group name Operating Under Thug Laws as Warriorz although it does not stand for the group's name and is used infrequently.

On forming the Outlawz, Shakur gave each of them a name of a dictator/military leader and/or an enemy of America.

• Yaki Kadafi, after Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi
• Hussein Fatal, after Iraqi President Saddam Hussein
• Mussolini (formerly Big Syke), after Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini
• Komani (Shakur's step brother Mopreme Shakur), after Iranian Islamic Revolution leader Ruhollah "Ayatollah" Khomeini
• Kastro, after Cuban communist revolutionary and leader Fidel Castro
• E.D.I. Mean, after Ugandan president and dictator Idi Amin
• Napoleon, after French military strategist and leader Napoleon Bonaparte

For himself, Shakur created the alias "Makaveli" from Renaissance Italian philosopher and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli, whose writings inspired Shakur in prison, but who also preached that a leader could eliminate his enemies by all means necessary. He mentioned Makaveli Records a few times before his death. This was supposed to be a music label for up-and-coming artists that Shakur had an interest in developing or potentially signing, and his own future projects would have been published through it as well.

Acting career

In addition to his endeavors in the music industry, Shakur acted in films. He made his first film appearance in Nothing but Trouble (1991), as part of a cameo by the Digital Underground. His first starring role was in the 1992 film Juice. He played Roland Bishop, a violent member of the Wrecking Crew, for which he was hailed by Rolling Stone's Peter Travers as "the film's most magnetic figure". He then went on to star in Poetic Justice (1993) opposite Janet Jackson and the basketball drama Above the Rim (1994). After his death, three more completed films featuring Shakur were released: Bullet (1996), Gridlock'd (1997), and Gang Related (1997).

Shakur had been slated to star in the 1993 Hughes brothers' film Menace II Society but was replaced by actor Vonte Sweet in the role of "Sharif" after assaulting Allen Hughes as a result of a quarrel. Shakur reportedly wanted another type of role, but Hughes would not conform to his wishes, leading to the altercation between the pair which, according to Tyrin Turner, also led members of Shakur's entourage to become physically aggressive towards Hughes. In 2013, Hughes said Shakur would have outshone the other actors had he been in the film, "because he was bigger than the movie." Hughes' comments were seen as validation that he had forgiven the rapper since the incident. Larenz Tate, who had several rehearsals with Shakur before his part was recast, recalled Shakur being close to the Hughes brothers but that his actions were the result of "creative differences".

According to former Death Row Records sound engineer Rick Clifford, Shakur reportedly read for the role of Mace Windu around the time that George Lucas was holding auditions for Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. The role ultimately went to Samuel L. Jackson.

Director John Singleton mentioned that he wrote the script for his film Baby Boy with Shakur in mind for the lead role. It was eventually filmed with Tyrese Gibson in his place and released in 2001, five years after Shakur's death. The film features a mural of Shakur in the protagonist's bedroom, as well as featuring the song "Hail Mary" in the film's score.

Artistry

Shakur's music and philosophy are rooted in many American, African-American, and world entities, including the Black Panther Party, black nationalism, egalitarianism, and liberty. Shakur's love of theater and Shakespeare also influenced his work. A student of the Baltimore School for the Arts where he studied theater, Shakur understood the Shakespearean psychology of inter-gang wars and inter-cultural conflict.

During a 1995 interview, Shakur said:

[?] I love Shakespeare. He wrote some of the rawest stories, man. I mean look at Romeo and Juliet. That's some serious ghetto shit. You got this guy Romeo from the Bloods who falls for Juliet, a female from the Crips, and everybody in both gangs is against them. So they have to sneak out and they end up dead for nothing. Real tragic stuff. And look how Shakespeare busts it up with Macbeth. He creates a tale about this king's wife who convinces a happy man to chase after her and kill her husband so he can take over the country. After he commits the murder, the dude starts having delusions just like in a Scarface song. I mean the king's wife just screws this guy's whole life up for nothing [...].

In an interview in Spain, American music journalist Chuck Philips said that what impressed him the most about Shakur was that he was a poet. Philips said, "I like sacred texts, myths, proverbs, and scriptures. [...] When Tupac came along, I thought he was quite the poet [...] It wasn't just how cleverly they rhymed. It wasn't just the rhythm or the cadence. I liked their attitude. It was protest music in a way nobody had ever thought about before. [...]These artists were brave, wise and smart - wickedly smart. Tupac had so many sides. He was unafraid to write about his vulnerabilities."

Shakur's debut album, 2Pacalypse Now (1991), revealed his socially conscious side. On this album, Shakur attacked social injustice, poverty, and police brutality in "Brenda's Got a Baby", "Trapped", and "Part Time Mutha". On this initial release, Shakur helped extend the success of such rap groups as Boogie Down Productions, Public Enemy, X-Clan, and Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, as he became one of the first major socially conscious rappers from the West Coast.

On his second record, Shakur continued to rap about the social ills facing African Americans, with songs such as "The Streetz R Deathrow" and "Last Wordz". He also showed his compassionate side with the anthem "Keep Ya Head Up", while simultaneously putting his legendary aggressiveness on display with the title track from the album Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z... He added a salute to his former group Digital Underground by including them on the playful track "I Get Around". Throughout his career, Shakur expressed an increasingly aggressive attitude on his subsequent albums.

The contradictory themes of social inequality and injustice, unbridled aggression, compassion, playfulness, and hope all continued to shape Shakur's work, as expressed in his incendiary 1995 album Me Against the World. In 1996, Shakur released All Eyez on Me, and many of the tracks are considered by critics to be classics, including "Ambitionz Az a Ridah", "I Ain't Mad at Cha", "California Love", "Life Goes On" and "Picture Me Rollin". Shakur described All Eyez on Me as a celebration of life, and the album was critically and commercially successful.

Influences

Shakur had enjoyed and had been influenced by the work of contemporary English and Irish pop musicians as a teenager such as Kate Bush, Culture Club, Sinéad O'Connor, and U2. His style on 2Pacalypse Now was highly influenced by the social consciousness and Afrocentrism pervading hip-hop in the late 1980s and early 1990s. All Eyez on Me was a change of style from his earlier works; while still containing socially conscious songs and themes, this album was heavily influenced by party tracks and tended to have a more "feel good" vibe than his earlier albums.

Personal life

Shakur never professed to follow a particular religion, but his lyrics in singles such as "Ghetto Gospel" and "Only God Can Judge Me" and poems such as "The Rose That Grew from Concrete" suggest he believed in God. Many analysts currently describe him as a deist. He believed in karma but rejected a literal afterlife and organized religion.

Shakur had several family members who were members of the Black Panthers: Mutulu Shakur, his step-father; Assata Shakur, his step-aunt; Billy Garland, his biological father; and Afeni Shakur, his mother. Shakur publicly spoke out against interracial marriage in an interview with Source magazine in 1994, but later retracted these comments.

His bandana tied into rabbit ears was considered by British writer Rob Marriott as one of hip-hop's most recognizable style choices.

Shakur was friends with boxer Mike Tyson, Chuck D, Marlon Wayans, Jim Carrey, and Rosie Perez. He befriended fellow rappers Snoop Dogg and Freddie Foxxx, collaborating on songs with the pair and writing to Foxxx while in prison. He also befriended Alanis Morissette and revealed in an interview with Sway Calloway in April 1996 that he planned to open a restaurant with her.

Shakur married Keisha Morris-Shakur in April 1995; the marriage officially ended in March 1996.

His father Billy Garland said Shakur's anger developed from his frustrations in being misunderstood. He particularly reacted when people questioned his commitment to the black community and the West Coast.

Shakur lived with Kidada Jones, his girlfriend, daughter of Quincy Jones and actress Peggy Lipton, for several months until his death. Jones was waiting for Shakur in their Las Vegas hotel room when she was notified that he was shot. She rushed to the hospital and remained with him until he died from his injuries six days later.

Legal issues

In October 1991, Shakur filed a $10-million civil suit against the Oakland Police Department, alleging that the police brutally beat him for jaywalking. Shakur received approximately $43,000 in settlement money, much of which went to pay his lawyer.

On August 22, 1992, in Marin City, Shakur performed at an outdoor festival and stayed for an hour afterward signing autographs and pictures. A confrontation occurred and Shakur drew a legally registered Colt Mustang, and allegedly dropped it. As it was picked up by a member of his entourage, a bullet was discharged. About 100 yards (90 m) away, Qa'id Walker-Teal, a 6-year-old boy, was riding his bicycle at a school playground nearby when he was fatally struck by a bullet in the forehead, killing him. Although the police matched the bullet to a .38-caliber pistol registered to Shakur, and although his stepbrother, Maurice Harding, was initially arrested on suspicion of firing the weapon, no charges were filed. Marin County prosecutors have said they were stymied by a lack of witnesses. In 1995, a wrongful death suit was brought against Shakur by Qa'id's mother. The defense attorney acknowledged that the bullet that killed Qa'id was traced by authorities to a gun registered to Shakur. The suit was dropped when Shakur agreed to pay a $300,000-$500,000 settlement to the parents.

On April 5, 1993, Shakur was charged with one count of felonious assault. He was accused of attempting to hit rapper Chauncey Wynn from the group M.A.D. with a baseball bat at a concert at Michigan State University. The incident reportedly began when Shakur became angry and threw a microphone. Shakur pleaded guilty, on September 14, 1994, to a misdemeanor in exchange for the dismissal of the felonious-assault charge. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail, 20 of which were suspended, and ordered to perform 35 hours of community service.

In October 1993, in Atlanta, two brothers and off-duty police officers, Mark and Scott Whitwell, were with their wives celebrating Mrs. Whitwell's passing of the state bar examination. The officers were drunk and in possession of stolen guns. As they crossed the street, a car with Shakur inside passed them or "almost struck them". The Whitwells argued with the driver, Shakur, and the other passengers, who were joined by a second passing car. Shakur shot one officer in the buttocks and the other in the leg, back, or abdomen, according to varying news reports. Mark Whitwell was charged with firing at Shakur's car and later lying to the police during the investigation. Shakur was charged with the shooting. Prosecutors dropped all charges against the parties.

In early 1994, Shakur was found guilty of assaulting Allen Hughes, co-director of Menace II Society; he served 15 days in jail. The previous year, Shakur had boasted during an appearance on Yo! MTV Raps that he had "beat up the director of Menace II Society", the line later being used against him in court.

Sexual assault conviction

In November 1993, Shakur and others were charged in New York with sexually assaulting a woman in a hotel room. Shakur denied the charges. According to Shakur, he had prior relations days earlier with the woman which were consensual (the woman testified she performed consensual oral sex on Shakur). The complainant claimed sexual assault after her second visit to Shakur's hotel room; she alleged that Shakur and his entourage raped her. At trial, Shakur was convicted of first-degree sexual abuse, and acquitted of the weapons and sodomy charges. The judge described the crimes during the sentencing of Shakur to ?1 ¹?₂-?4 ¹?₂ years in prison, as "an act of brutal violence against a helpless woman." While appearing on The Arsenio Hall Show, Shakur said he was innocent of all charges and he was hurt that "a woman would accuse me of taking something from her", when he was raised by and was surrounded by females.

In October 1995, Shakur's assault case was on appeal. Because of his considerable legal fees, he could not raise the $1.4 million bail. After serving nine months of his sentence, Shakur was released from the Clinton Correctional Facility on October 12, 1995. Suge Knight, the CEO of Death Row Records, had posted the $1.4 million bail, pending Shakur's appeal of the conviction, in exchange for Shakur releasing three albums under the Death Row label. On April 5, 1996, a judge sentenced Shakur to serve 120 days in jail for violating terms of his release on bail.

Attack at Quad Recording Studios

On the night of November 30, 1994, the day before the verdict in his sexual abuse trial was to be announced, Shakur was robbed and shot five times by three men in the lobby of Quad Recording Studios in Manhattan. Shakur said that he believed the robbery was simply a setup for the attack, wondering why they would take jewelry and leave his Rolex watch. Three hours after surgery for his wounds, Shakur checked out of the Bellevue Hospital Center against doctor's orders. In the day that followed, he entered the courthouse in a wheelchair in the verdict hearing for his sexual abuse trial. He was found guilty of three counts of molestation and found not guilty of six other charges, including sodomy, stemming from his 1993 arrest.

In a 1995 interview with Vibe magazine, Shakur accused Sean Combs, Jimmy Henchman, and Biggie, among others, of setting up the Quad Recording Studios attack. Vibe changed the names of the accused assailants upon publication. Later evidence did not implicate Biggie in the studio assault. When Biggie's entourage went downstairs to check on the incident, Shakur was being taken out on a stretcher, giving the finger to those around.

On March 17, 2008, Chuck Philips wrote in the Los Angeles Times about an alleged order for an attack on Shakur. The article was retracted by the LA Times because it relied partially on FBI documents, which were discovered to have been forged; they had been supplied by a man convicted of fraud. In 2011, Dexter Isaac admitted to having attacked Shakur on Henchman's orders. Following Isaac's public confession, Philips named Isaac as one of his unnamed sources for the retracted article.

Prison sentence

Shakur began serving his prison sentence for sexual assault at Clinton Correctional Facility on February 14, 1995. Shortly afterward, he released his Multi-Platinum album Me Against the World. Shakur became the first artist to have an album at number one on the Billboard 200 while serving a prison sentence. Me Against the World made its debut on the Billboard 200 and stayed at the top of the charts for four weeks. The album sold 240,000 copies in its first week, setting a record for highest first-week sales for a solo male rap artist at the time.

While serving his sentence, Shakur married his long-time girlfriend, Keisha Morris, on April 4, 1995; the couple divorced in 1996. Shakur stated that he married her "for the wrong reasons". In an interview after his release, Shakur claimed to have written only one song during his incarceration.

While imprisoned, Shakur became interested in philosophy, philosophy of war, and military strategy by studying works such as The Prince by Italian philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli and The Art of War by Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu. The works inspired his pseudonym "Makaveli", under which he released the album The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. The album presents a stark contrast to previous works. Throughout the album, Shakur continues to focus on the themes of pain and aggression, making this album one of the emotionally darker works of his career.

While in prison, Shakur wrote to Death Row Uncut director Nina Bhadreshwar about his plans to begin a "new chapter" of his life. According to Kevin Powell, who spoke to Shakur following his release from prison, the performer "seemed like a completely transformed person." Powell recalled Shakur being more dark and menacing, to the extent that Powell wondered whether he had really known him before.

Death

September 1996 shooting

On the night of September 7, 1996, Shakur was in Las Vegas, Nevada to celebrate his business partner Tracy Danielle Robinson's birthday and attended the Bruce Seldon vs. Mike Tyson boxing match with Suge Knight at the MGM Grand. After leaving the match, one of Knight's associates spotted Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson, an alleged Crips gang member from Compton, California, in the MGM Grand lobby. Earlier that year, Anderson and a group of Crips had robbed a member of Death Row's entourage in a Foot Locker store. Knight's associate told Shakur, who attacked Anderson, assisted by his and Knight's entourage. The fight was captured on the hotel's video surveillance. After the brawl, Shakur went with Knight to Death Row-owned Club 662. Shakur rode in Knight's 1996 black BMW 750iL sedan as part of a larger convoy.

At 11:00-11:05 p.m. (PDT), they were halted on Las Vegas Boulevard by Metro bicycle police for playing the car stereo too loudly and not having license plates. These were found in the trunk of Knight's car and the party was released without being ticketed. At 11:15 p.m. (PDT), when they were at a stop light, a white, four-door, late-model Cadillac with unknown occupants pulled up to the right side of Shakur's sedan. Someone inside rapidly fired gunshots at Shakur. He was hit four times, twice in the chest, once in the arm, and once in the thigh. One of the bullets went into Shakur's right lung. Knight was hit in the head by fragmentation. Shakur's bodyguard, Frank Alexander, was not in the vehicle; he said that Shakur had asked him to drive the car of Shakur's girlfriend, Kidada Jones. After arriving at the scene, police and paramedics took Knight and the wounded Shakur to the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada. According to an interview with music video director Gobi, while at the hospital, Shakur received news from a Death Row marketing employee that the shooters had called the record company and threatened Shakur. Gobi informed the Las Vegas police but said that the police claimed to be understaffed. No attackers came. At the hospital, Shakur was heavily sedated, placed on life-support machines, and ultimately was put under a barbiturate-induced coma to keep him in the bed. While in the intensive-care unit, on the afternoon of September 13, 1996, Shakur died from internal bleeding. He was pronounced dead at 4:03 p.m. (PDT). The official causes of death were noted as respiratory failure and cardiopulmonary arrest in connection with multiple gunshot wounds.

Shakur's body was cremated the next day. Members of the Outlawz purportedly mixed some of Shakur's ashes with marijuana and smoked the ashes after his funeral.

Aftermath

In 2002, the Los Angeles Times published a two-part story by investigative reporter Chuck Philips, titled "Who Killed Tupac Shakur?", based on yearlong research that reconstructed the crime and the events leading up to it. Information gathered by the paper indicated that: "the shooting was carried out by a Compton gang called the Southside Crips to avenge the beating of one of its members by Shakur a few hours earlier. Orlando Anderson, the Crip whom Shakur had attacked, fired the fatal shots. Las Vegas police discounted Anderson as a suspect and interviewed him only once, briefly. He was later killed in an unrelated gang shooting." The article also reported the involvement of East Coast rapper The Notorious B.I.G., Shakur's rival at the time, and several New York criminals.

Before they died, The Notorious B.I.G. and Anderson denied any role in the murder. In support of their claims, The Notorious B.I.G.'s family produced computerized invoices suggesting that he was working in a New York recording studio the night of the drive-by shooting. His manager Wayne Barrow and fellow rapper Lil' Cease (James Lloyd) made public announcements denying Biggie's role in the crime and claimed further that they were with him in the recording studio the night of the event. The New York Times called the evidence "inconclusive", noting:

The pages purport to be three computer printouts from Daddy's House, indicating that Wallace was in the studio recording a song called Nasty Boy on the afternoon Shakur was shot. They indicate that Wallace wrote half the session, was In and out/sat around and laid down a ref, shorthand for a reference vocal, the equivalent of a first take. But nothing indicates when the documents were created. And Louis Alfred, the recording engineer listed on the sheets, said in an interview that he remembered recording the song with Wallace in a late-night session, not during the day. He could not recall the date of the session but said it was likely not the night Shakur was shot. 'We would have heard about it,' Mr. Alfred said.

In 2011, pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, the FBI released documents revealing its investigation of the Jewish Defense League for making death threats against Shakur and other rappers.

Legacy

In an interview with AllHipHop, rapper Cormega recalled that, at a Mobb Deep concert following the death of Shakur and the release of The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory, fans were all shouting "Makaveli", and emphasized the influence of The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory and of Shakur himself even in New York at the height of the media-dubbed "intercoastal rivalry".

Shakur is held in high esteem by other MCs: In the book How to Rap, Bishop Lamont (Philip Martin) notes that Shakur "mastered every element, every aspect" of rapping and Fredro Starr (Fred Scruggs) of Onyx says Shakur "was a master of the flow." "Every rapper who grew up in the Nineties owes something to Tupac," wrote 50 Cent (Curtis Jackson). "He didn't sound like anyone who came before him." About.com, for their part, named Shakur the most influential rapper ever.

Chuck Philips writes that "the slaying [of Tupac Shakur] silenced one of modern music's most eloquent voices?a ghetto poet whose tales of urban alienation captivated young people of all races and backgrounds. The 25-year-old Shakur had helped elevate rap from a crude street fad to a complex art form, setting the stage for the current global hip-hop phenomenon".

To preserve Shakur's legacy, his mother founded the Shakur Family Foundation (later renamed the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation or TASF) in 1997. The TASF's stated mission is to "provide training and support for students who aspire to enhance their creative talents." The TASF sponsors essay contests, charity events, a performing arts day camp for teenagers and undergraduate scholarships. The Foundation officially opened the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts (TASCA) in Stone Mountain, Georgia, on June 11, 2005. On November 14, 2003, a documentary about Shakur entitled Tupac: Resurrection was released under the supervision of his mother and narrated entirely in his voice. It was nominated for Best Documentary at the 2005 Academy Awards. Proceeds will go to a charity set up by Shakur's mother Afeni. On April 17, 2003, Harvard University co-sponsored an academic symposium entitled "All Eyez on Me: Tupac Shakur and the Search for the Modern Folk Hero". The speakers discussed a wide range of topics dealing with Shakur's impact on everything from entertainment to sociology.

Many of the speakers discussed Shakur's status and public persona, including State University of New York at Buffalo English professor Mark Anthony Neal who gave the talk "Thug Nigga Intellectual: Tupac as Celebrity Gramscian" in which he argued that Shakur was an example of the "organic intellectual" expressing the concerns of a larger group. Professor Neal has also indicated in his writings that the death of Shakur has left a "leadership void amongst hip-hop artists." Neal further describes him as a "walking contradiction", a status that allowed him to "make being an intellectual accessible to ordinary people."

Professor of Communications Murray Forman, of Northeastern University, spoke of the mythical status about Shakur's life and death. He addressed the symbolism and mythology surrounding Shakur's death in his talk entitled "Tupac Shakur: O.G. (Ostensibly Gone)". Among his findings were that Shakur's fans have "succeeded in resurrecting Tupac as an ethereal life force." In "From Thug Life to Legend: Realization of a Black Folk Hero", Professor of Music at Northeastern University, Emmett Price, compared Shakur's public image to that of the trickster figures of African-American folklore which gave rise to the urban "bad-man" persona of the post-slavery period. He ultimately described Shakur as a "prolific artist" who was "driven by a terrible sense of urgency" in a quest to "unify mind, body, and spirit".

In Holler If You Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur, Michael Eric Dyson indicated that Shakur "spoke with brilliance and insight as someone who bears witness to the pain of those who would never have his platform. He told the truth, even as he struggled with the fragments of his identity." At one Harvard Conference the theme was Shakur's impact on entertainment, race relations, politics and the "hero/martyr". In late 1997, the University of California, Berkeley offered a student-led course entitled "History 98: Poetry and History of Tupac Shakur."

In late 2003, the Makaveli Branded Clothing line was launched by Afeni. In 2005, Death Row released Tupac: Live at the House of Blues. The DVD was the final recorded performance of Shakur's career, which took place on July 4, 1996, and features a large number of Death Row artists. In August 2006, Tupac Shakur Legacy was released. The interactive biography was written by Jamal Joseph. It features unseen family photographs, intimate stories, and over 20 removable reproductions of his handwritten song lyrics, contracts, scripts, poetry, and other personal papers. Shakur's sixth posthumous studio album, Pac's Life, was released on November 21, 2006. It commemorates the 10th anniversary of Shakur's death. He was still considered one of the most popular artists in the music industry as of 2006.

According to Forbes, Shakur's estate made $15 million in 2008. In 2002, they recognized him as a "Top-Earning Dead Celebrity", coming in at number ten on their list.

BET placed Shakur at #1 on their 'The Most Influential Rappers of All Time' list. They then went on to say "his confounding mixture of ladies' man, thug, revolutionary and poet has forever altered our perception of what a rapper should look like, sound like and act like. In 50 Cent, Ja Rule, Lil Wayne, newcomers like Freddie Gibbs and even his friend-turned-rival Biggie, it's easy to see that Pac is the most copied MC of all time. There are murals bearing his likeness in New York, Brazil, Sierra Leone, Bulgaria and countless other places; he even has statues in Atlanta and Germany. Quite simply, no other rapper has captured the world's attention the way Tupac did and still does."

On April 15, 2012, a 2-D video projection of Shakur performed his songs "Hail Mary" and "2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted" with Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre at the Coachella Music Festival. The effect was created using an optical illusion called Pepper's ghost. The video footage was created by visual effects company Digital Domain. The Wall Street Journal reported Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg were in talks of a possible tour involving the two rappers and the projection version of Shakur, which was later turned down by Dr. Dre. Tupac's 1998 Greatest Hits album returned to the Billboard 200 the following week for the first time since 2000, reaching No. 129 with 4,000 copies sold according to Nielsen SoundScan (a gain of 571% over the previous week). The MC's other albums also saw gains, including All Eyez On Me (2,000; up 95%) and Me Against the World (1,000; up 53%). His singles also saw a boost in sales. His biggest seller of the week was "Hail Mary"?the song his projection opened with at Coachella. His second biggest seller was his No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit "California Love" (featuring Dr. Dre and Roger Troutman), shifting 11,000 downloads (119% increase). His third best-seller was the second Tupac song that was performed at Coachella - "2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted" (with Snoop). It sold 9,000 (up 881%).

Holler If Ya Hear Me (2014), was a Broadway play based on the lyrics of Tupac. The production lasted 6 weeks before it folded due to being one of Broadway's worst-selling musicals in recent years. It was announced in January 2015 the following month would see an exhibit dedicated to Shakur opened at the Grammy Museum. Executive director Robert Santelli praised Shakur as "one of the most original and important of all hip hop artists", adding that his writings were "both powerful and provocative". During a panel for the exhibit, attended by his mother Afeni, cousins and various members of his extended family, rapper YG said that he was inspired by Shakur to return to school and that Shakur was like a "father figure" to some.

On August 6, 2019, a mini-docuseries by The Defiant Ones director Allen Hughes, to be aired on FX, entitled "Outlaw: The Saga of Afeni and Tupac Shakur", was announced.

Biopic

Demetrius Shipp Jr. played Shakur in the biopic All Eyez on Me, which started filming in Atlanta in December 2015. Music video director Benny Boom helmed All Eyez on Me, which had been hamstrung by production problems. With distribution from Morgan Creek Productions, the film had been in development since 2013, with producers Randall Emmett and George Furla having sued Morgan Creek for $10 million, claiming breach-of-contract after the production company allegedly picked a lead, and set a budget and a production schedule without their approval. Morgan Creek also sued Afeni Shakur for the music rights for the film. Multiple directors were involved with the film before Boom, including John Singleton and Antoine Fuqua. The film was released on June 16, 2017, which would have been Shakur's 46th birthday. It received negative reviews.

Material loss

On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Tupac Shakur among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.

Awards and honors

In 2003, MTV's "22 Greatest MCs" countdown listed Shakur as the "Number 1 MC", as voted by the viewers. In 2004, at the VH1 Hip Hop Honors Shakur was honored along with DJ Hollywood, Kool DJ Herc, KRS-One, Public Enemy, Run-D.M.C., Rock Steady Crew, and Sugarhill Gang. A Vibe magazine poll in 2004 rated Shakur "the greatest rapper of all time" as voted by fans. Editors of About.com ranked him No. 5 on their list of the Top 50 MCs of Our Time (1987-2007). In 2012, The Source ranked him No. 5 on their list of the top 50 hip-hop lyricists of all time. In a 2005 Rolling Stone magazine vote, Shakur was named No. 86 of the "100 Immortal Artists of All Time" behind Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, and John Lennon. MTV ranked him at No. 2 on their list of The Greatest MCs of All Time. Shakur was inducted into the Hip-Hop Hall of Fame in 2002. VH1 ranked him 69th on the VH1 100 Greatest Artists of All-Time. At the First Annual Turks & Caicos International Film Festival held on Tuesday, October 17, 2006, Shakur was honored for his undeniable voice and talent and as a performer who crossed racial, ethnic, cultural and medium lines; his mother accepted the award on his behalf.

In 2008, The National Association Of Recording Merchandisers in conjunction with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame recognized him as a very influential artist and has added him in their Definitive 200 list.

On June 23, 2010, Shakur was inducted to the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry. The seat of the Catholic Church released a list of 12 songs onto the social networking Web site's streaming music service. Among the artists included are Mozart, Muse, and Dame Shirley Bassey; the list also includes Shakur's song "Changes", which was released two years after his shooting death on a greatest hits album in 1998.

His double album, All Eyez on Me, is one of the highest-selling rap albums of all time, with over 5 million copies of the album sold in the United States alone by April 1996; it was eventually certified 9x platinum in June 1998 by the RIAA. In July 2014 it was recertified 10x platinum.

Shakur's hit song "Dear Mama" is one of 25 songs that were added to the National Recording Registry in 2010. The Library of Congress has called Dear Mama "a moving and eloquent homage to both the murdered rapper's own mother and all mothers struggling to maintain a family in the face of addiction, poverty, and societal indifference." The honor came seven days after what would have been Shakur's 39th birthday. Shakur is the third rapper to enter the library, outside of the copyright office, behind Grandmaster Flash and Public Enemy.

In 2016, Shakur was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility, when on December 20, 2016, it was announced that he and 5 others would be inducted into the Hall on April 7, 2017. At the ceremony, Shakur was inducted by his friend and fellow hip hop artist Snoop Dogg, who shared several stories about their time together and of the time Shakur spent in the hospital before his death.

Discography

Studio albums

• 2Pacalypse Now (1991)
• Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z... (1993)
• Me Against the World (1995)
• All Eyez on Me (1996)

Posthumous studio albums

• The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory (1996) (as Makaveli)
• R U Still Down? (Remember Me) (1997)
• Until the End of Time (2001)
• Better Dayz (2002)
• Loyal to the Game (2004)
• Pac's Life (2006)

Collaboration albums

• Thug Life: Volume 1 with Thug Life (1994)
• One Nation: Volume 1 with Guest Starz (1997)

Posthumous collaboration albums

• Still I Rise with Outlawz (1999)
• One Nation: Volume 1 with Guest Starz (2021)

Filmography

Biographical portrayals in film

Documentaries

Shakur's life has been explored in several documentaries, each trying to capture the many different events during his short lifetime, most notably the Academy Award-nominated Tupac: Resurrection, released in 2003.

• 1997: Tupac Shakur: Thug Immortal
• 1997: Tupac Shakur: Words Never Die (TV)
• 2001: Tupac Shakur: Before I Wake...
• 2001: Welcome to Deathrow
• 2002: Tupac Shakur: Thug Angel
• 2002: Biggie & Tupac
• 2002: Tha Westside
• 2003: 2Pac 4 Ever
• 2003: Tupac: Resurrection
• 2004: Tupac vs.
• 2004: Tupac: The Hip Hop Genius (TV)
• 2006: So Many Years, So Many Tears
• 2015: Murder Rap: Inside the Biggie and Tupac Murders
• 2017: Who killed Tupac?
• 2017: Who Shot Biggie & Tupac?
• 2018: Unsolved: Murders of Biggie and Tupac?

See also

• List of best-selling music artists
• List of best-selling music artists in the United States
• List of murdered hip hop musicians
• List of number-one albums (United States)
• List of number-one hits (United States)
• List of awards and nominations received by Tupac Shakur
• List of artists who reached number one in the United States

References

Further reading

• Bastfield, Darrin Keith (2002). Back in the Day: My Life and Times with Tupac Shakur. Da Capo Press. ISBN 978-0-345-44775-3.
• Hoye, Jacob (2006). Tupac: Resurrection. Atria. ISBN 0-7434-7435-X.

External links

• Official website
• Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation for the Arts
• "Expressing Myself, Silencing the Demons", interview with Chuck Philips
• Tupac Shakur on IMDb
• Tupac Shakur at Find a Grave
• FBI Records: The Vault - Tupac Shakur at FBI.gov

LL Cool J has released 13 studio albums and two greatest hits compilations. His twelfth album Exit 13 (2008), was his last for his long-tenured deal with Def Jam Recordings. LL Cool J appeared in numerous films, including In Too Deep, Any Given Sunday, S.W.A.T., Deep Blue Sea, Mindhunters, and Edison. He currently plays NCIS Special Agent Sam Hanna in the CBS crime drama television series NCIS: Los Angeles. LL Cool J also is the host of Lip Sync Battle on Paramount Network.

A two-time Grammy Award winner, LL Cool J is known for such hip hop hits as "Going Back to Cali", "I'm Bad", "The Boomin' System", "Rock the Bells" and "Mama Said Knock You Out", as well as R&B hits such as "Doin' It", "I Need Love", "All I Have", "Around the Way Girl" and "Hey Lover". In 2010, VH1 placed him on their "100 Greatest Artists Of All Time" list. In 2017, LL Cool J became the first rapper to receive the Kennedy Center Honors.

Early life and family

James Todd Smith was born on January 14, 1968, in Bay Shore, New York to Ondrea Griffith (born January 19, 1946) and James Louis Smith, Jr, also known as James Nunya. According to the Chicago Tribune, "[as] a kid growing up middle class and Catholic in Queens, life for LL was heart-breaking. His father shot his mother and grandfather, nearly killing them both. When 4-year-old LL found them, blood was everywhere." In an episode of Finding Your Roots, LL learned his mother was adopted by Eugene Griffith and Ellen Hightower. The series' genetic genealogist CeCe Moore identified LL's biological grandparents as Ethel Mae Jolly and Nathaniel Christy Lewis through analysis of his DNA. LL's biological great-uncle was hall of fame boxer John Henry Lewis.

He began rapping at the age of 9, influenced by the hip-hop group The Treacherous Three. In March 1984, sixteen-year-old Smith was creating demo tapes in his grandparents' home. His grandfather, a jazz saxophonist, bought him $2,000 worth of equipment, including two turntables, an audio mixer and an amplifier. His mother was also supportive of his career, using her tax refund to buy him a Korg drum machine.

Smith stated that "By the time I got that equipment, I was already a rapper. In this neighborhood, the kids grow up in rap. It's like speaking Spanish if you grow up in an all-Spanish house. I got into it when I was about 9, and since then all I wanted was to make a record and hear it on the radio." This was at the same time that NYU student Rick Rubin and promoter-manager Russell Simmons founded the then-independent Def Jam label. By using the mixer he had received from his grandfather, Smith produced and mixed his own demos and sent them to various record companies throughout New York City, including Def Jam.

In the VH1 documentary Planet Rock: The Story of Hip Hop and the Crack Generation, LL Cool J revealed that he initially wanted to call himself J-Ski but did not want to associate his stage name with the cocaine culture (the rappers who use "Ski" or "Blow" as part of their stage name, e.g., Kurtis Blow and Joeski Love, were associated with the rise of the cocaine culture, as depicted in the 1983 remake of Scarface).

Under his new stage name, LL Cool J (an abbreviation for Ladies Love Cool James), Smith was signed by Def Jam, which led to the release of his first official record, the 12-inch single "I Need a Beat" (1984). The single was a hard-hitting, streetwise b-boy song with spare beats and ballistic rhymes. Smith later discussed his search for a label, stating "I sent my demo to many different companies, but it was Def Jam where I found my home." That same year, Smith made his professional debut concert performance at Manhattan Center High School. In a later interview, LL Cool J recalled the experience, stating "They pushed the lunch room tables together and me and my DJ, Cut Creator, started playing. ... As soon as it was over there were girls screaming and asking for autographs. Right then and there I said 'This is what I want to do'." LL's debut single sold over 100,000 copies and helped establish both Def Jam as a label and Smith as a rapper. The commercial success of "I Need a Beat", along with the Beastie Boys' single "Rock Hard" (1984), helped lead Def Jam to a distribution deal with Columbia Records the following year.

LL met Simone Johnson in the late 1980s, had one son and one daughter with her, then they married in 1995. Two more daughters followed. He eventually reconciled with his father.

Musical career

1985-1987: Radio

Radio was released to critical acclaim, both for production innovation and LL's powerful rap. Released November 18, 1985, on Def Jam Recordings in the United States, Radio earned a significant amount of commercial success and sales for a hip hop record at the time. Shortly after its release, the album sold over 500,000 copies in its first five months, eventually selling over 1 million copies by 1988, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. Radio peaked at number 6 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and at number 46 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. It entered the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart on December 28, 1985, and remained there for forty-seven weeks, while also entering the Pop Albums chart on January 11, 1986, remaining on that chart for thirty-eight weeks. By 1989, the album had earned platinum status from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), with sales exceeding one million copies; it had previously earned a gold certification in the United States on April 14, 1986. "I Can't Live Without My Radio" and "Rock the Bells" were singles that helped the album go platinum. It eventually reached 1,500,000 in US sales.

With the breakthrough success of his hit single "I Need a Beat" and the Radio LP, LL Cool J became one of the early hip-hop acts to achieve mainstream success along with Kurtis Blow and Run-D.M.C.. Gigs at larger venues were offered to LL as he would join the 1986-'87 Raising Hell tour, opening for Run-D.M.C. and the Beastie Boys. Another milestone of LL's popularity was his appearance on American Bandstand as the first hip hop act on the show, as well as an appearance on Diana Ross' 1987 television special, Red Hot Rhythm & Blues.

The album's success also helped in contributing to Rick Rubin's credibility and repertoire as a record producer. Radio, along with Raising Hell (1986) and Licensed to Ill (1986), would form a trilogy of New York City-based, Rubin-helmed albums that helped to diversify hip-hop. Rubin's production credit on the back cover reads "REDUCED BY RICK RUBIN", referring to his minimalist production style, which gave the album its stripped-down and gritty sound. This style would serve as one of Rubin's production trademarks and would have a great impact on future hip-hop productions. Rubin's early hip hop production work, before his exit from Def Jam to Los Angeles, helped solidify his legacy as a hip hop pioneer and establish his reputation in the music industry.

1987-1993: Breakthrough and success

LL Cool J's second album was 1987's Bigger and Deffer, which was produced by DJ Pooh and the L.A. Posse. This stands as one of his biggest-selling career albums, having sold in excess of two million copies in the United States alone. It spent 11 weeks at #1 on Billboard's R&B albums chart. It also reached #3 on the Billboard's Pop albums chart. The album featured the singles "I'm Bad", the revolutionary "I Need Love" - LL's first #1 R&B and Top 40 hit, "Bristol Hotel", and "Go Cut Creator Go". While Bigger and Deffer, which was a big success, was produced by the L.A. Posse (at the time consisting of Dwayne Simon, Darryl Pierce and, according to himself the most important for crafting the sound of the LP, Bobby "Bobcat" Ervin), Dwayne Simon was the only one left willing to work on producing LL Cool J's third album Walking with a Panther. Released in 1989, the album was a commercial success, with several charting singles ("Going Back to Cali," "I'm That Type of Guy," "Jingling Baby," "Big Ole Butt," and "One Shot at Love"). Despite commercial appeal, the album was often criticized by the hip-hop community as being too commercial and materialistic, and for focusing too much on love ballads. As a result, his audience base began to decline due to the album's bold commercial and pop aspirations. According to Billboard, the album peaked at #6 on the Billboard 200 and was LL Cool J's second #1 R&B Album where it spent four weeks.

In 1990, LL released Mama Said Knock You Out, his fourth studio album. The Marley Marl produced album received critical acclaim and eventually went double Platinum, selling over two million copies according to the RIAA. Mama Said Knock You Out marked a turning point in LL Cool J's career, as he proved to critics his ability to stay relevant and hard-edged despite the misgivings of his previous album. LL won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance in 1992 for the title track. The album's immense success propelled Mama Said Knock You Out to be LL's top selling album of his career (as of 2002) and solidified his status as a hip-hop icon.

1993-2005: Continued success and career prominence

After acting in The Hard Way and Toys, LL Cool J released 14 Shots to the Dome. The album had four singles ("How I'm Comin'", "Back Seat (of My Jeep)", the strangely titled "Pink Cookies in a Plastic Bag Getting Crushed by Buildings?, ?Stand By Your Man") and guest-featured labelmates Lords of the Underground on "NFA-No Frontin' Allowed". The album went gold.

LL Cool J starred in In the House, an NBC sitcom, before releasing Mr. Smith (1995), which went on to sell over two million copies. Its singles included "Doin' It" and "Loungin". Another of the album's singles, "Hey Lover", featured Boyz II Men, and sampled Michael Jackson's "The Lady in My Life"; it eventually became an early hip-hop music videos to air on VH1. The song also earned him a Grammy Award. Yet another single from the album, "I Shot Ya Remix", included debut vocal work by Foxy Brown. In 1996, Def Jam released this "greatest hits" package, offering a good summary of Cool J's career, from the relentless minimalism of early hits such as "Rock the Bells" to the smooth-talking braggadocio that followed. Classic albums including Bigger and Deffer and Mama Said Knock You Out are well represented here. In December 1996 his loose cover of the Rufus and Chaka Khan song "Ain't Nobody" was included on the Beavis and Butt-Head Do America soundtrack & released as a single. LL Cool J's interpretation of "Ain't Nobody" was particularly successful in the United Kingdom, where it topped the UK Singles Chart in early-1997. In that same year, he released the album Phenomenon. The singles included "Phenomenon" and "Father". The official second single from Phenomenon was "4, 3, 2, 1", which featured Method Man, Redman & Master P and introduced DMX and Canibus.

In 2000, LL Cool J released the album G.O.A.T., which stood for the "Greatest of All Time." It debuted at number one on the Billboard album charts, and went platinum. LL Cool J thanked Canibus in the liner notes of the album, "for the inspiration". LL Cool J's next album 10 from 2002, was his 9th studio (10th overall including his greatest hits compilation All World), and included the singles "Paradise" (featuring Amerie), "Luv U Better", produced by Pharrell and the Neptunes, and the 2003 Jennifer Lopez duet, "All I Have". The album reached platinum status. LL Cool J's tenth album The DEFinition was released on August 31, 2004. The album debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard charts. Production came from Timbaland, 7 Aurelius, R. Kelly, and others. The lead single was the Timbaland-produced "Headsprung", which peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single was the 7 Aurelius-produced, "Hush", which peaked at No. 26 on the Billboard Hot 100.

2006-2012: Later career and touring

LL Cool J's 11th album, Todd Smith, was released on April 11, 2006. It includes collaborations with 112, Ginuwine, Juelz Santana, Teairra Mari and Freeway. The first single was the Jermaine Dupri-produced "Control Myself" featuring Jennifer Lopez. They shot the video for "Control Myself" on January 2, 2006 at Sony Studios, New York. The second video, directed by Hype Williams, was "Freeze" featuring Lyfe Jennings.

In July 2006, LL Cool J announced details about his final album with Def Jam Recordings, the only label he has ever been signed to. The album is titled Exit 13. The album was originally scheduled to be executively produced by fellow Queens rapper 50 Cent. Exit 13 was originally slated for a fall 2006 release, however, after a 2-year delay, it was released September 9, 2008 without 50 Cent as the executive producer. Tracks that the two worked on were leaked to the internet and some of the tracks produced with 50 made it to Exit 13. LL Cool J partnered with DJ Kay Slay to release a mixtape called "The Return of the G.O.A.T.". It was the first mixtape of his 24-year career and includes freestyling by LL Cool J in addition to other rappers giving their renditions of his songs. A track entitled "Hi Haterz" was leaked onto the internet on June 1, 2008. The song contains LL Cool J rapping over the instrumental to Maino's "Hi Hater". He toured with Janet Jackson on her Rock Witchu tour, only playing in Los Angeles, Chicago, Toronto, and Kansas City. In September 2009, LL Cool J released a song about the NCIS TV series. It is a single and is available on iTunes. The new track is based on his experiences playing special agent Sam Hanna. "This song is the musical interpretation of what I felt after meeting with NCIS agents, experienced Marines and Navy SEALs," LL Cool J said. "It represents the collective energy in the room. I was so inspired I wrote the song on set."

In March 2011 at South by Southwest, LL Cool J was revealed to be Z-Trip's special guest at the Red Bull Thre3Style showcase. This marked the beginning of a creative collaboration between the rap and DJ superstars. The two took part in an interview with Carson Daly where they discussed their partnership. Both artists have promised future collaborations down the road, with LL Cool J calling the duo "organic" One early track to feature LL's talents was Z-Trip's remix of British rock act Kasabian's single "Days Are Forgotten", which was named by influential DJ Zane Lowe as his "Hottest Record In The World" and received a favorable reception in both Belgium and the United Kingdom. In January 2012, the pair released the track "Super Baller" as a free download to celebrate the New York Giants Super Bowl victory. The two have been touring together since 2011, with future dates planned through 2012 and beyond.

2012-present: Authentic, G.O.A.T. 2 and future projects

In June 2012, LL Cool J began work on his thirteenth studio album. Stating, "I'm going to be doing a little bit of the album on the [My Connect Studio], make sure that it is official."

On October 6, 2012, LL Cool J released a new single from Authentic Hip-Hop called "Ratchet". Following that, on November 3, 2012, LL Cool J collaborated with Joe and producers Trackmasters with his 2nd single, "Take It".

LL Cool J has hosted the Grammy Awards Show for five consecutive years, from the 54th Grammy Awards on February 12, 2012, through the 58th Grammy Awards on February 15, 2016.

On February 8, 2013, it was announced the album title would be changed from Authentic Hip-Hop to Authentic with a new release date of April 30, 2013, and a new cover was unveiled at the same time. At around the same time, it was announced that LL Cool J had collaborated with Van Halen guitarist Eddie Van Halen on two tracks on the album.

On October 16, 2013, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced LL Cool J as a nominee for inclusion in 2014.

In October 2014, he announced his upcoming 14th studio album will be called G.O.A.T. 2 with a release window of 2015. LL Cool J stated about the album "the concept behind the album was to give upcoming artists an opportunity to shine, and put myself in the position where I have to spit bars with some of the hardest rhymers in the game"; however, the album was put on hold. LL Cool J explained the reason for it, saying, "It was good but I didn’t feel like it was ready yet."

On January 21, 2016, LL Cool J received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

In March 2016, LL Cool J had announced his retirement on social media, but quickly announced coming out of retirement and that another new album is on the way.

In July 2016, LL appeared on ABC's Greatest Hits.

In October 2018, LL Cool J was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In September 2019, it was announced that LL Cool J was re-signing to Def Jam to release new albums.

Acting career

While LL Cool J first appeared as a rapper in the movie Krush Groove (performing "I Can't Live Without My Radio"), his first acting part was a small role in a high school football movie called Wildcats. He landed the role of Captain Patrick Zevo in Barry Levinson's 1992 film Toys. From 1995-98, he starred in his own television sitcom, In the House. He portrayed an ex-Oakland Raiders running back who finds himself in financial difficulties and is forced to rent part of his home out to a single mother and her two children.

In 1998, LL Cool J played security guard Ronny in Halloween H20, the seventh movie in the Halloween franchise. In 1999, co-starred as Preacher, the chef in the Renny Harlin horror/comedy Deep Blue Sea. He received positive reviews for his role as Dwayne Gittens, an underworld boss nicknamed "God", in In Too Deep. Later that year, he starred as Julian Washington?a talented but selfish running back on fictional professional football team the Miami Sharks?in Oliver Stone's drama Any Given Sunday. He and co-star Jamie Foxx allegedly got into a real fistfight while filming a fight scene. During the next two years, LL Cool J appeared in Rollerball, Deliver Us from Eva, S.W.A.T., and Mindhunters.

In 2005, he returned to television in a guest-starring role on the Fox medical drama House; he portrayed a death row inmate felled by an unknown disease in an episode entitled "Acceptance". He appeared as Queen Latifah's love interest in the 2006 movie Last Holiday. He also guest-starred on 30 Rock in the 2007 episode "The Source Awards", portraying a hip-hop producer called Ridikulous who Tracy Jordan fears may kill him. LL Cool J appeared in Sesame Street's 39th season, introducing the word of the day--"Unanimous"?in episode 4169 (September 22, 2008) and performing "The Addition Expedition" in episode 4172 (September 30, 2008).

Since 2009, LL Cool J has starred on the CBS police procedural NCIS: Los Angeles. The show is a spin-off of NCIS, which itself is a spin-off of the naval legal drama JAG. LL Cool J portrays NCIS Special Agent Sam Hanna, an ex-Navy SEAL who is fluent in Arabic and is an expert on West Asian culture. The series debuted in autumn of 2009, but the characters were introduced in an April 2009 crossover episode on the parent show..

In 2013 he co-starred as a gym owner in the sports dramedy Grudge Match. Since April 2015, LL has hosted the show Lip Sync Battle.

Other ventures

LL Cool J worked behind the scenes with the mid-1980s hip-hop sportswear line TROOP. LL Cool J launched a clothing line (called "Todd Smith"). The brand produces popular urban apparel. Designs include influences from LL's lyrics and tattoos, as well as from other icons in the hip-hop community. LL Cool J has written four books, including 1998's I Make My Own Rules, an autobiography cowritten with Karen Hunter. His second book was the children-oriented book called And The Winner Is... published in 2002. In 2006, LL Cool J and his personal trainer, Dave "Scooter" Honig, wrote a fitness book titled The Platinum Workout. His fourth book, LL Cool J (Hip-Hop Stars) was cowritten in 2007 with hip-hop historian Dustin Shekell and Public Enemy's Chuck D.

LL Cool J started his own businesses in the music industry such as the music label in 1993 called P.O.G. (Power Of God) and formed the company Rock The Bells to produce music. With the Rock The Bells label, he had artists such as Amyth, Smokeman, Natice, Chantel Jones and Simone Starks. Rock the Bells Records was also responsible for the Deep Blue Sea soundtrack for the 1999 movie of the same name. Rufus "Scola" Waller was also signed to the label, but was released when the label folded. LL Cool J founded and launched Boomdizzle.com, a record label / social networking site launched in September 2008. The website accepts music uploads from aspiring artists, primarily from the hip-hop genre, and the site's users rate songs through contests, voting, and other community events.

In March 2015 LL Cool J also appeared in an introduction to Wrestlemania 31.

Political involvement

In 2002, LL Cool J supported George Pataki's bid for a third term as Governor of New York. In 2003, LL Cool J spoke in support of P2P file-sharing at a U.S. Senate Committee hearing, stating that he wished "music could be downloaded legitimately." He also voiced his support for New York State Senator Malcolm Smith, a Democrat, during an appearance on the senator's local television show; he worked with Smith in putting on the annual Jump and Ball Tournament in the rapper's childhood neighborhood of St. Albans, Queens. In a February 10, 2012 televised interview with CNN host Piers Morgan, LL Cool J expressed sympathy for President Obama and ascribed negative impressions of his leadership to Republican obstruction designed to "make it look like you have a coordination problem." He was quick to add that no one "should assume that I'm a Democrat either. I'm an Independent, you know?" In LL Cool J's Platinum 360 Diet and Lifestyle, he included Barack Obama in a list of people he admired, stating that Obama had "accomplished what people thought was impossible."

Legacy

With the breakthrough success of his hit single "I Need a Beat" and the Radio LP, LL Cool J became an early hip-hop act to achieve mainstream success along with Kurtis Blow and Run-DMC. Gigs at larger venues were offered to LL as he would join the 1986-'87 Raising Hell tour, opening for Run-D.M.C. and the Beastie Boys. Another milestone of LL's popularity was his appearance on American Bandstand as the first hip hop act on the show.

The album's success also helped in contributing to Rick Rubin's credibility and repertoire as a record producer. Radio, along with Raising Hell (1986) and Licensed to Ill (1986), would form a trilogy of New York City-based, Rubin-helmed albums that helped to diversify hip-hop. Rubin's production credit on the back cover reads "REDUCED BY RICK RUBIN", referring to his minimalist production style, which gave the album its stripped-down and gritty sound. This style would serve as one of Rubin's production trademarks and would have a great impact on future hip-hop productions. Rubin's early hip hop production work, before his exit from Def Jam to Los Angeles, helped solidify his legacy as a hip hop pioneer and establish his reputation in the music industry.

Radio's release coincided with the growing new school scene and subculture, which also marked the beginning of hip-hop's "golden age" and the replacement of old school hip hop. This period of hip hop was marked by the end of the disco rap stylings of old school, which had flourished prior to the mid-1980s, and the rise of a new style featuring "ghetto blasters". Radio served as one of the earliest records, along with Run-D.M.C.'s debut album, to combine the vocal approach of hip hop and rapping with the musical arrangements and riffing sound of rock music, pioneering the rap rock hybrid sound.

The emerging new school scene was initially characterized by drum machine-led minimalism, often tinged with elements of rock, as well as boasts about rapping delivered in an aggressive, self-assertive style. In image as in song, the artists projected a tough, cool, street b-boy attitude. These elements contrasted sharply with the 1970s P-Funk and disco-influenced outfits, live bands, synthesizers and party rhymes of acts prevalent in 1984, rendering them old school. In contrast to the lengthy, jam-like form predominant throughout early hip hop ("King Tim III", "Rapper's Delight", "The Breaks"), new school artists tended to compose shorter songs that would be more accessible and had potential for radio play, and conceive more cohesive LPs than their old school counterparts; the style typified by LL Cool J's Radio. A leading example of the new school sound is the song "I Can't Live Without My Radio", a loud, defiant declaration of public loyalty to his boom box, which The New York Times described as "quintessential rap in its directness, immediacy and assertion of self". It was featured in the film Krush Groove (1985), which was based on the rise of Def Jam and new school acts such as Run-D.M.C. and the Fat Boys.

The energy and hardcore delivery and musical style of rapping featured on Radio, as well as other new school recordings by artists such as Run-D.M.C., Schooly D, T La Rock and Steady B, proved to be influential to hip hop acts of the "golden age" such as Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy. The decline of the old school form of hip hop also led to the closing of Sugar Hill Records, one of the labels that helped contribute to early hip-hop and that, coincidently, rejected LL's demo tape. As the album served as an example of an expansion of hip hop music's artistic possibilities, its commercial success and distinct sound soon led to an increase in multi-racial audiences and listeners, adding to the legacy of the album and hip hop as well.

In 2017, LL Cool J became the first rapper to receive Kennedy Center Honors.

Discography

Studio albums

• Radio (1985)
• Bigger and Deffer (1987)
• Walking with a Panther (1989)
• Mama Said Knock You Out (1990)
• 14 Shots to the Dome (1993)
• Mr. Smith (1995)
• Phenomenon (1997)
• G.O.A.T. (2000)
• 10 (2002)
• The DEFinition (2004)
• Todd Smith (2006)
• Exit 13 (2008)
• Authentic (2013)

Filmography

Awards and nominations

Music

Grammy Awards

MTV Video Music Awards

NAACP Image Awards

Soul Train Music Awards

Other Music Awards

• 1991 - Billboard Top Rap Singles Artist
• 1997 - Patrick Lippert Award, Rock The Vote
• 2007 - Long Island Music Hall of Fame, Inducted as part of the Inaugural Class of Inductees for his contribution to Long Island's rich musical heritage
• 2011 - BET Hip Hop Awards, Honored with the I Am Hip Hop Award for his contributions to hip-hop culture

Acting

Other honors

• 1988 - Enstooled as Kwasi Achi-Bru, a chieftain of the Akan people, in Abidjan, Ivory Coast
• 2003 - Source Foundation Image Award, for "his community work"
• 2013 - A New York City double decker tour bus was dedicated to LL Cool J and his life's work
• 2014 - Honorary Doctor of Arts, Northeastern University, for his contributions to hip-hop culture
• 2016 - LL Cool J was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.
• 2017 - first hip hop artist to receive a Kennedy Center Honor

References

External links

• Official website
• LL Cool J on IMDb

Early life and career

Mr. Del was born Delmar Lawrence in Memphis, TN. He began his music career recording a song with the rap group Three 6 Mafia. After dedicating his life to Christ in 2000, he left the secular rap genre to begin his own ministry and record label.

Discography

• 1999: Lyrical Millenium
• 2000: The 2nd Coming
• 2000: Enter The Light
• 2003: Church Age
• 2003: Da Takeover
• 2004: Holy South Worldwide
• 2005: The Future
• 2006: Holy South: Kingdom Crunk
• 2007: Crunk Soul: A Nu Soul Project
• 2007: Hope Dealer
• 2009: Thrilla
• 2010: Tennmann
• 2013: Faith Walka
• 2014: Hope Dealer 2
• 2016: Love Noize

References

External links

• http://www.allmusic.com/artist/mr-del-mn0000607535/discography

Ministry

The Cross Movement has three separate and distinct eponymous components which comprise its ministry:

1. CM: The first component is the Holy Hip Hop group known as The Cross Movement (CM) which were composed of several rappers: The Ambassador (William Branch), The Tonic (John Wells), Phanatik (Brady Goodwin), and T.R.U.-L.I.F.E (Virgil Byrd), Cruz Cordero, Enock (Juan James), and Earthquake (Cleve Foat). The CM also frequently collaborated with the Christian disc jockey, DJ Official (Nelson Chu). The CM's niche has been to translate biblical and Christian theology into rap music by using the same hyper-aggressive lyrics, sampled orchestral riffs, alliteration, and virtuoso delivery of many mainstream rappers without the self-aggrandizing and violent lyrics, or the materialistic imagery stereotypically associated with many rappers.
2. CMR: The second component to the Cross Movement is the record label, Cross Movement Records (CMR), which is responsible for producing and marketing the albums of the CM, its individual members' solo albums, and other Holy Hip Hop artists such as Da' T.R.U.T.H. and FLAME.
3. CMM: The third aspect of the Cross Movement is the incorporated, 501(c)3 non-profit organization called Cross Movement Ministries, Inc (CMM), which aims to use creative ways to spread the Christian gospel message within hip hop culture. Booking for Cross Movement (CM) the group was actually managed by this non-profit ministry arm, which also included a team of both full-time & part-time ministry staff members & volunteers.

Nomenclature

Since its inception, The Cross Movement has chosen to define itself as the Christian or holy division of hip hop culture as opposed to the hip hop or rap division of Christian culture. Within the genre of rap music, there are various subgenres such as gangsta rap, Conscious rap, old school rap, crunk, and reggaeton, but all of it falls under the rubric of rap and, by extension, hip hop. In choosing to define their music as simply being another subgenre - i.e., the Christian rap subgenre - of hip hop culture, the CM attempts to "keep it real" in order to maintain the validity needed to influence members of hip hop culture who may or may not be Christians. In their 2003 release, Holy Culture, the CM stated their reasoning is based on a passage from the Bible, John 17:15-19 in which Jesus said to God:

?My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.?

As the word sanctified means "to set apart", the interpretation maintained by the CM is that they are instructed by Jesus to remain a part of hip hop culture while being set apart from the majority of the followers of hip hop culture in order to influence it from within to conform to the mores and moral code preached by followers of Christ. The acceptance of this interpretation has been mixed, however. Despite their claim to be a part of hip hop culture, the CM has slowly found more acceptance, though not total acceptance, in the Christian community than in the secular hip hop community as the majority of their concerts are held at churches or church-sponsored events as opposed to secular venues. In 2006, the CM received a Grammy nomination for "Best Rock Gospel Album," as opposed to any of the traditional hip hop or rap categories. Additionally, the CM has generally only been recognized at Christian and Gospel awards shows such as the Dove Awards or Stellar Awards as opposed to hip hop-only award shows such as the Source Awards or the Vibe Awards.

The Ambassador

A graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary, William "Duce" Branch a.k.a. The Ambassador is the co-planter (along with label mate and founding Cross Movement member Cruz Cordero) of Epiphany Fellowship in Philadelphia, PA. He has toured globally as a solo artist and with The Cross Movement and been covered by media outlets as diverse as Time Magazine, CCM Magazine, VIBE, The Source, Billboard and The Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer and more. He has also served as the president of the non-profit organization Cross Movement Ministries and ministered the gospel through rap and preaching for nearly 15 years. With a passionate commitment to the kingdom of Christ as well as a firm belief that faith must integrate with culture, The Ambassador has become known for his devotion to proclaiming Jesus Christ to urban contexts, and through urban mediums.

Building on the success of his sophomore solo project "The Thesis" and his Grammy- and Stellar-nominated release HIStory with group The Cross Movement, The Ambassador follows with The Chop Chop?an album with production by J.R., Official, Tony Stone and HOTHANDZ topped with an uncompromising message that will challenge listeners, while exposing the authenticity and supremacy of God.

?The Chop Chop: From Milk to Meat? is both an invitation and an exhortation from the Grammy, GMA Dove and Stellar nominated artist to rally those who are hungry for truth and determined to mature. ?The current trend in our culture?and sadly in the church?is to ?dumb down’ almost everything. Some things require a little more intensity, commitment and grind, and our faith is certainly one of those jewels,? states The Ambassador.

With special guest appearances by Lecrae, Trip Lee, Da' T.R.U.T.H. and Stephen the Levite, The Chop Chop calls all hearers to take the meat of God's weighty truth and "chop it up," chew it until it becomes a part of them.

Following the single "Gimme Dat!," The Chop Chop has been called "a project that fires on all cylinders." Already embraced by broadcast Gospel outlets, The Ambassador most recently performed "Gimme Dat!" on TBN's "Praise The Lord," and is set to appear on TV1's "The Gospel of Music with Jeff Majors" and INSP's "Mixx Masters Lounge.

Discography

Videography

• "Holy Culture DVD" 2004

References

External links

• Cross Movement Records
• Cross Movement Solo interviews on Rapzilla[1]
• Cross Movement Videos on Rapzilla[2]
• Video Showcasing Cross Movement

Biography

Early years

Jones was born, Canton Dorrelle Jones, on January 9, 1977, in Deerfield Beach, Florida, and began singing at the age of five in a vocal group founded by his father. By the age of 16, he was writing and producing songs for friends in his hometown.

He relocated to Atlanta, Georgia where he attended Morehouse College joining the school's renowned Glee Club. The club performed for celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Stevie Wonder, Dr. Bobby Jones and Ray Charles, as well as performing at high-profile events such as the opening ceremony of the 1996 Olympic Games and at the first gospel concert ever held at the US Pentagon.

Between 1998 and 1999, he joined World Changers Church International, under the pastorship of Creflo & Taffi Dollar and in his own words, grew as a Christian under their stewardship: "My wife, who was my girlfriend at the time, took me to World Changers and I started getting the word. I was going to that church for like three years before I really rededicated my life to Christ. I was there from probably like 1998 or 1999 until 2001 before I really started getting on track."

Musical career

In 2001, Jones launched his own gospel record label, CAJO International. and independently released his first album, 2002's 20 Years, 3 Months & 12 Days, which chronicled his journey to salvation.

He released his second independent album in 2004: The Password and that same year, collaborated with Lil iROCC Williams on Williams's 2004 debut album, and wrote and performed a song, "You and Me", for the compilation Holy Hip-Hop:Taking the Gospel to the Streets.

At this time he was now a member of the choir of World Changers International Church and a solo performance at the church attracted the attention of the church's youth pastor, who asked Jones to help him in the youth department. Not long after that, he was signed to the church's Arrow Records label, an affiliate of EMI.

He released his major label debut, Love Jones, in mid-2005, which debuted at number 11 on Billboard's Top Gospel Albums chart. Following the album's success, Jones toured the US with over 200 appearances that year.

In November 2005, The Password was re-released nationally at the end of 2005 as The Password: Access Granted and earned him two Grammy nominations. His success in 2005 saw him listed in The Atlanta Business Journal at number 19 in their 40 Under 40 chart of Atlanta's rising stars.

On April 5, 2008, he released Kingdom Business. In 2009, he released Kingdom Business, Pt. 2, and Kingdom Business, Pt. 3 followed in 2010.

Jones's fifth and most highly anticipated album for him and for CAJO Records, Dominionaire, was released on February 1, 2011. Three singles were released prior to the album's release, "In da Club", "Window", and "G.O.D.", only the first two listed were released on iTunes.

Later in 2011 Dominionaire Remixed was released, featuring artists like D-MAUB, Messenja and Erica Cumbo. In early 2012 he released a live album and DVD. In October 2012 Kingdom Business Pt. 4 was released, along with a mixtape, All Day Jesus, and a five-song EP, Short Fuse.

On February 18, 2014, Jones released an 18-track mixtape, Lust, Drugs, and Gospel in an effort to assist those who have issues related to lust and drugs.

Discography

References

As a producer, he’s contributed his musical talents with artists such as BB Jay, Brotha Dre, DMX, Pastor Eryk Anglin, and many others. He has also produced with musicians such as Chico Debarge and  Dana Davis. He’s shared the stage with Deitrick Haddon, Damita, Mitchell Jones, Hip-Hop icon DMX and countless other great talents. He’s also performed at Detroit’s legendary Music Hall. His talents have carried him to many places in the continental United States and have garnered him a growing fan base in London, UK.

Dtroit Reed's style is a blend of Soul, Hip-Hop, R&B, Neo-Soul, Traditional as well as Contemporary Gospel music. His music speaks to people from all walks of life. He touches relevant subject matter and his passion for God and music is present and evident in his work. He has set out to change music to better enlighten people through the word of God.  Hearing this artist is a unique and wonderful experience! He breathes out powerful good music, with touching lyric’s and a heartfelt presentation.  Prepare yourself to be blown away by the refreshing wind that is DtroitReed!!!  For more information or to contact/support Dtroit Reed (a/k/a D. Reed), please visit:

Twitter, instagram:  @dtroitreed
Facebook fan page: DtroitReed

Early life

Sister Souljah was born in the Bronx, New York. She recounts in her memoir No Disrespect that she was born into poverty and raised on welfare for some years. At age 10, she moved with her family to the suburbs of Englewood, New Jersey, a suburb with a strong African American presence, a slight change from the big city feel of the Bronx. Englewood is also home to other famous black artists such as George Benson, Eddie Murphy, and Regina Belle. There she attended Dwight Morrow High School.

Souljah disliked what American students were being taught in school systems across the country. She felt that the school systems intentionally left out the African origins of civilization. Also, she criticized the absence of a comprehensive curriculum of African American history, which she felt that all students, black and white, needed to learn and understand in order to be properly educated. She felt that she was being taught very little of her history, since the junior high school and high school left out Black history, art, and culture. "I supplemented my education in the white American school system by reading African history, which was intentionally left out of the curriculum of American students." From 1978 to 1981 she attended Dwight Morrow High School, which had a relatively even distribution of black, Latino, and Jewish student enrollment and a majority-black administration during the time of her studies. She was a legislative intern in the House of Representatives. Souljah was also the recipient of several honors during her teenage years. She won the American Legion's Constitutional Oratory Contest, for which she received a scholarship to attend Cornell University's Advanced Summer Program.

In her college years she traveled widely, visiting Britain, France, Spain, Portugal, Finland, and Russia. Her education was reinforced with first-hand experiences as she worked in a medical center in Mtepa Tepa, a village located in Zimbabwe, and assisted refugee children from Mozambique. She also traveled to South Africa and Zambia. She graduated from Rutgers University with a dual major in American History and African Studies. She became a well-known and outspoken voice on campus and wrote for the school newspaper. One of her noted campus initiatives was spearheading a campaign to bring Jesse Jackson to Rutgers to speak against the university's controversial investments in apartheid South Africa at the time, when disinvestment from South Africa was a heated political issue. Sister Souljah was part of the Rutgers Coalition for Divestment, which successfully prompted the Rutgers University administration to divest US$3.6 million in its financial holding companies doing business in that country. Sister Souljah and students across the state of New Jersey also organized a successful campaign to get the state of New Jersey to divest more than US$1 billion of its financial holdings in apartheid-era South Africa.

In 1985, during her senior year at Rutgers University, she was offered a job by Reverend Benjamin Chavis of the United Church of Christ Commission for Racial Justice. She spent the next three years developing, organizing, and financing programs such as African Survival Camp, a six-week summer sleepaway camp in Enfield, North Carolina. She also became the organizer of the National African Youth-Student Alliance and outspoken voice against racially motivated violence in cases such as Howard Beach, Yusuf Hawkins, and more.

Career

Recording artist

Souljah appeared on several tracks as a featured guest with the hip-hop group Public Enemy, and she became a full member of the group when Professor Griff left the group after making anti-Semitic remarks. In 1992, she released her only album, 360 Degrees of Power.

Sister Souljah moment

Souljah became infamous for her statements about the 1992 Los Angeles riots. In an interview conducted May 13, 1992, she was quoted in The Washington Post as saying, "If black people kill black people every day, why not have a week and kill white people?"

The quotation was later reproduced in the media, and she was widely criticized. Presidential candidate Bill Clinton publicly criticized that statement?and Jesse Jackson for allowing her to be on his Rainbow Coalition?thus the Sister Souljah moment was created.

Author

In 1995, Sister Souljah published a memoir titled No Disrespect.

In 1999, she made her debut as a novelist with The Coldest Winter Ever. Souljah said that she was the pioneer for starting "a renaissance, or what Chuck D of Public Enemy would call a revolution, of reading." As of March 2016, Souljah had been on the New York Times Bestseller List three times. The Coldest Winter Ever was widely acclaimed for making the second wave of the genre known as street literature more popular. About this, Souljah said:

I'm a college graduate, and if I read something like Romeo and Juliet, I'm reading about a gang fight, I'm reading about young love, young sex, longing. I'm reading the same themes that I'm writing in my books. So if somebody comes along and says, "Yours is street literature"?what was Shakespeare's?"

An indirect sequel of the novel, Midnight: A Gangster Love Story, originally scheduled for October 14, 2008, was published on November 4, 2008. It entered The New York Times bestseller list at No. 7 its first week of publication and remained there As of February 2009. Another sequel, Midnight and the Meaning of Love., was released on April 12, 2011, and another novel, A Deeper Love Inside: the Porsche Santiaga Story, originally scheduled for October 23, 2012, was published January 29, 2013. A third Midnight novel, A Moment of Silence, was published on November 10, 2015. As of March 2016, it had sold over 2 million copies. This novel follows the main character, Midnight, as he attempts to reclaim his innocence and his identity while in prison.

All of Souljah's novels deal with universal themes of faith, love, and integrity. Most of her novels have become popular among the prison population, with her books being available in many prison libraries. Due to this, she has worked in tandem with Black and Nobel, a Web site that ships books, magazines, and DVDs to prisons nationwide. Her work has also been referenced multiple times in popular culture, including on the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black.

She also does occasional pieces for Essence Magazine and has written for The New Yorker.

Community activist

As a community activist, Souljah organized a number of service programs. In 1985, during her senior year at Rutgers University, she developed and financed the African Youth Survival Camp for children of homeless families, a six-week summer sleep-away camp in Enfield, North Carolina. This program ran for more than three years. She has been a motivating force behind a number of hip hop artists' efforts to give back to the community, organizing major youth events, programs, and summer camps with artists such as Lauryn Hill, Doug E. Fresh, and Sean "Diddy" Combs.

Souljah was heavily involved with rallies against racial discrimination, police brutality, and the lack of proper education for urban and underrepresented youths. She went on to hold several concerts and protests in New York City, which were supported by many prominent voices in the hip hop community.

Souljah was the executive director of Daddy's House Social Programs Inc. for seven years. It is a not-for-profit corporation for urban youth, financed by Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bad Boy Entertainment. Daddy's House educates and prepares youth, aged 10-16, to be in control of their academic, cultural, and financial lives. The students progressing through the program earn support to travel throughout the world.

Personal life

Sister Souljah is married to Mike Rich. They have a son named Mike Jr.

Discography

Bibliography

• No Disrespect (1995)
• The Coldest Winter Ever (1999)
• Midnight: A Gangster Love Story (2008)
• Midnight and the Meaning of Love (2011)
• A Deeper Love Inside: the Porsche Santiaga Story (2013)
• A Moment of Silence: Midnight III (2015)

References

External links

• Official website
• Transcript of Sister Souljah's 1992 interview regarding the Los Angeles riots at the LINGUIST List
• Sister Souljah Statement, Justifies her 1992 comments at the Rock Out Censorship (ROC)
• Profile at Harlem Live
• Profile at Washington University St Louis

Latifah starred as Khadijah James on the FOX sitcom Living Single from 1993 to 1998. Her third album, Black Reign (1993), spawned the single "U.N.I.T.Y.", which, being a large influence on women, won a Grammy Award and peaked at #23 on the Billboard Hot 100. She then starred in the lead role of Set It Off (1996) and released her fourth album, Order in the Court, on June 16, 1998, with Motown Records. Latifah gained mainstream success and acclaim with her performance in the film Chicago (2002), receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

Latifah released her fifth album The Dana Owens Album in 2004. In 2007 and 2009, she released two more studio albums - Trav'lin' Light and Persona. She created the daytime talk show The Queen Latifah Show, which ran from late 2013 to early 2015 on CBS. She has appeared in a number of films, such as Bringing Down the House (2003), Taxi (2004), Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2005), Beauty Shop (2005), Last Holiday (2006), Hairspray (2007), Joyful Noise (2012), 22 Jump Street (2014) and Girls Trip (2017). Latifah received critical acclaim for her portrayal of blues singer Bessie Smith in the HBO film Bessie (2015), which she co-produced, winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie. Since 2016, she has starred as Carlotta Brown in the musical drama series Star.

She has been described as a "feminist" rapper. Latifah received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2006. Latifah's work in music, film and television has earned her a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, two NAACP Image Awards, an Academy Award nomination and sales of over two million records.

Early life and education

Dana Elaine Owens was born in Newark, New Jersey, United States, on March 18, 1970, and lived primarily in East Orange, New Jersey. She is the daughter of Rita Lamae (née Bray), a teacher at Irvington High School (Latifah's alma mater), and Lancelot Amos Owens, a police officer. Owens attended Essex Catholic Girls' High School in Irvington, but graduated from Irvington High School. Her parents divorced when Latifah was ten. Latifah was raised in the Baptist faith and attended Catholic school in Newark, New Jersey. She found her stage name, Latifah (????? la??fa), meaning "delicate" and "very kind" in Arabic, in a book of Arabic names when she was eight. Always tall, the 5-foot-10-inch (1.78 m) Latifah was a power forward on her high school basketball team. She performed the number "Home" from the musical The Wiz in a grammar school play. After high school, Queen Latifah attended classes at Borough of Manhattan Community College.

Music career

1988-1989: Career beginnings

She began beat boxing for the hip-hop group Ladies Fresh and was an original member of the Flavor Unit, which, at that time, was a crew of MCs grouped around producer DJ King Gemini, who made a demo recording of Queen Latifah's rap Princess of the Posse. He gave the recording to Fab 5 Freddy, the host of Yo! MTV Raps. The song got the attention of Tommy Boy Music employee Dante Ross, who signed Latifah and in 1989 issued her first single, "Wrath of My Madness". More recent artists, like Ice Cube and Lil' Kim, would go on to sample Latifah's track in their songs, "Wrath of Kim's Madness" and "You Can't Play With My Yo-Yo" in later years. Latifah has a two-octave vocal range. She is considered a contralto, having the ability to both rap and sing.

1989-2002: Rap and hip-hop

Latifah made her mark in hip-hop by rapping about issues surrounding being a black woman. Her songs covered topics including domestic violence, harassment on the streets, and relationship problems. Freddy helped Latifah sign with Tommy Boy Records, which released Latifah's first album All Hail the Queen in 1989, when she was nineteen. That year, she appeared as Referee on the UK label Music of Life album 1989?The Hustlers Convention (live). She received a Candace Award from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women in 1992. In 1998, co-produced by Ro Smith, now CEO of Def Ro Inc., she released her fourth hip-hop album Order in the Court, which was released by Motown Records. Latifah was also a member of the hip-hop collective Native Tongues. In her Grammy Award-winning song ?"U.N.I.T.Y.? became very influential to women.

Latifah performed in the Super Bowl XXXII halftime show.

2003-2009: Change to traditional singing

After Order in the Court, Latifah shifted primarily to singing soul music and jazz standards, which she had used sparingly in her previous hip-hop-oriented records. In 2004, she released the soul/jazz standards The Dana Owens Album. On July 11, 2007, Latifah sang at the famed Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles as the headlining act in a live jazz concert. In front of a crowd of more than 12,400, she was backed by a 10-piece live orchestra and three backup vocalists, which was billed as the Queen Latifah Orchestra. Latifah performed new arrangements of standards including "California Dreaming", first made popular by 1960s icons the Mamas & the Papas. Later in 2007, Latifah released an album titled Trav'lin' Light. Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Joe Sample, George Duke, Christian McBride, and Stevie Wonder made guest appearances. It was nominated for a Grammy in the "Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album" category.

In 2009, Latifah, along with the NJPAC Jubilation Choir, recorded the title track on the album Oh, Happy Day: An All-Star Music Celebration, covering the song that the Edwin Hawkins Singers made popular in 1969.

2008-present: Return to hip-hop

In 2008, Latifah was asked if she would make another hip-hop album. She was quoted stating that the album was done already and it would be called "All Hail the Queen II". The following year, in 2009, she released her album Persona. The song "Cue the Rain" was released as the album's lead single. She also has a song with Missy Elliott. 2011 saw Queen Latifah sing "Who Can I Turn To" in a duet with Tony Bennett for his album "Duets II". In January 2012, while appearing on 106 & Park with Dolly Parton, to promote Joyful Noise, Latifah stated that she had been working on a new album.

On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Queen Latifah among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.

Film and television

1991-2001: Early career

From 1993 to 1998, Latifah had a starring role on Living Single, the FOX sitcom, which gained high ratings among black audiences; she also wrote and performed its theme music. Her mother Rita played her mother on-screen. She began her film career in supporting roles in the 1991 and 1992 films House Party 2, Juice and Jungle Fever. She also had her own talk show, The Queen Latifah Show, from 1999 to 2001 and revamped in 2013. On January 6, 2014, The Queen Latifah Show was renewed for a second season. However, on November 21, 2014, Sony Pictures Television canceled Latifah's show due to declining ratings. Production of the series closed down, taking effect on December 18, 2014, leaving new episodes that were broadcast until March 6, 2015. Moreover, She has guest starred in 2 episodes during the second season (1991-1992) of the NBC hit The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. She made a guest role as herself on Hangin' with Mr. Cooper in 1993. Latifah appeared in the 1996 box-office hit, Set It Off, and had a supporting role in the Holly Hunter film Living Out Loud (1998). She played the role of Thelma in the 1999 movie The Bone Collector, alongside Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie.

2002-present: Mainstream success

Although Latifah had previously received some critical acclaim, she gained mainstream success after being cast as Matron "Mama" Morton in Chicago, a musical film that won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Latifah herself received the nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role, but lost to co-star Catherine Zeta-Jones. Latifah is one of five hip-hop/R&B artists to receive an Academy Award nomination in an acting category. The others are Will Smith (Best Actor, Ali, 2001, and The Pursuit of Happyness, 2006), Jennifer Hudson (Best Supporting Actress, "Dreamgirls", 2007), Jamie Foxx, (Best Actor, Ray, and Best Supporting Actor Collateral, both in 2004, also winning the first) and Mary J. Blige, (Best Supporting Actress, Mudbound.)

In 2003, she starred with Steve Martin in the film Bringing Down the House, which was a major success at the box office. She also recorded a song "Do Your Thing" for the soundtrack. Since then, she has had both leading and supporting roles in a multitude of films that received varied critical and box office receptions, including films such as Scary Movie 3, Barbershop 2: Back in Business, Taxi, Kung Faux, Beauty Shop, and Hairspray. In early 2006, Latifah appeared in a romantic comedy/drama entitled Last Holiday. Film critic Richard Roeper stated that "this is the Queen Latifah performance I've been waiting for ever since she broke into movies". Also in 2006, Latifah voiced Ellie, a friendly mammoth, in the animated film, Ice Age: The Meltdown (her first voice appearance in an animated film), and appeared in the drama Stranger Than Fiction.

The summer of 2007 brought Latifah triple success in the big-screen version of the Broadway smash hit Hairspray, in which she acted, sang, and danced. The film rated highly with critics. It starred, among others, John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Allison Janney, James Marsden, Christopher Walken, and Zac Efron. Also in 2007, she portrayed an HIV-positive woman in the film Life Support, a role for which she garnered her first Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award and an Emmy nomination. For her work, Queen Latifah received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, on January 4, 2006, located at 6915 Hollywood Blvd.

Queen Latifah produced the 2007 film The Perfect Holiday. In addition to producing the film, Latifah starred alongside Terrence Howard, Morris Chestnut, Gabrielle Union, Charles Q. Murphy, Jill Marie Jones, and Faizon Love. In 2008, Latifah appeared in the crime comedy Mad Money opposite Academy Award-winner Diane Keaton as well as Katie Holmes and Ted Danson. She appeared on Saturday Night Live on October 4, 2008, as moderator Gwen Ifill in a comedic sketch depicting the vice-presidential debate between then-Senator Joe Biden and then-Governor Sarah Palin. In 2009, Latifah was a presenter at the 81st Academy Awards, presenting the segment honoring film professionals who had died during 2008 and singing "I'll Be Seeing You" during the montage. Latifah spoke at Michael Jackson's memorial service in Los Angeles. She also hosted the 2010 People's Choice Awards. Latifah sang America the Beautiful at Super Bowl XLIV hosted in Miami, Florida, on February 7, 2010, with Carrie Underwood. Latifah hosted the 2010 BET Awards on June 27, 2010. She starred with Dolly Parton in Joyful Noise (2012). In June 2011, Latifah received an honorary doctorate degree in Humane Letters from Delaware State University in Dover, Delaware. On September 16, 2013, Latifah premiered her own syndicated daytime television show titled The Queen Latifah Show. On January 26, 2014, Latifah officiated the weddings of 33 same-sex and opposite-sex couples during a performance of "Same Love" by Macklemore at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards. In 2015, Latifah received a Best Actress Emmy nomination for her lead role as Bessie Smith in Bessie, an HBO film which received a total of 12 Emmy nominations.

On April 26, 2017, MTV announced that Latifah will be an executive producer for the third season of the slasher television series Scream. The show will undergo a reboot with a new cast and Brett Matthews serving as show runner. In addition, Matthews, Shakim Compere and Yaneley Arty will also be credited as executive producers for the series under Flavor Unit Entertainment. On June 24, 2019, it was confirmed that the third season is scheduled to premiere over three nights on VH1, starting from July 8, 2019. The third season titled Scream: Resurrection premiered on July 8, 2019.

Artistry

Latifah's music usually contains hip-hop, jazz and gospel and has the elements of R&B, soul, and dance. She possesses a two-octave vocal range. Queen Latifah is a contralto, and she has the ability to rap and sing. Her biggest musical influences are EPMD, KRS-One, LL Cool J, Public Enemy, and Run-D.M.C. She also cites Bessie Smith as one of her influences.

Products and endorsements

Latifah is a celebrity spokesperson for CoverGirl cosmetics, Curvation ladies underwear, Pizza Hut, and Jenny Craig. She represents her own line of cosmetics for women of color called the CoverGirl Queen Collection. Latifah has also launched a perfume line called "Queen" and "Queen of Hearts". On May 23, 2018, Latifah was named the godmother of Carnival Cruise Lines' vessel Carnival Horizon. Apart from singing, Queen Latifah has written a book on confidence and self respect called, 'Ladies First: Revelations of a Strong Woman.'

Personal life

Raised in East Orange, New Jersey, Latifah has been a resident of Colts Neck, New Jersey; Rumson, New Jersey; and Beverly Hills, California.

Latifah's older brother, Lancelot Jr., was killed in 1992 in an accident involving a motorcycle that Latifah had previously purchased for him. A 2006 interview revealed that Latifah still wears the key to the motorcycle around her neck, visible throughout her performance in her sitcom Living Single. She also dedicated Black Reign to him. In her 1999 autobiography, Ladies First: Revelations of a Strong Woman, Latifah discussed how her brother's death had led to a bout of depression and drug abuse, from which she later recovered.

In 1995, Latifah was the victim of a carjacking, which also resulted in the shooting of her boyfriend, Sean Moon.

In 1996, she was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and possession of a loaded handgun. In 2002, she was arrested for driving under the influence in Los Angeles County. She was placed on three years' probation after being convicted.

She also works out with a trainer for kickboxing.

On March 21, 2018, her mother, actress Rita Owens, died due to heart failure, an issue she had been battling since 2004.

Feud with Foxy Brown

Disagreements between Foxy Brown and Queen Latifah began in mid-1996, where media reports indicated that Brown was a prime target in Latifah's diss record "Name Callin'," which was featured in the movie soundtrack Set It Off. In response, Brown made allegations of Latifah "checking her out" at musical events and had even gone further to question Latifah's sexuality in various public radio interviews. In 1998, Brown released a diss record titled "10% Dis," where she continually questioned Latifah's sexuality and accused her of being jealous.

By late spring of 1998, Latifah responded to Brown through another diss record titled, "Name Callin' Part II." In the record, Latifah disses Brown about her heavy reliance on sex-appeal, in which she implies that Brown has to rely on skimpy outfits to hide her "half-assed flow". Foxy Brown retaliated via a response-diss record titled "Talk to Me", in which Brown made fun of the ratings of Latifah's television talk show and went on to make various homophobic remarks to both Latifah and then-newcomer Queen Pen.

A significant part of media dubbed Latifah as "the winner" of the feud. Hip-hop magazine ego trip stated that Latifah won the feud with her diss record "Name Callin' Part II" and added that she showed that "the lady's still first", in reference to Latifah's 1990 single, "Ladies First". In 2000, Brown and Latifah reconciled; to show truce, Brown performed her song "Na Na Be Like" on The Queen Latifah Show.

Legacy and influence

In her music career, Queen Latifah has sold nearly 2 million records worldwide. She has been dubbed as the "Queen of Jazz-Rap". She became the first female hip-hop recording artist to get nominated for an Oscar. The Root ranked her at number 35 on The Root 100 list. Latifah was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2006 and the New Jersey Hall of Fame in 2011. She is a recipient of a Grammy Award, with six nominations, a Golden Globe Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, with two nominations, two NAACP Image Awards, including thirteen nominations, one Emmy Award, with three nominations and an Academy Award nomination. Queen Latifah became an influence to R&B, soul, and hip-hop artists, such as Eve, Da Brat, Lil' Kim, Fugees, Jill Scott, Lauryn Hill, Missy Elliott, Remy Ma, Ivy Queen, Foxy Brown, Ms. Dynamite, and Naughty by Nature.

Queen Latifah was the first hip-hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Discography

Studio albums

• All Hail the Queen (1989)
• Nature of a Sista' (1991)
• Black Reign (1993)
• Order in the Court (1998)
• The Dana Owens Album (2004)
• Trav'lin' Light (2007)
• Persona (2009)

Tours

Latifah, Jill Scott and Erykah Badu joined together to create and own the rights to the Sugar Water Festival Tour, LLC. All three singers toured together while inviting music duo Floetry in 2005 and singer Kelis in 2006 as opening acts. Comedian/actress Mo'Nique served as host for the 2006 Sugar Water Tour.

• Sugar Water Festival Tour (2005-06)
• Travlin' Light Tour (2007)

Filmography

Film

Television film

Television

Producer

Video games

References

External links

• Official website
• Queen Latifah on IMDb

With her “P31” hit single and new campaign, Murk released her EP P31 nationally to wide success positioning her as one of Christian music’s most notable rising female rap artists.

Although petite in stature, she is bold in lyric and delivery. Mercedes “Murk” Wheeler continues to share her dynamic message and continues making an impact in the lives of women and men with another musical release. Murk will release KINGDOM KULTURE on September 22 on digital music outlets via Memphis based DMG Music Group. DMG Music Group is the indie label formed by Dove and Grammy Award nominated artist, producer and music mogul Delmar Lawrence aka Mr. Del. His label has cranked out albums by Mali Music, Mr. Del, Murk and numerous epic musical collaborations with artists Canton Jones, Uncle Reece and Fro.

Listen To “BOLD” from the album KINGDOM KULTURE

In 2008, Wale signed with Interscope Records for $1.3 million, and his debut album Attention Deficit was released in 2009 with the singles "Chillin", "Pretty Girls", and "World Tour". The album, although under-shipped, received positive reviews from critics. In early 2011, Wale signed with Rick Ross' Maybach Music Group, where members of the label released a compilation album, Self Made Vol. 1 on May 23, 2011. His second studio album, Ambition was released November 1, 2011, with mixed reviews. His third studio album, The Gifted, was released on June 25, 2013, to mainly positive reviews; it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. His second Billboard number one album The Album About Nothing was released on March 31, 2015.

In 2018, Wale released three EPs titled It's Complicated, Self-Promotion and Free Lunch.

Biography

1984-2007: Early life and career beginnings

Olubowale Victor Akintimehin was born on September 21, 1984, in Northwest, Washington, D.C.. His parents were both from the Yoruba ethnic group of southwestern Nigeria, and both of them came from Austria to the United States in 1979. Wale's family first lived in Northwest, Washington, D.C., and then moved to Montgomery County, when Wale was 10. In 2002, he graduated from the Quince Orchard High School in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and moved to Largo, Maryland in Prince George's County. Wale attended Robert Morris University and Virginia State University on football scholarships, then transferred to Bowie State University. However, he dropped out due to academic reasons. Wale's love of the game of football and the Washington Redskins has led to a longstanding rumor that Wale had a tattoo of tight end Chris Cooley. He's also the cousin of an actor Gbenga Akinnagbe, who is best known as for playing Chris Partlow on HBO's The Wire. Wale's first recorded track, called "Rhyme of the Century", became his first song to ever be played on the local radio. In 2006, he was featured in the "Unsigned Hype" column of The Source magazine, and later signed to a local label, Studio 43. The track, called "Dig Dug (Shake It)" became popular in Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia, and was a tribute to Ronald "Dig Dug" Dixon, who was a percussion player for the go-go band Northeast Groovers. The song became the most requested song by a local artist in Washington D.C. radio history and Wale was the first local artist to get some BDS spins since DJ Kool in the early 1990s. The song was included in Wale's first mixtape, Paint a Picture.

In July 2006, Wale found representation in Daniel Weisman, a former club DJ and promoter who had no previous experience in management. Weisman had been tipped off about the rapper by a friend in Washington, D.C. and connected with him through Myspace. In September 2006, after dropping another go-go influenced single, called "Breakdown" (sampled from Huck-A-Bucks "Sexy Girl") has been getting a mention on The Washington Post, Wale released his first non-go-go original single, called "Uptown Roamers". On September 14, 2006, "Uptown Roamers" debuted on XM Radio Channel 66, where it's been played twice in one day. Both "Breakdown" and "Uptown Roamers" were on Wale's second mixtape, Hate Is the New Love. The song, "Breakdown" was featured on the video game Madden NFL 2009. Wale won the award for "D. C. Metro Breakthrough Artist of the Year" at WKYS's Go-Go Awards in November 2006. On December 15, The Fader magazine associate editor Nick "Catchdubs" Barat visited Wale for an interview and photo shoot, which appeared in the March 2007 issue of The Fader. Manager Weisman told HitQuarters that the Fader feature, given the magazine's music/culture/fashion orientation, laid an important foundation for Wale to position himself as a "cool, smart, up-and-coming hip-hop artist who might actually be Drake".

2007-09: National attention and major label signing

In January 2007, Wale released a new single to radio called "Good Girls" produced by Gerard Thomas and Demario Bridges for TeamMusicGroup(LeTroy Davis). Wale later appeared on Mark Ronson's remix of Lily Allen's "Smile" and was a headliner on Ronson's UK tour that year promoting Ronson's second album Version. In June 2007, Wale signed to a production deal with Ronson's Allido Records. In May 2010, Wale abruptly canceled a scheduled performance at DC Black Pride, an annual black gay pride event. In an email to the event's organizer, Wale's manager claimed he was unaware it was a gay event when he agreed to perform. However, on May 28, 2010, it was announced he would perform alongside the headliner for free. Wale released his third mixtape, 100 Miles & Running, on July 11, 2007, as a free download on his Myspace page. This mixtape includes features from Mark Ronson, Daniel Merriweather, Amy Winehouse, and Lily Allen. It was released on the same day as his performance at the Highline Ballroom, in Manhattan. The Highline show was to promote the US release of Mark Ronson's album and included performances by Mark Ronson, Wale, Saigon, and Daniel Merriweather. Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Kanye West, Maroon 5, Clive Davis, Eve and Danny Masterson were all in attendance. There, Wale was interviewed by MTV News correspondent J. D. Tuminski for his first national TV feature on August 16, 2007. With Ronson, Wale performed "W. A. L. E. D. A. N. C. E. ", a remix of Justice's "D.A.N.C.E." from Wale's 100 Miles mixtape, at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Washington Post profiled Wale on the front page of the Sunday Style section in the October 21, 2007, edition. Wale was featured on the cover of the 150th issue of URB along with French electro group Justice.

In March 2008, Wale signed a joint venture deal with Mark Ronson's Allido Records and Interscope, joining Rhymefest and Daniel Merriweather as Allido artists. Epic Records, Atlantic Records, and Def Jam all competed to sign Wale. On May 30, Wale released his fourth mixtapeThe Mixtape About Nothing, heavily produced by Best Kept Secret. Wale said that the television show Seinfeld inspired The Mixtape About Nothing: "the TV show's 'honest dialogue' mirrors his lyrical style, which frequently references pop culture and politics while avoiding gangster-rap bluster". After signing with Interscope, Wale began recording tracks for his major label debut: in a 2008 interview with Express, a newspaper published by the Washington Post Company, Wale announced that he was recording a song with Chrisette Michele called "Shades", which discusses inter-black racism. Wale also appeared on Interscope label mate DJ Greg Street's single "Dope Boys" which samples Hip Hop classic T.R.O.Y. alongside Lupe Fiasco and Kardinal Offishall. Rapper Young Chris of rap duo Young Gunz also began plans for a collaboration mixtape with Wale.

On June 19, 2009, Wale released his fifth mixtape, Back to the Feature, on which eleven of the tracks were produced by 9th Wonder, with contributions also coming from Mark Ronson and others. The album's title, a play off the name of the movie Back to the Future, referred to the fact that a lengthy list of rappers joined Wale on the songs, including K'naan, Tamere Guess, Talib Kweli, Joell Ortiz, Beanie Sigel, Curren$y, J. Cole and Bun B. The mixtape received positive reviews from Vibe magazine and website Pitchfork Media, but Colin McGowan of Cokemachineglow commented that it represented neither "a step forward or back [for the artist] so much as shouting-in-place. " Wale did a guest performance on "Change", a song by the Australian singer-songwriter Daniel Merriweather. It was written by Merriweather and Andrew Wyatt and produced by Mark Ronson. It was released on January 30, 2009, in the United States and Canada, and February 2, 2009, in the UK (where the song peaked at no.8). The song is included on Merriweather's album Love & War. On September 13, Wale, alongside the DC-based musicians of UCB (Uncalled 4 Band)- The Board Administration artists, served as the official house band for the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.

2009-10: Attention Deficit

Released on November 10, 2009, Wale's debut album, Attention Deficit, had primarily positive reception. Metacritic, which assigns a standardized score out of 100, rated the album 77 based on 21 reviews. It debuted at the number 21 spot on the Billboard 200 and sold 28,000 copies in its first week. Interscope claimed that the LP was undershipped and that was the reason for the low sales numbers. Daniel Weisman, Wale's manager, claimed that Interscope didn't ship enough copies of the album. The first single off Attention Deficit was "Chillin", featuring Lady Gaga, followed by "Pretty Girls" featuring Gucci Mane and Weensey and "World Tour" featuring Jazmine Sullivan. Other guest artists on the album included Pharrell; Bun B; Chrisette Michele; K'Naan; Marsha Ambrosius; J. Cole; and Melanie Fiona. In March 2010, Rapper Wale announced he and K'Naan would kick off a short co-headlining tour across the east coast of the US, beginning at the end of March in New York City. According to Wale, he is in the studio with Gucci Mane, Waka Flocka Flame, Roscoe Dash, Sean Garrett, and Drumma Boy.

On August 3, 2010, Wale released his sixth mixtape, More About Nothing hosted by DJ Omega a follow-up to his critically acclaimed The Mixtape About Nothing under The Board Administration - an independent label co-founded with Marketing Executive Le'Greg O. Harrison. More About Nothing took the internet by storm resulting in 100,000 plus downloads in 90 minutes. More About Nothing creatively integrates sitcom material with rhyme and wordplay to present Wale's frustrations on his plight to reach mainstream acceptance and success. Features include Wiz Khalifa, Waka Flocka, Daniel Merriweather, UCB, Board Administration Artists' Tiara Thomas, Black Cobain, Fat Trel, and NBA Player and DC Native Kevin Durant. In the last half of 2010, inspired by Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Fridays project, Wale re-released a track from one of his previous mixtapes for free-download on his own website every Thursday, calling this enterprise "Throwback Thursday". Guests on those tracks included Bun B, Pusha T, John Mayer, Lil Wayne and K'Naan.

2011: Signing to MMG and Ambition

On February 5, 2011, during Super Bowl XLV festivities he announced his signing to artist Rick Ross' Maybach Music Group. He states that he will still continue to be able to put out the music that he believes in, with the support of Rick Ross. Since 2009, Wale has been signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation for management along with other artists such as J. Cole, Mark Ronson, Melanie Fiona and Rihanna. On May 6, 2011, Wale shared plans with MTV Networks regarding the potential release of two albums in 2011. Later the same month, he confirmed pre-production efforts for Ambition, his second album, slated for a fall 2011 release under Maybach and Warner Music Groups. Production for Ambition took place at ZAC Recording in Atlanta, Georgia with The Board Administration Producer Tone P. Anticipation for Ambition was incited through the release and heavy viral promotion of mixtape, The Eleven One Eleven Theory done under Wale's label, The Board Administration. The Eleven One Eleven Theory debuted August 17, 2011, on Life and Times in honor of Wale's Twitter milestone of reaching one million followers and was purposefully made with the intent to build widespread anticipation for the November 1, 2011, scheduled release date of Ambition. This marketing strategy was the brainchild of The Board Administration CEO Le'Greg O. Harrison and was executed through savvy social media integration, resulting in the first shut down of renowned file sharing site Hulkshare in the first 4 seconds of posting the link. Wale is the first mainstream artist to officially crash Hulkshare.

On September 7, 2011, Wale announced plans for a 32-city domestic tour titled The Ambition Tour, which initiated October 2, 2011, in Minneapolis Minnesota and has dates through December 2011. The Board Administration Artist Black Cobain is the official opening act for each date and is followed by a rotation of various artists in select markets which include: Rick Ross, Meek Mill, Pusha T, J. Cole, Big Sean, Miguel, and more. The tour was booked by NUE Agency. On September 28, 2011, Wale revealed that Ambition was complete and released the single "Lotus Flower Bomb", featuring Miguel on Twitter. On September 29, 2011, Funk Master Flex debuted Wale's song "Tats on my Arms", featuring Rick Ross. The next day, Wale released the album cover for Ambition. On October 14, 2011, Wale released the single "Focused", featuring Kid Cudi. The official Ambition track listing includes 15 songs. The Board Administration launched a robust social media campaign integrating never-seen-before social media strategy and savvy to virally promote Ambition. The promotional campaign included a five-part "making of" documentary, a Twitter campaign centered on a hashtag blitz-aptly named #Ambition, daily new music and video releases from Wale, and promotional materials for purchase through Warner Music Group and Maybach Music Group such as Ambition wristbands and graphic tees. These efforts were also supported by televised "making of" episodes through networks such as MTV that hosted Sucker Free Road to Release. The never-seen-before element of Wale’s Ambition promo blitz included a partnership formed between the current most popular file sharing site Hulkshare and The Board Administration. Greater than 3 million people frequent Hulkshare daily, and through this collaboration could view banner ads on practically every Hulkshare download page flanked with Wale’s profile and a clock counting down the days, hours, minutes, and seconds until the album released.

On October 27, 2011, Wale unveiled an Ambition snippet sampler on YouTube for people to preview the album. Later the same day, a private Ambition media listening event, held at the Gansevoort Hotel of Chelsea New York, was attended by music executives, bloggers, various artists, and hip hop heads. On November 2, 2011, Myspace and Hot 97 presented a complimentary Wale and friends midnight Ambition release show at The Highline Ballroom in New York City. The event was hosted by Miss Info and featured special guest DJ Funkmaster Flex. The album debuted number two on the Billboard 200, selling 162,600 copies in its first week. The album initially received mixed reviews, including a negative one in Wale's local Washington City Paper. However, the album currently holds a 69/100 score on Metacritic, signifying "generally favorable reviews. "

2012-2017: The Gifted, The Album About Nothing, Shine

On November 25, 2011, shortly after the release of Ambition, Wale announced on Twitter that he has already begun working on his third album. In an interview with UpVenue in January 2012, Wale confirmed the third album and the focus will be about his growth as a person. He was featured on Maybach Music Group's second studio album Self Made II. Wale released the mixtape Folarin on December 24, 2012, which is hosted by DJ Clark Kent. He released a trailer for Folarin on December 6, 2012. He has also started working on his third studio album which is to be released in 2013. The mixtape features guest spots Rick Ross, 2 Chainz, Scarface, Nipsey Hussle, French Montana, Tiara Thomas, Lightshow, and Trinidad James among others. Production comes from Hit-Boy, Jake One, Cardo, Diplo, Beat Billionaire and Rico Love among others.

When speaking of his third studio album Wale would say, "it's going to have one sound, very, very soulful" and said the first single, "Bad" is a pretty good indication of the direction I'm going for this project." The album is set to release on June 25, 2013, and with his fourth album is coming a couple months after that. Wale announced he was collaborating with Jerry Seinfeld on his fourth studio album to be titled The Album About Nothing. He later said he was also collaborating with producer No I.D. on the album. He also said he would release a collaboration mixtape with Meek Mill during 2013.

In December 2012, Wale had announced he was planning on releasing a Go-go album: "I wanna do the album for me. This is the second time I’m announcing it, but I’m doing a Go-Go album after my album. And when I say Go-Go I don’t mean like cheesy Go-Go. It’s gonna be sequenced. It’s gonna be me probably rapping only 40-percent on the album, but getting the sound out."

To build hype for The Gifted, Wale released "Sight of the Sun," a remix of the Fun. song of the same name. This was similar to the songs "Bittersweet" and "Fly Away," which he released prior to Attention: Deficit.

On September 9, 2014 Wale released the first single from the album The Album About Nothing titled "The Body" featuring American singer Jeremih. On November 17, 2014, Wale announced a 31-date US tour entitled the Simply Nothing Tour. The tour is in support of his upcoming 2015 album, The Album About Nothing. On December 24, 2014, Wale released the mixtape Festivus heavily themed by the Seinfeld holiday. Features on the mixtape included Chance The Rapper, A$AP Ferg, and Pusha T, among others.

On March 31, 2015 Wale released his fourth studio album The Album About Nothing, which featured Jerry Seinfeld, J. Cole, Usher, and SZA among others. It became his second #1 album in the United States. It was revealed that Wale would next serve as the Executive Producer for Maybach Music Group's next collaborative album Self Made 4.

Wale also recorded the original music theme for the popular ESPN sports talk show First Take, which features journalists/panelists Stephen A. Smith, Max Kellerman and moderator/host Molly Qerim. The two-hour show, which airs twice daily at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on ESPN, features Wale's theme at the beginning of the show.

Wale's fifth studio album, Shine was released on April 28, 2017, selling 28,000 units in its first week.

2018: It's Complicated, Self Promotion, Warner Records and Free Lunch

After parting ways with Atlantic Records in February, Wale released a surprise four-track EP titled It's Complicated on March 13, 2018. Two months later, he release a second EP titled Self Promotion on May 8, 2018. The four-track EP had a single guest feature in R&B singer, Jacquees. On May 16, 2018, it was announced that Wale had been signed to Warner Records. Then on September 14, 2018, he released a third EP titled Free Lunch, with guest appearances from long time friend and collaborator, J. Cole and Eric Bellinger. On December 20 and 21, 2018 Wale released two tracks, "Winter Wars" and "Poledancer".

Musical style

In an interview with Flavorwire, Wale said that he incorporates elements of go-go in his music. Cyril Cordor of allmusic described go-go as "a more raw, percussion-driven offshoot of disco" that originated in the Washington, D. C. area. Wale's early singles that were played primarily in his local metropolitan area heavily sampled 1990s go-go records. Reviewing Attention Deficit, David Jeffries of allmusic remarked that Wale had a "post-Kanye, post-Lil Wayne, alternative-meets-hardcore style" and commented that Wale's single "Chillin'", which featured Lady Gaga, "crafts an instant floor-filler out of a sample from the 1969 hit 'Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye'".

Personal life

An avid professional wrestling fan, Wale has made several wrestling references on his songs. Wale hosts the annual WaleMania during WrestleMania weekend. He has also made several appearances on WWE television, where he hosted a rap battle between The New Day and The Usos on the 4 July episode of Smackdown Live in 2017, and was the guest commentator during Noam Dar and TJP's match on 205 Live in 2018. On October 2, 2019, Wale escorted former NXT Tag Team champions The Street Profits to the ring for their title shot versus champions Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly.

Discography

• Attention Deficit (2009)
• Ambition (2011)
• The Gifted (2013)
• The Album About Nothing (2015)
• Shine (2017)
• Wow... That's Crazy (2019)

Other ventures

Wale teamed up with Philadelphia retailer Ruvilla, and ASICS for a product called "Bottle Rocket" Asics Gel Lyte III in 2015. In 2016, he teamed with ASICS again with a product that features gold and shades of black and blue.

Awards and nominations

African Muzik Magazine Awards

BET Awards

BET Hip Hop Awards

Grammy Awards

MTV Video Music Awards

Nigeria Entertainment Awards

Soul Train Awards

References

External links

• Official website
• Wale Band

Banton released a number of dancehall singles as early as 1987 but came to prominence in 1992 with two albums, Stamina Daddy and Mr. Mention, the latter which became the best-selling album in Jamaican history upon its release. That year he also broke the record for #1 singles in Jamaica, previous held by Bob Marley. He signed with the major label Mercury Records and released Voice of Jamaica in 1993. By the mid-1990s, Banton's music became more influenced by his Rastafari faith, as heard on the seminal albums 'Til Shiloh and Inna Heights.

In 2009, he was arrested on drug-related charges in the United States and his first trial resulted in a hung jury. His 2010 album Before the Dawn won Best Reggae Album at the 53rd annual Grammy Awards. In 2011, he was convicted on the same criminal charge and was imprisoned in the U.S. until December 2018, whereupon he was deported home to Jamaica.

Biography

Background

Buju Banton was born in Kingston, Jamaica in a poor neighbourhood known as Salt Lane. Buju is a nickname given to him by his mother as a child. Banton is a Jamaican word that refers to someone who is a respected storyteller, and it was adopted by Myrie in tribute to the deejay Burro Banton, whom Buju admired as a child. Buju emulated Burro's rough vocals and forceful delivery, developing his own distinctive style. Buju's mother was a higgler, or street vendor, while his father worked as a labourer at a tile factory. He was the youngest of fifteen children born into a family that was directly descended from the Maroons of Jamaica.

Banton has homes in Jamaica and Tamarac, Florida (United States). He also has 15 children.

Early career

As a youngster, Buju would often watch his favourite artists perform at outdoor shows and local dancehalls in Denham Town. At the age of 12, he picked up the microphone for himself and began toasting under the moniker of Gargamel, working with the Sweet Love and Rambo Mango sound systems. In 1986, he was introduced to producer Robert Ffrench by fellow deejay Clement Irie, and his first single, "The Ruler" was released not long afterward in 1987. This led to recording sessions with producers such as Patrick Roberts, Bunny Lee, Winston Riley, and Digital B.

1990s

In 1991, Buju joined Donovan Germain's Penthouse Records label and began a fruitful partnership with producer Dave Kelly who later launched his own Madhouse Records label. Buju is one of the most popular musicians in Jamaican history, having major chart success in 1992, with "Bogle" and "Love me Browning", both massive hits in Jamaica. Controversy erupted over "Love Me Browning" which spoke of Banton's penchant for brown-skinned women: "Mi love my car mi love my bike mi love mi money and ting, but most of all mi love mi browning." Some accused Banton of denigrating the beauty of darker skinned black women. In response, he released "Love Black Woman," which spoke of his love for dark-skinned beauties: "Mi nuh Stop cry, fi all black women, respect all the girls dem with dark complexion". 1992 was an explosive year for Buju as he broke Bob Marley's record for the greatest number of #1 singles in a year. Buju's gruff voice dominated the Jamaican airwaves for the duration of the year. Banton's debut album, Mr. Mention, includes many of his greatest hits from that year including "Bonafide Love" featuring Wayne Wonder, the singer who first brought Buju out as a guest star on the annual Jamaican stage show Sting. 1992 also saw the unsanctioned re-release of "Boom Bye Bye," a controversial song recorded several years earlier when the artist was 19 years old, which resulted in a backlash that threatened to destroy his career. several years later, the song would later become the subject of outrage in the United States and Europe, leading to Banton being dropped from the line-up of the WOMAD festival as well as numerous other scheduled performances. Banton subsequently issued a public apology.

Now on the major Mercury/PolyGram Records label, Banton released the hard-hitting Voice of Jamaica in 1993. The album included a number of conscious tracks. These tracks included "Deportees", a song which criticises those Jamaicans who went abroad but never sent money home; "Tribal War" a collaboration with Tony Rebel, Brian & Tony Gold, and Terry Ganzie, a sharp condemnation of political violence that interpolates Little Roy's classic reggae song of the same name; and "Willy, Don't Be Silly", which promotes safe sex and the use of contraceptives, particularly the condom, profits from which were donated to a charity supporting children with AIDS. Banton was invited to meet Jamaican Prime Minister P. J. Patterson, and won several awards that year at the Caribbean Music Awards and the Canadian Music Awards.

Some of Banton's lyrics dealt with violent themes, which he explained as reflecting the images that young Jamaicans were presented with by the news media. The reality of Kingston's violence was brought home in 1993 by the murders in separate incidents of three of his friends and fellow recording artists, the deejays Pan Head and Dirtsman and singer Mickey Simpson. His response was the single "Murderer", which condemned gun violence, going against the flow of the prevailing lyrical content in dancehall. The song inspired several clubs to stop playing songs with the excessively violent subject matter. Late in 1994, Buju was also affected by the death of his friend Garnett Silk. Buju's transformation continued, as he embraced the Rastafari movement and began growing dreadlocks. His performances and musical releases took on a more spiritual tone. Banton toured Europe and Japan, playing sold-out shows.

'Til Shiloh (1995) was a very influential album, incorporating live instrumentation as well as digital rhythms, and incorporating the sounds of roots reggae along with the harder-edged dancehall sounds that first made Banton famous. The artist was embracing his Rastafari faith and his new album reflected these beliefs. Til Shiloh successfully blended conscious lyrics with a hard-hitting dancehall vibe. The album included earlier singles such as "Murderer" along with instant classics like "Wanna Be Loved" and "Untold Stories". "Untold Stories" revealed an entirely different side of Buju Banton from the one that had stormed to dancehall stardom. It is regarded by many as one of his best works and has become a staple in the Banton performance repertoire. Reminiscent in mood and delivery to "Redemption Song" by Bob Marley, "Untold Stories" won Buju Banton many favorable comparisons to the late singer. This album had a profound impact on dancehall music and proved that dancehall audiences had not forgotten the message that Roots Reggae expounded with the use of "conscious lyrics". Dancehall artists did not abandon slack and violent lyrics altogether, but the album did pave the way for a greater spirituality within the music. In the wake of Buju's transformation to Rastafari, many artists, such as Capleton, embraced the faith and began to denounce violence in their music.

In 1996, Buju contributed "Wanna Be Loved (Desea ser Amado)" along with Los Pericos to the Red Hot Organization's album Silencio=Muerte: Red Hot + Latin for the Red Hot Benefit Series. This series raises money to increase AIDS awareness.

That same year Buju Banton took control of his business by establishing his own Gargamel Music label, releasing the popular single "Love Sponge" on vinyl in Jamaica and overseas. In years to come Gargamel would expand into an outlet for Buju's own productions and providing an outlet for fresh new talent.

Inna Heights (1997) substantially increased Banton's international audience as Buju explored his singing ability and recorded a number of roots-tinged tracks, including the hugely popular "Destiny" and "Hills and Valleys". The album also included collaborations with artists such as Beres Hammond and the legendary Toots Hibbert. The album was well-received by fans at the time and critics praised Buju's soaring vocals. The album has aged well and remains a highly regarded work over 20 years after its release.

In 1998, Buju met the punk band Rancid and recorded three tracks with them: "No More Misty Days", "Hooligans" and "Life Won't Wait". The latter became the title track of Rancid's 1998 album, Life Won't Wait.

2000s

Buju signed with Anti- Records, a subsidiary of Brett Gurewitz's Epitaph records, and released Unchained Spirit in 2000. The album showcased diverse musical styles, and featured guest appearances by Luciano, Morgan Heritage, Stephen Marley, and Rancid. It carried little of the roots feel heard on Til Shiloh and virtually none of the hardcore dancehall sound which had brought him to public acclaim early in his career.

Several singles followed in the start of the new decade, which was perceived as more mellow and introspective, as opposed to the dancehall approach of his early career. In March 2003, Banton released Friends for Life, which featured more sharply political songs, including "Mr. Nine", an anti-gun song that was a hit in Jamaica's dancehalls as well as internationally. The album focused on political messages regarding the African diaspora, featuring excerpts from a speech made by Marcus Garvey. "Paid Not Played", also featured on the album, displayed a gradual return to the themes more popular in dancehall. The album also featured some hip hop influence with the inclusion of rapper Fat Joe.

2006 saw the release of the Too Bad, an album that was more dancehall-oriented in style. One of the slower tracks from the album, "Driver A", went on to become a major hit, while at the same time reviving Sly and Robbie's "Taxi" riddim.

Banton performed at the Cricket World Cup 2007 Opening Ceremony with Third World and Beres Hammond.

The album Rasta Got Soul was released on 21 April 2009, a date which marked the 43rd anniversary of Emperor Haile Selassie's visit to Jamaica in 1966. Produced by Banton, with contributions from longtime collaborators Donovan Germain, Stephen Marsden and Wyclef Jean, Rasta Got Soul was a 100% roots reggae album recorded over a seven-year period before its release. It went on to earn Banton his fourth Grammy nomination for Best Reggae Album in 2010.

2010s

On 13 February 2011, one day before the scheduled start of his second court trial in Tampa, Florida, Buju Banton's Before the Dawn album was announced as the winner of Best Reggae Album at the 53rd annual Grammy Awards.

Upon his release from prison in the United States in December 2018, Banton started The Long Walk To Freedom tour and performed his first concert at National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica on 16 March 2019, the concert attracted over 30.000 people. During his tour, he continued putting out new music and new singles including Bagga Mouth, False Pretense, and Country for Sale.

On 10 May 2019, Banton released Country For Sale, the song topped the iTunes Reggae Chart within minutes after the announcement of its release. The song was recorded at the Gargamel Music Studio, Donovan Germain's own recording studio in the Corporate Area. According to Donovan Germain, "since the artiste's release, there have been a number of requests for collaborations with other local and international acts". On 12 November of the same year, he released his first official music video entitled ?Trust?. The video marked the first anniversary of Banton's release from prison and was produced in collaboration with Dave Kelly and directed by Kieran Khan. The track peaked at number 1 on the Billboard Reggae Digital Song Sales chart.

On 22 November 2019 Banton announced his partnership Jay-Z's Roc Nation to become the second Jamaican reggae artist to represent Roc Nation, which coincided with the release of his music video Steppa. He also announced that Island Records will be the distributor of Banton and Roc Nation's new music.

2020s

In January 2020, Buju was featured on the Bad Boys for Life (soundtrack) which was produced by DJ Khaled. His song titled 'Murda She Wrote' was a nod to a 1992 dancehall classic called 'Murder She Wrote' by Jamaican reggae duo Chaka Demus & Pliers.

On February 29, 2020 Buju produced the Steppaz Riddim under this own Gargamel Music label. The riddim, released under Roc Nation, featured 11 tracks and included contributions from Vershon, Delly Ranx, Agent Sasco, Bling Dawg and General B.

Controversies

Homophobia

Banton has been criticised for the lyrical content of his song "Boom Bye Bye", which was released when he was 19 years old in 1992. The song has been interpreted as supporting the murder of gay men although others have argued that the song's lyrics should be read as metaphorical, following in a long tradition of exaggerated rhetorical violence in Jamaican dancehall music. In 2009 gay-rights groups appealed to venues around the United States not to host Buju Banton.

In 2007 Banton was allegedly among a number of reggae artists who signed a pledge, called the Reggae Compassionate Act, created by the Stop Murder Music campaign, to refrain from performing homophobic songs or making homophobic statements. The Act stated that the signers "do not encourage nor minister to HATE but rather uphold a philosophy of LOVE, RESPECT, and UNDERSTANDING towards all human beings as the cornerstone of reggae music" and promised that the artists involved no longer believed in sexism, homophobia, or violence and that they would not perform music that went against these beliefs on stage. Banton later denied that he had made any such commitment, although he did refrain from performing "Boom Bye Bye" and other offensive songs at the 2007 Reggae Carifest concert. He did, however, continue to play such songs afterwards.

On 20 March 2019, Buju Banton and his team officially removed "Boom Bye Bye" from his catalog. Banton's team pulled the song from streaming platforms such as Apple Music and Spotify, and Banton announced his intention to never perform the song again. Banton issued a statement in which he clarified the importance of tolerance and love, saying, "In recent days there has been a great deal of press coverage about the song ?Boom Bye Bye’ from my past which I long ago stopped performing and removed from any platform that I control or have influence over. I recognize that the song has caused much pain to listeners, as well as to my fans, my family and myself. After all the adversity we’ve been through I am determined to put this song in the past and continue moving forward as an artist and as a man. I affirm once and for all that everyone has the right to live as they so choose. In the words of the great Dennis Brown, ?Love and hate can never be friends.’ I welcome everyone to my shows in a spirit of peace and love. Please come join me in that same spirit."

U.S. drug charges

In December 2009 Drug Enforcement Administration agents remanded Banton to custody in Miami, where the U.S. Attorney charged him with conspiracy to distribute and possession of more than five kilograms of cocaine. Banton was then moved to the Pinellas County Jail where he remained until trial. A six-day trial in Tampa, Florida was declared a mistrial on 27 September 2010, after the jury was unable to reach a unanimous decision. During the trial, audio recordings were presented of Banton and a drug-dealer-turned-government-informant discussing drugs, drug prices and smuggling. Banton was also seen on a video recording meeting the informant in a police-controlled warehouse tasting cocaine from a kilogram bag. The informant was reportedly paid $50,000 for his work on the case. The singer was released that November on bond.

He was allowed to perform one concert between trials, which was held on 16 January 2011 to a sold-out crowd in Miami. A few weeks after the performance he won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album but was not allowed to attend the ceremony.

On 22 February 2011, Banton was found guilty of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five or more kilograms of cocaine, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking offense and using communication wires to facilitate a drug-trafficking offense. He was found not guilty on the charge of attempted possession of five kilograms or more of cocaine. Four months later, he was sentenced to ten years and one month in a federal prison for the cocaine trafficking conviction. His sentencing on a related firearms conviction (despite the fact that Banton was never found with a gun) was scheduled for 30 October 2012, and then postponed on his lawyer's request for an investigation of possible juror misconduct. Despite the fact that a juror was found guilty of misconduct, Buju Banton waived his right to an appeal. On 14 May 2015 federal prosecutors agreed to drop the firearms charge.

Banton was released on 7 December 2018 from McRae Correctional Institution.

Discography

• 1992: Stamina Daddy (later repackaged as Quick)
• 1992: Mr. Mention
• 1993: Voice of Jamaica
• 1995: 'Til Shiloh
• 1997: Inna Heights
• 2000: Unchained Spirit
• 2003: Friends for Life
• 2006: Too Bad
• 2009: Rasta Got Soul
• 2010: Before the Dawn

References

Early life

Born to a Seventh-day Adventist mother Pauline McCaulsky and Rastafarian father, Edwards received his musical calling at the age of seven, when he began singing in the church. He grew up in a small community in Rural St. Andrew, Jamaica called King Weston District. Recognizing his talent, his parents introduced him to Mr. Wong, a record producer from Portmore, St. Catherine. "I did not take it seriously," said Edwards "My family members have always been carrying me to Portmore to see him, but I usually disappear. One day, they dropped me off at his studio and left me and it all began there."

Career

Career beginnings

Under the guidance of Mr. Wong and Earl Chinna Smith, Gyptian honed his sound, winning the 2004 Star Search talent competition at Kens Wild Flower Lounge in Portmore, earning him a spot at Sting 2004, dubbed the 'greatest one night reggae show on earth'.

The singer earned his nickname from his habit of tying a shirt around his head and twisting his chin hair like an Egyptian pharaoh. In 2005, he scored two hits, "Is There A Place" on the Seasons Riddim and "Serious Times".

Nominated for Best New Entertainer at the 2006 International Reggae and World Music Awards, the singer has been dominating the Jamaician charts with hits including "Is There a Place", "Beautiful Lady", and the chart-topping ballad, "Mama, Don't Cry".

On 12 September 2004, Gyptian released his first album My Name Is Gyptian on VP Records. On 12 December 2007, Gyptian, while in New York City, shot the music video, directed by Rhona Fox, for his new single, "I Can Feel Your Pain" (Cloud Nine Riddim) Produced by JonFX. The song was the first to be confirmed to appear on his second album I Can Feel Your Pain, which was released in 2008.

2010 and crossover success

As of the end of May 2010, his single "Hold Yuh" had peaked at number 91 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 33 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Chart, number 6 on the Billboard Heatseekers Songs Chart and had been at the top of the Reggae Digital Songs chart for nine consecutive weeks.

In June, the song re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 and eventually reached a new peak of 77 on that chart, number 3 on the Heatseekers Songs chart, 31 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Chart, 63 on the Radio Songs chart and an astonishing peak of 28 on the Billboard Rhythmic Top 40, capitalizing it crossover success. The song also peaked at number 1 on the Dancehall/Reggae fusion Charts of the Jamaica Weekly Music Charts for two consecutive weeks. In Canada it peaked at No. 69 on the Canadian Hot 100. The official remix for the song features rapper Nicki Minaj. It spent 29 weeks on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Chart and 15 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100.

Gyptian had further chart success with his third album Hold You, which reached number 2 on Billboard's Reggae Albums Chart. The title track, "Hold Yuh", became a multi-chart hit worldwide. According to Billboard magazine, "not since Wayne Wonder's "No Letting Go" has an underground reggae artist garnered as much attention in the United States as Jamaica's own Gyptian."

The song also became popular in the UK, and was released there on 7 November by Ministry of Sound Recordings, in an EP which will include remixes by Shy FX, Major Lazer and Toddla T.

In October 2012, he released the SLR EP, which included three tracks from his forthcoming album. His fourth album Sex, Love & Reggae was released in October 2013 and entered the Billboard Top Reggae Albums chart at number one.

His latest album, Nothing to Lose, was set for release in April 2015, but never got released.

Artistry

His style of reggae music is considered lovers rock and roots reggae, with songs about political issues and love. His musical and lyrical style has been compared to established Jamaican artists, such as Sizzla, Luciano and Beres Hammond.

Personal life

Gyptian is currently single and is living in Jamaica. Originally born in Werneth, Oldham. He later on moved to Jamaica. In June 2006 his twin sons died after being born prematurely.

On 8 June 2010, he crashed his motorbike and sustained minor head and shoulder injuries.

He is Rastafarian, and this is supported by lyrics in some of his songs, including "Leave Us Alone", chants about Selassie I are heard.

Discography

Albums

EPs

Singles

Featured singles

References

External links

• Official website
• Article about Gyptian in the Jamaica Star

The word "business" is used in every title of the group's albums. Every album also has a track with "Jane" in the title.

History

Early years and mainstream success: 1987-92

Hailing from Brentwood, Long Island, New York, EPMD's first album, Strictly Business, appeared in 1988 and featured the underground hit "Strictly Business," which sampled Eric Clapton's version of Bob Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff." Many critics cite this first album as the group's most influential. The group's brand of funk-fueled sample-heavy hip-hop proved to be a major force in the genre. Unlike old school hip hop, which was originally based on disco hits but eventually became more electronic, EPMD based its music mainly on lifting funk and rock breaks for samples and helped to popularize their usage, along with Marley Marl and Public Enemy. "You're a Customer" combined snippets of Steve Miller's "Fly Like an Eagle," Kool & the Gang's "Jungle Boogie, the bass line from ZZ Top's "Cheap Sunglasses" and drum beat (Roger Linn LM-2 machine). "Jane," about a romantic rendezvous gone bad, would be revisited on no less than five sequels; a first for hip-hop. "You Gots to Chill" used 1980s funk band Zapp's "More Bounce to the Ounce," which has become one of the most enduring sample sources for hip-hop. EPMD later appeared on the single "Everybody (Get Up)" by Zapp frontman Roger Troutman on his last solo album, Bridging The Gap, in 1991. "I'm Housin'" was covered some 12 years later by Rage Against the Machine. Managed early on by Russell Simmons' RUSH Management, the group toured with such hip-hop luminaries as Run-DMC, Public Enemy, and DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince.

EPMD signed with Fresh/Sleeping Bag Records, which eventually released its debut album, Strictly Business, by electro funk pioneer Kurtis Mantronik, who also worked as an A&R representative for the label. Propelled by several strong singles ("You Gots to Chill" and the album's title track), the album was eventually certified gold, selling over 500,000 copies, as did 1989's follow-up, Unfinished Business. Financial frustrations followed when Sleeping Bag went under in 1992. The two EPMD albums and Nice & Smooth's debut album were acquired by Priority/EMI Records before the label was sold to Warlock Records. The duo's Sleeping Bag contract was acquired by Def Jam. EPMD returned in 1990 with Business As Usual and Business Never Personal two years later. By 1992, the group presided over an extended family dubbed the Hit Squad, which included Redman, K-Solo, Das EFX, Hurricane G, and Knucklehedz.

In 1992, EPMD had a hit with its song "Crossover," which lamented rappers making blatant concessions to pop sensibilities in order to get mainstream attention from music audiences. The song became a hit, peaking at No. 42 on the Billboard Hot 100 and in doing so becoming their biggest hit to date.

First breakup and Feud: 1993-96

EPMD called it quits in 1993, under controversial circumstances. According to interviews in The Source and Rap Pages, in late 1991, Smith's house was burglarized by armed intruders. According to Smith, in the ensuing police investigation, one of the apprehended culprits supposedly gave up Sermon's name as having allegedly paid them to do it. Sermon was arrested and briefly detained for questioning, but no charges were filed. Still, it led to lingering tensions, and by the time of the break-up, Sermon alleged financial impropriety on Smith's part. The duo found itself as solo artists by default: Sermon debuted in 1993 with No Pressure, followed by Double or Nothing (1995), Def Squad Presents Erick Onasis (2000), Music (2001), and React (2002). Smith made his statements on 1994's Shade Business, followed by Business is Business in 1996.

First reunion and second breakup: 1997-2005

The duo reunited in 1997, recording a comeback LP, Back in Business. In 1998, a remix of the song "Strictly Business" appeared by the A&R man who signed the duo while at Fresh/Sleeping Bag, Kurtis Mantronik. Sermon released an album with Redman and Keith Murray as the Def Squad in 1998: El Niño was certified gold that same year. EPMD's last LP, Out of Business, was released in 1999 as both a single CD and a limited edition double CD. The limited edition double CD contained both new material and rerecorded versions of its greatest hits. Smith released The Awakening (2003) on his own Hit Squad label, and Sermon released Chilltown, N.Y. (2004) on Motown/Universal. A Hit Squad compilation LP (overseen by Smith, featuring a new EPMD track) was released on Nervous Recordings in 2004.

Second reunion: 2006-present

A reunited EPMD with DJ Scratch performed live at the Rock the Bells Tour in New York on October 14, 2006 at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill, their first NYC show in eight years. The tour also featured former Hit Squad members Keith Murray, Das EFX, and Redman. YouTube currently hosts a number of videos of the EPMD reunion concert.

Two months later, EPMD and Keith Murray released a new song, titled "The Main Event," produced by DJ Knowhow. In the March 2007 issue of Swedish hip-hop magazine Quote, Erick Sermon and Parish Smith talked about whether the duo planned to record together again. On its recent tour, the group announced that it was working on a new album, tentatively titled We Mean Business.

On June 27, 2007, the group appeared on BET's Rap City to freestyle. EPMD's new single, "Blow", was released on vinyl from Unique Distribution during August 2007 as a prelude to a new album that was to be released in 2008. The song instantly became a regular feature on the Funkmaster Flex show. The same month, the duo made a number of surprise live appearances, including the Rock the Bells tour with Rage Against the Machine, Wu-Tang Clan, Cypress Hill, Mos Def and others.

In June 2008, during an interview with HipHopGame, Erick and Parish confirmed that We Mean Business would be released on September 9. The album eventually emerged in December 2008, and featured guest appearances from the likes of KRS-One and Redman amongst others. In the end of the interview, they mentioned the possibility of a Hit Squad/Def Squad double disc album, but that they had problems with K-Solo.

On August 3, 2008, EPMD joined Method Man & Redman on stage at the Rock The Bells concert at Jones Beach, New York.

The following month, EPMD took the stage as part of AllHipHop.com's Breeding Ground event at S.O.B.'s in New York City. The duo performed many of their early hits and featured Keith Murray as a guest.

In March 2011, EPMD performed at the Lawyer4Musicians Hiphop showcase at Venue 222 in Austin, Texas. It was the duo's first time performing in Austin, where they performed many of their early hits as well as cover songs and freestyle rhymes.

Discography

Studio albums

• Strictly Business (1988)
• Unfinished Business (1989)
• Business as Usual (1990)
• Business Never Personal (1992)
• Back in Business (1997)
• Out of Business (1999)
• We Mean Business (2008)
• Big Business (2019)

References

External links

• EPMD VH1 Web site
• Biography (in German)