- Order:
- Duration: 3:46
- Published: 25 Jan 2010
- Uploaded: 11 May 2011
- Author: FlipStylez
Name | Twista |
---|---|
Background | solo_singer |
Birth name | Carl Terrell Mitchell |
Alias | Tung Twista |
Born | November 27, 1972Chicago, Illinois, United States |
Genre | Hip hop |
Occupation | Rapper, record producer |
Years active | 1990—present |
Label | Loud, Atlantic, Get Money Gang, Capitol |
Url | Twista.com |
His second album, titled Resurrection, was set to be released in 1994, but due to problems with record labels and marketing issues involving fellow Chicago rapper Common's album of the same name, the album was only released in the city of Chicago and thus got very little national attention.
In 1996 he teamed with fellow Chicago act Do or Die on the track "Po Pimp", which became a hit single. This led to a contract with Atlantic Records, which released Adrenaline Rush in 1997. Twista had by then dropped the "Tung" from his stage name. Its first single "Slow Jamz" (also featured on Kanye West's debut album The College Dropout), featured West and Jamie Foxx and became a number-one hit in the US.
Twista is set to release his eight solo album entitled, The Perfect Storm on Nov 9. The first single from the album, "Make a Movie", featuring Chris Brown, was released on August 24, 2010 and produced by Travisty. Two buzz singles were released, "I Do" produced by Traxster and "Heat" produced by fellow Chicago producers NO I.D. and The Legendary Traxster. The album will feature artists such as Waka Flocka Flame, Raekwon, Tia London, Diddy, Ray J and others. Production on the album is handled mainly by The Legendary Traxster along with Streetrunner, Twinz, Tight Mike and NO I.D.
In an October 31, 2010 interview on Conspiracy Worldwide Radio, Twista discussed his new documentary, directed by Vlad Yudin and the making of The Perfect Storm, including his belief that artists need to do more than just record songs and that they need to become more involved with the community around them.
During the holiday season in 2010, Twista and his GMG team worked together with Chicago Food Bank's Producemobile program to feed hungry people in the community. Twista continues to give back to his community whenever he can.
Category:African American rappers Category:Atlantic Records artists Category:Capitol Records artists Category:E1 Music artists
Category:Rappers from Chicago, Illinois Category:World record holders Category:Living people Category:1972 births
Twista
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
Name | Michael Gregory |
---|---|
Birthname | Gary Steven Meimar |
Birthdate | November 26, 1944 |
Birthplace | Brooklyn, New York, USA |
He was born Gary Steven Meimar in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Sally and Angelo Socrates Meimar. He lived in Salinas, California.
Gregory had a role in an episode of the TV series The Partridge Family in 1971. Other guest appearances include All in the Family, Kojak, Gunsmoke, Fantasy Island, The Love Boat, Quincy, Simon & Simon and Matlock.
He played Dr. Rick Webber in episodes of the soap opera General Hospital, from 1976 to 1978, and played Nikolai in three episodes of Dynasty in 1985.
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
Name | Kanye West |
---|---|
Background | solo_singer |
Birth name | Kanye Omari West |
Born | June 08, 1977Atlanta, Georgia, United States |
Origin | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
Genre | Hip hop |
Instrument | Vocals, keyboards, sampler, percussion, synthesizer |
Occupation | Producer, rapper, musician, singer |
Years active | 1996–present |
Label | GOOD Music, Roc-A-Fella, Def Jam |
Associated acts | Go Getters, Child Rebel Soldier, Jay-Z, Common, John Legend, Kid Cudi, Pusha T, Mr Hudson, Pusha T, Big Sean |
Url |
West released his debut album The College Dropout in 2004, his second album Late Registration in 2005, his third album Graduation in 2007, his fourth album 808s & Heartbreak in 2008, and his fifth album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy in 2010. His five albums have received numerous awards, including a cumulative twelve Grammys, All have been very commercially successful, with 808s & Heartbreak becoming his third consecutive #1 album in the U.S. upon release. West also runs his own record label GOOD Music, home to artists such as John Legend, Common and Kid Cudi. West's mascot and trademark is "Dropout Bear," a teddy bear which has appeared on the covers of three of his five albums as well as various single covers and music videos. About.com ranked Kanye West #8 on their "Top 50 Hip-Hop Producers" list. On May 16, 2008, Kanye West was crowned by MTV as the year's #1 "Hottest MC in the Game." On 17 December 2010, Kanye West was voted as the MTV Man of the Year by MTV.
West attended art classes at the American Academy of Art in Chicago, and also enrolled at Chicago State University, but dropped out to focus on his music career.
West got his big break in the year 2000 however when he began to produce for artists on Roc-a-Fella Records. He produced the well received Jay-Z song "This Can't Be Life" off of the album . West would later state that to create the beat for "This Can't Be Life" he sped up the drum beat from Dr. Dre's song "Xxplosive".
After producing for Jay-Z earlier, West’s sound was featured heavily on Jay-Z's critically acclaimed album The Blueprint, released on September 11, 2001. Jay-Z admitted that Roc-A-Fella was initially reluctant to support West as a rapper, claiming that he saw him as a producer first and foremost. Multiple record companies felt he was not as marketable as rappers who portray the "street image" prominent in hip hop culture. West's faith is apparent in many of his songs, such as "Jesus Walks", which became a staple at his benefit performances, such as the Live 8 concert. These songs were featured on West's debut album, The College Dropout, which was released on Roc-A-Fella Records in February 2004, and went on to receive critical acclaim. The album also defined the style for which West would become known, including wordplay and sampling. During 2003 West also co-produced songs for British singer Javine Hylton, even appearing in the music video to Real Things playing the love interest of Javine.
West was involved in a financial dispute over Royce Da 5'9"'s song "Heartbeat", produced by West and released on Build & Destroy: The Lost Sessions. West maintains that Royce never paid for the beat, but recorded to it and released it; hearing him on the beat, the original customers decided not to buy it from West. After the disagreement, West vowed to never work with Royce again. Other Kanye West-produced hit singles during the period The College Dropout was released included "I Changed My Mind" by Keyshia Cole, "Overnight Celebrity" by Twista and "Talk About Our Love" by Brandy. Like its predecessor, the sophomore effort garnered universal acclaim from music critics. Late Registration topped countless critic polls and was revered as the best album of the year by numerous publications, including USA Today, Spin, and Time. Rolling Stone awarded the album the highest position on their end of the year record list and hailed it as a "sweepingly generous, absurdly virtuosic hip-hop classic." The record earned the number one spot on the Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics' poll of 2005 for the second consecutive year. Late Registration was also a commercial success, selling over 860,000 copies in its first week alone and topping the Billboard 200. Grossing over 2.3 million units sold in the United States alone by year's end, Late Registration was considered by industry observers as the sole majorly successful album release of the fall of 2005, a season that was plagued by steadily declining CD sales. The sophomore album earned eight Grammy Award nominations including Album of the Year and Record of the Year for the song "Gold Digger". The album is certified triple platinum.
On August 22, 2005, the MTV special All Eyes On Kanye West aired, in which West spoke out against homophobia in hip-hop. He claimed that hip-hop has always been about "speaking your mind and about breaking down barriers, but everyone in hip-hop discriminates against gay people." He then reflected on a personal experience. He said that he had a "turning point" when he realized one of his cousins was gay. He said regarding this experience: "This is my cousin. I love him and I've been discriminating against gays." He drew comparison between African Americans' struggle for civil rights and today's gay rights movement. The following year, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, West further expounded his experiences with and views on the relationship between the black and gay communities.
In September 2005, West announced that he would release his Pastelle Clothing line in spring 2006: "Now that I have a Grammy under my belt and Late Registration is finished, I am ready to launch my clothing line next spring." The current status of this project is unknown. In that year, West produced the hit singles "Go" by Common and "Dreams" by The Game.
West was also featured in a new song called "Classic (Better Than I've Ever Been)". It was believed to be a single for, Graduation, because he is featured on the track, but Nike quickly explained that it was for the Nike Air Force 1's anniversary. It was meant only to be an exclusive track for the company.
On March 25, 2007, he and his father Ray West supported World Water Day by having a "Walk for Water" rally. After a two-year break, West has returned to being a fashion columnist in lifestyle magazine Complex. On July 7, 2007, West performed with The Police and John Mayer at the American leg of Live Earth. West hosted the August 17 edition of British comedy- variety show The Friday Night Project.
In July 2007, West changed the release date of Graduation, his third album, from September 18, 2007, to the same release date as 50 Cent's album Curtis, September 11, 2007. 50 Cent later claimed that if Graduation were to sell more records than Curtis, he would stop releasing solo albums. However, 50 Cent would later dispel his comments. The album has been certified double platinum. Guest appearances included T-Pain, Mos Def, and Lil Wayne.
}}
On August 26, 2007, West appeared as himself on the HBO television show Entourage which he used as a platform to premier his new single "Good Life" during the end credits. On September 9, 2007, West performed at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, losing in every category he was nominated for; he gave an angry speech immediately afterward. (see "Controversies" section)
Following the MTV stint, West was nominated in eight Grammy Award categories for the 50th annual Grammy Awards. He won four of them, including Best Rap Album for Graduation and Best Rap Solo Performance for "Stronger" from Graduation. During the four-hour televised Grammy Awards ceremony, West also performed two songs: "Stronger" (with Daft Punk) and "Hey Mama" (in honor of his recently deceased mother).
West kicked off the Glow In The Dark Tour in Seattle at the Key Arena on April 16. The tour was originally scheduled to end in June in Cincinnati but was extended into August. Over the course of the tour West was joined by a varying group of opening acts, including Lupe Fiasco, Rihanna, N.E.R.D., DJ Craze, and Gnarls Barkley. On June 15, West was scheduled to perform a late night set at the Bonnaroo Music Festival. His performance started almost two hours late and ran for half of its alloted time, angering many fans in the audience. West later wrote an outraged entry on his blog, blaming the festival organizers as well as Pearl Jam's preceding set, which ran longer than expected.
On September 7, West debuted a new song "Love Lockdown" at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards. "Love Lockdown" features no rapping and only singing using an auto-tune device. This song appears on West's fourth studio album, 808s & Heartbreak. The new album was expected to be released on December 16, but West announced on his blog on September 24, 2008, that he had finished the album and would be releasing it sometime in November, earlier than previously scheduled. In early October, West made a surprise appearance at a T.I. concert in Los Angeles, where he stated that 808s & Heartbreak was scheduled to be released on November 25, though it was actually released on the 24th, and that the second single is "Heartless". The album was another number one album for West, even though the first week numbers fell well short of Graduation with 450,145 sold.
Along with Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Leona Lewis, and others, West performed at the American Music Awards ceremony on November 23. That same night he won two AMA awards, including Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album for Graduation and Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Male Artist. West performed at the Democratic National Convention in Denver in August 2008, along with Wyclef Jean and N.E.R.D. in support of Barack Obama. On January 20, 2009, Kanye West performed at the Youth Inaugural Ball hosted by MTV for Obama's inauguration.
On February 17, 2009, West was named one of Top 10 Most Stylish Men in America by GQ. The next day, February 18, 2009, West won International Male Solo Artist at The Brit Awards 2009. West was not in attendance but accepted his award with a video speech, saying "Barack is the 'Best Interracial Male' but I'm proud to be the Best International Male in the world.
In April 2009, Kanye West recorded a song called "Hurricane" with 30 Seconds to Mars to appear on their album This Is War, but was not released due to legal issues with both record companies. The song was eventually released on the deluxe version of This Is War, titled "Hurricane 2.0".
West spent the first half of 2010 in Honolulu, Hawaii, working on his new album with the working title "Good Ass Job", later named My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, released on November 22, 2010. West has cited Maya Angelou, Gil Scott-Heron and Nina Simone as his musical inspirations for this album. Outside production is said to come from RZA, Q-Tip, Pete Rock, and DJ Premier. West also had Justin Vernon flown into his studio on Oahu after seemingly expressing interest in sampling one of Bon Iver's songs; Vernon proceeded to feature on a number of new tracks, including "Lost In The World," which features Vernon's vocal line from Woods.
On May 28, the Dwele-assisted first single from the album, entitled "Power", leaked to the Internet. On June 30, the track was officially released via iTunes. The upcoming music video was quoted as being "apocalyptic, in a very personal way" by the director Marco Brambilla.
On September 12, 2010, West performed a new song, "Runaway" featuring Pusha T, at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. Shortly after the performance, Kanye revealed he was working on a 35 minute short film based around the song. The movie is said to be influenced by film noir and concerns a fallen phoenix whom Kanye falls in love with. The short film debuted consecutively on VH1, MTV, and BET on October 23, 2010.
Watch The Throne, an upcoming collaborative studio album by West and Jay-Z, is scheduled to be released by Def Jam Recordings in 2011. It has been under production since August 2010 as part of West's GOOD Friday initiative of releasing new songs every Friday between August 20 and Christmas 2010. West said through a recent interview with MTV that the album is "going to be very dark and sexy, like couture hip hop. He appeared at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, performing the track "Lost in the World" from My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. On January 6, 2011, Kanye announced via Twitter that the first official single from Watch the Throne would be a song called "H.A.M" produced by Lex Luger. The song was released on January 11, 2011.
West was also in a high profile on/off relationship with Amber Rose from 2008 until the summer of 2010.
The funeral and burial for Donda West was held in Oklahoma City on November 20, 2007. West held his first concert following the funeral at The O2 in London on November 22. He dedicated a performance of "Hey Mama", as well as a cover of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'", to his mother, and did so on all other dates of his Glow in the Dark tour.
At a December 2008 press conference in New Zealand, West spoke about his mother's death for the first time. "It was like losing an arm and a leg and trying to walk through that," he told reporters.
California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger passed the "Donda West Law," a legislation which makes it mandatory for patients to provide medical clearance for elective cosmetic surgery.
While his use of sampling has lessened over time, West's production continues to feature distinctive and intricate string arrangements. This characteristic arose from him listening to the English trip hop group Portishead, whose 1998 live album Roseland NYC Live, with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra inspired him to incorporate string sections into his hip hop production. Though he was unable to afford live instruments beyond violin riffs provided by Israeli violinist Miri Ben-Ari around the time of his debut album, its subsequent commercial success allowed him to hire his very own eleven-piece string orchestra. For a time, West stood as the sole current pop star to tour with a string section. Both a fan and supporter of indie culture, West uses his official website to promote obscure indie rock bands, posting up music videos and mp3s on a daily basis. This musical affinity is mutual, as West has collaborated with indie artists such as Santigold, Peter Bjorn and John and Lykke Li while his songs have gone on to be covered countless times by myriad rock bands.
On January 22, 2009, during Paris Fashion Week, West introduced his first shoe line designed for Louis Vuitton. The line was released in summer 2009.
Kanye West has appeared and participated in many fundraisers, benefit concerts, and has done community work for Hurricane Katrina relief, the Kanye West Foundation, the Millions More Movement, 100 Black Men of America, a Live Earth concert benefit, World Water Day rally and march, Nike runs, and a MTV special helping young Iraq War veterans who struggle through debt and PTSD a second chance after returning home.
In January 2006, West again sparked controversy when he appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone in the image of Jesus wearing a crown of thorns.
On September 13, 2009, during the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards while Taylor Swift was accepting her award for Best Female Video for "You Belong with Me", West went on stage and grabbed the microphone to proclaim that Beyoncé's video for "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", nominated for the same award, was "one of the best videos of all time". He was subsequently removed from the remainder of the show for his actions. When Beyoncé later won the award for Best Video of the Year for "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", she called Swift up on stage so that she could finish her acceptance speech. and by President Barack Obama, who called West a "jackass" in an off the record comment. In addition, West's VMA disruption sparked a large influx of Internet photo memes with blogs, forums and "tweets" with the "Let you finish" photo-jokes. He posted two apologies for the outburst on his personal blog; one on the night of the incident and the other the same day he appeared on The Jay Leno Show, on September 14, 2009, where he apologized again. After Swift appeared on The View two days after the outburst, partly to discuss the matter, West called her to apologize personally. Swift said she accepted his apology. In September 2010, West wrote a series of apologetic tweets addressed to Swift including "Beyonce didn't need that. MTV didn't need that and Taylor and her family friends and fans definitely didn't want or need that" and concluding with "I'm sorry Taylor." West also revealed he had written a song for Swift and if she didn't accept the song, he would perform it himself.
On September 11, 2008, West and his road manager/bodyguard Don Crowley were arrested at Los Angeles International Airport and booked on charges of felony vandalism after an altercation with the paparazzi in which West and Crowley broke the photographers' cameras. West was later released from the Los Angeles Police Department's Pacific Division station in Culver City on $20,000 bail bond. On September 26, 2008 the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office said it would not file felony counts against West over the incident. Instead the case file was forwarded to the city attorney's office, which charged West with one count of misdemeanor vandalism, one count of grand theft and one count of battery and his manager with three counts of each on March 18, 2009. West's and Crowley's arraignment was delayed from an original date of April 14, 2009. West was arrested again on November 14, 2008 at a hotel near Gateshead after another scuffle involving a photographer outside a nightclub in Newcastle Upon Tyne. He was later released "with no further action", according to a police spokesperson.
; Live albums
; Collaboration albums Watch The Throne (2011) (with Jay-Z)
Category:1977 births Category:1990s singers Category:2000s rappers Category:2010s rappers Category:2000s singers Category:2010s singers Category:African American rappers Category:African American singers Category:American bloggers Category:American hip hop record producers Category:American music video directors Category:American pop musicians Category:American record producers Category:Songwriters from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:BRIT Award winners Category:Chicago State University alumni Category:Electro-hop musicians Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Hip hop musicians Category:Hip hop singers Category:Living people Category:Mercury Records artists Category:People from Atlanta, Georgia Category:Rappers from Chicago, Illinois Category:Roc-A-Fella Records artists Category:World Music Awards winners
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
Name | Jamie Foxx |
---|---|
Caption | Foxx promoting Stealth in July 2005 |
Birth name | Eric Marlon Bishop |
Birth date | December 13, 1967 |
Birth place | Terrell, Texas, United States |
Medium | Stand-up, film, television, music |
Nationality | American |
Active | 1992–present |
Genre | Black comedy, Musical comedy, Satire/Political satire, Observational comedy, Character comedy, Blue comedy |
Subject | Race relations, racism, African-American culture, pop culture, human sexuality, American politics, current events, self-deprecation |
Notable work | In Living ColorJamie King on The Jamie Foxx ShowAlvin Sanders in BaitDrew 'Bundini' Brown in AliRay Charles in RayLt. Henry Purcell in StealthStaff Sgt. Sykes in JarheadCurtis Taylor Jr. in Dreamgirls |
Website | Official site |
Following these successes, Foxx appeared in Jarhead, Miami Vice, and Dreamgirls, which were box-office hits, and lifted his profile even higher as a bankable star in Hollywood. 2007 brought him the lead role in the film The Kingdom opposite Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner and Ashraf Barhom.
In September 2007, Foxx was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He said, upon receiving the honor, "[it was] one of the most amazing days of my life."
In April 2009, Foxx played the lead role in the dramatic film The Soloist.
Foxx released his second studio album, Unpredictable, in December 2005. It debuted at number two, selling 598,000 copies in its first week. The following week, the album rose to number one, selling an additional 200,000 copies. To date, the album has sold 1.98 million copies in the United States, and was certified double Platinum by the RIAA. The album also charted on the UK Albums Chart, where it peaked at number nine. Foxx became the fourth artist to have won an Academy Award for an acting role and to have achieved a number-one record album in the US. (The other three to accomplish this feat were Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, and Barbra Streisand.) Foxx's first single from the album, the title track "Unpredictable" (featuring Ludacris), samples "Wildflower" by New Birth. The song peaked inside the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 and also made the UK top 20 singles chart. The second US single from the album was "DJ Play a Love Song," which reunited Foxx with Twista. In the UK, however, the second single was "Extravaganza," which saw Foxx once again collaborate with Kanye West. He was not, however, featured in the song's music video.
At the 2006 Black Entertainment Television (BET) Awards, Foxx won Best Duet/Collaboration with Kanye West for "Gold Digger" and tied with Mary J. Blige's "Be Without You" for Video of the year. On December 8, 2006, Foxx received four Grammy nominations, which included Best R&B; Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for Love Changes featuring Mary J. Blige, Best R&B; Album for Unpredictable, Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for Georgia by Ludacris & Field Mob featuring Jamie Foxx, and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for Unpredictable featuring Ludacris.
On January 22, 2007, Foxx was on Sirius Satellite Radio, announcing his new channel The Foxxhole. The channel features talk-radio programs, stand-up comedy albums, and music primarily by African-American performers, and features much of Foxx's own material as well. The Jamie Foxx Show, Foxx's own talk-radio variety program, airs Friday evenings on The Foxxhole, and features Johnny Mack, Speedy, The Poetess, Lewis Dix, and T.D.P., as his co-hosts. Guests include popular musicians, actors, and fellow comedians.
He recorded a song with country superstars Rascal Flatts entitled "She Goes All the Way" for their album, Still Feels Good. Foxx also performed background vocals for artist/songwriter Tank. He and The-Dream are featured on Plies' "Please Excuse My Hands." He also appeared on the remix of Ne-Yo's "Miss Independent" entitled "She Got Her Own." The track also features Fabolous. Foxx then collaborated with rapper The Game on the track "Around The World."
Foxx released his third album titled Intuition in 2008, featuring such artists as Kanye West, T.I., Lil Wayne, and T-Pain. The album's first single, "Just Like Me" featuring T.I., was promoted by a video directed by Brett Ratner and featuring an appearance by Taraji P. Henson. The second single "Blame It" featured T-Pain and became a top 5 single on the Billboard Hot 100 and a number-one single on the Billboard Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The "Blame It" music video, directed by Hype Williams, features cameo appearances by Forest Whitaker, Samuel L. Jackson, Ron Howard, Quincy Jones, and Jake Gyllenhaal, among others. Foxx was also featured on T.I.'s single "Live in the Sky" from the album King.
On April 6, 2009 Foxx performed the George Strait song "You Look So Good in Love" at the George Strait Artist of the Decade All-Star Concert. Foxx has been a fan of country music for many years.
Jamie Foxx hosted the 2009 BET Awards ceremony on June 28, 2009, which featured several tributes to pop star Michael Jackson, who had died three days prior to the show. Aside from performing "Blame It" with T-Pain and "She Got Her Own" with Ne-Yo and Fabolous, Foxx opened the show with a rendition of Jackson's "Beat It" dance routine and closed the show with a cover of The Jackson 5's "I'll Be There" with Ne-Yo. Foxx stated during the ceremony, "We want to celebrate this black man. He belongs to us and we shared him with everybody else."
Foxx released his fourth album, Best Night of My Life, on December 21, 2010. The first single is "Winner", featuring Justin Timberlake and T.I.. The second single is "Living Better Now" featuring rapper Rick Ross and the third single is "Fall For Your Type" featuring rapper Drake.
Foxx has a daughter, Corinne Bishop, who was born in 1994. Foxx was spotted with the baby in Miami for New Year's Eve 2010, and it was revealed to be a girl.
Foxx performed a public service announcement for Do Something to promote food drives in local communities.
Category:1967 births Category:Actors from Texas Category:African American film actors Category:African American comedians Category:American adoptees Category:American stand-up comedians Category:American television actors Category:BAFTA winners (people) Category:Best Actor BAFTA Award winners Category:Best Actor Academy Award winners Category:Best Musical or Comedy Actor Golden Globe (film) winners Category:Living people Category:People from Linden, Texas Category:People from the Dallas – Fort Worth Metroplex Category:African American television actors Category:Grammy Award winners
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
Name | Faith Evans |
---|---|
Background | solo_singer |
Birth name | Faith Renée Evans |
Born | June 10, 1973Lakeland, Florida United States |
Married to | Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G." Wallace, Todd Russaw |
Origin | Newark, New Jersey, United States |
Voice type | Mezzo_soprano |
Genre | R&B;, soul, hip hop soul, Hip hop |
Occupation | Singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, author |
Years active | 1993–present |
Label | Bad Boy (1994–2004) Capitol (2004–2007) Prolific/E1 Music (2009-present) |
Associated acts | Notorious B.I.G., Sean Combs, Mary J. Blige, 112. |
Url | FaithEvansOnline.com |
Following Biggie's murder in March 1997, Evans helped work through her grief by producing her tribute song titled "I'll Be Missing You", based on the melody of The Police's 1983 single "Every Breath You Take". The song, which featured Combs, Evans, and all-male group 112, became a worldwide number-one hit and debuted at the top spot on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1997, staying there for eleven weeks. It eventually won Puffy and Evans the 1998 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.
Two years in the making, Evans' second solo effort, Keep the Faith, was released in October 1998. Almost entirely written and produced by her, Evans considered the album tough to complete as she had initially felt discouraged about the progress at first. Also enjoying commercial success, it eventually went platinum and produced the top ten singles "Love Like This" and "All Night Long", prompting Evans to start an 18-city theater tour with Dru Hill and Total the following year. Her first project with husband Todd Russaw as executive producer and creative partner, the album reached number 14 on the Billboard 200 album chart and number two on the Top R&B;/Hip-Hop Albums chart, eventually being certified platinum, but spawned moderately successful singles, with the Jennifer Lopez-penned "I Love You" becoming the only top twenty entry. Released amid Bad Boy Records' transition from distributor Arista Records to Universal, Evans felt Faithfully received minimum support by the label, and in 2004, she finally decided to leave Bad Boy as she was convinced Combs couldn't take her career any further due to his other commitments.
At the end of the year, Evans released A Faithful Christmas, a holiday album of traditional Christmas songs and original tracks. The effort would become her last release on Capitol Records as the company got bought out in 2007, satisfying Evans' wish to leave the label anyway.
In 2003, Evans appeared in the MTV-produced romantic comedy The Fighting Temptations in which she portrayed a single mother and night club singer. Filmed in Columbus, Georgia and headed by Cuba Gooding, Jr. and Beyoncé Knowles, the film garnered mixed reviews by critcs, but reached top top three of the U.S. box office, resulting in a domestic gross of US$30.2 million. In addition, Evans recorded a contemporary cover version of Donna Summer's 1978 hit "Heaven Knows" for the film which her characters performs during one of the first in sequence in the film. The accompanying soundtrack reached the top twenty of the U.S. Billboard 200.
In 2004, Evans earned a short guest stint on the UPN sitcom Half & Half. Evans announced that she had been working on a synopsis for her own sitcom that would be loosely based on her life but with a more comedic aspect. It is unknown whether she has officially pitched the sitcom to any television networks at this time.
It's been announced that Evans will play Florence Ballard in a upcoming biopic about the late singer's life in the successful group The Supremes, the movie will be direct by Martha Coolidge.http://www.bvnewswire.com/2010/11/04/faith-evans-to-play-florence-ballard-the-supremes/
"I want people to understand that although he was a large part of my life, my story doesn't actually begin or end with Big's death. My journey has been complicated on many levels. And since I am always linked to Big, there are a lot of misconceptions about who I really am. It's not easy putting your life out there for the masses. But I've decided I'll tell my own story. For Big. For my children. And for myself."In its initial release, "Keep The Faith: A Memoir" landed in the Top 20 on New York's Best Seller's List two consecutive weeks in a row. In 2009, the book received The 2009 African American Literary Award for Best Biography/Memoir.
On August 4, 1994, Evans married upcoming rapper and label mate The Notorious B.I.G., six weeks after having met him at a Bad Boy photoshoot. The couple had one child together, Christopher Wallace, Jr. (born October 29, 1996), but the marriage was turbulent as Wallace reportedly had several affairs during their union, including relationships with fellow rappers Lil' Kim and Charli Baltimore. Additionally, it led to Evans' involvement in the East Coast-West Coast hip hop feud, dominating the rap scene at the time, which ended with Wallace's murder in a yet-unsolved drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, California in March 1997, The couple agreed to spend 13 weeks in a drug-treatment program in exchange for halting any further prosecution in their drug-possession case.
Category:1973 births Category:Living people Category:Actors from New Jersey Category:African American actors Category:African American female singers Category:African American singer-songwriters Category:American Christians Category:American film actors Category:American record producers Category:American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters Category:American soul singers Category:Hip hop singers Category:Beatboxers Category:Bad Boy Records artists Category:Capitol Records artists Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Musicians from New Jersey Category:People from Lakeland, Florida Category:People from Newark, New Jersey Category:MTV Video Music Awards winners
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
Name | Bizzy Bone |
---|---|
Background | solo_singer |
Born | September 12, 1976 |
Birth name | Bryon Anthony McCane II |
Alias | R.I.P, Ripsta, B.B Gambini, Gambino, Bizzy The Kid |
Origin | Columbus, Ohio, U.S. |
Genre | Midwest hip hop, gangsta rap, melodic hip hop, rap rock, pop rock, R&B; |
Years active | 1989–present |
Label | Sphinx City (2010-present) Hi-Power (2006-present) Ruthless (1994-2002)BTNH Worldwide (2009-present)Mo Thugs (1996-1998) (2009-Present)Virgin Records (2007)7th Sign (2004-Present)Bungalo (2003-2004)SMC (2005)Real Talk (2006-present)After Platinum Records (2006-2008)Warner Bros (2009-Present)Cash Money (2010-Present) |
Associated acts | Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Bone Brothers, 2Pac, DMX, Twista, Mr. Capone-E, Bad Azz, Layzie Bone, I See Stars |
Bryon Anthony McCane ll (born September 12, 1976), better known by his stage name Bizzy Bone is an American rapper and a member of the Cleveland rap group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.
In 1989, when he was thirteen, Bizzy decided to live with his sisters in Cleveland, Ohio. During this period he resorted to selling drugs in order to support his family. This came to an end when he met Layzie Bone, Krayzie Bone, Wish Bone and Flesh-n-Bone who all lived on the same street. He later appeared on the FOX series America's Most Wanted (hosted by John Walsh, Adam's father) in 2002, where he revealed his abusive childhood and molestation. Bizzy Bone also wrote and performed a song on the show entitled "A.M.W." in which he thanks Walsh and encourages abused children to come forward. The critically acclaimed album received a positive reception from Bone Thug fans and made it to #3 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart and has been certified Gold by the RIAA.
Bizzy Bone became an underground artist and began releasing albums with little or no marketing. The Gift, released on April 7, 2001, peaked at #2 on the US Billboard Independent Albums chart.
In 2002 at a Bone Thugs-n-Harmony performance in New York City, Bizzy was noticeably drunk and walked off-stage halfway through the show and was later let go from the group that night, but Bizzy claimed he had been a solo artist for years and only a guest in the group .
In 2004 Alpha and Omega was released and fans responded positively to the album , influencing Bizzy to produce his own underground limited-edition album for the internet, The Beginning and the End, with at the time manager Rick Robinson aka Double R CEO and Founder of iMG Recordings & SFM Management. .
On May 2, 2005, Bizzy Bone made news when he displayed unusual behavior during an appearance on Houston's KPFT radio show, "Damage Control". When asked about it in an MTV interview a few months later he said, "Everybody thought I went crazy, they were questioning my motives and what was going on." He also stated he felt he was being antagonized during the interview and went into defense mode. He later admitted to having a drinking problem that he was working on, and that his family had attempted to have him committed to a mental health facility.
The song "Jesus" was featured in the movie Bully. The song "Hollywood" was featured in the video game .
Bizzy Bone appeared in a "Web Redemption" segment of the Average Homeboy on the Comedy Central tv show, Tosh.0. He was also featured on track nine of I See Stars' 2009 album, 3-D.
Filmography # Cutthroat Alley (2003) .... Ghetty # Jacked Up (2001) .... Zach # The Colour of a Dream
Category:1976 births Category:African American rappers Category:Living people Category:Bone Thugs-n-Harmony members Category:Kidnapped American children Category:People from Cleveland, Ohio Category:People from Columbus, Ohio Category:Hip hop singers Category:Underground rappers Category:Rappers from Ohio Category:African American Muslims
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
Name | Akon |
---|---|
Background | solo_singer |
Birth name | Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Badara Akon Thiam |
Born | April 16, 1973St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
Origin | Dakar, Senegal |
Genre | R&B;, hip hop, pop |
Occupation | Singer-songwriter, record producer |
Years active | 1996–present |
Label | Universal, SRC, Konvict, UpFront, Kon Live |
Associated acts | T-Pain, Kardinal Offishall, Colby O'Donis, Lil Wayne, Snoop Dogg, Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, Sway DaSafo, Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie |
Url |
Akon (born Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Badara Akon Thiam), (), (born April 16, 1973) is a Senegalese-American R&B; singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, and businessman.
He grosses over 30 million dollars a year according to Forbes. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of "Locked Up", the first single from his debut album Trouble. His second album, Konvicted, earned him a Grammy Award nomination of the single "Smack That". He has since founded two record labels, Konvict Muzik and Kon Live Distribution.
Akon often sings hooks for other artists and is currently credited with over 300 guest appearances and 45 Billboard Hot 100 songs. He has worked with numerous performers such as Michael Jackson, R. Kelly, Quincy Jones, Eminem and Whitney Houston. He is the first solo artist to hold both the number one and two spots simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 charts twice. He has had 6 Grammy Awards nominations and has produced many hits for artists such as Lady Gaga, Colby O'Donis and Leona Lewis. Lady Gaga and T-Pain are two artists who were given their chance at fame by Akon. He has also released a song called "Beautiful" featuring Colby O'Donis and Kardinal Offishall which is in his hit album named Freedom which he released in 2008 and also "Right Now (Na Na Na)" in the same album.
Akon has claimed in interviews that his full name is Aliaune Damala Akon Thiam and he is Muslim, he has never drunk alcohol or smoked due to his faith, although there is some ambiguity and debate about Akon's legal name and birth date. Akon is usually credited as Aliaune Thiam. In addition to the longer form, Akon's full name has been reported both as Aliaune Badara Thiam and Alioune Badara Thiam and About.com claims that this middle name has never been independently verified.
In regards to his birth date, Akon is very protective of it, which is the reason many media outlets have reported incorrect dates. However, legal documents released by The Smoking Gun list Akon's name as Aliaune Damala Thiam and his date of birth as April 16, 1973.
In 2005, he released the single "Lonely" (which samples Bobby Vinton's "Mr. Lonely"). The song reached the top five on the Billboard Hot 100, and topped the charts in Australia, the UK and Germany. His album also climbed to number one in the UK in April, 2005. When music channel The Box had a top ten weekly chart, which was calculated by the amount of video requests, Akon's "Lonely" became the longest running single on the top of the chart, spanning over fifteen weeks. Akon then released another single featuring with a New Zealand rapper, Savage with the single Moonshine, which had become a success in both New Zealand and Australia, becoming number one in the New Zealand charts. In 2005, He made his first critically acclaimed guest appearance on Young Jeezy's debut album, , with the song "Soul Survivor." In December the same year his manager, Robert Montanez was killed in a shooting after a dispute in New Jersey.
On October 5, 2006, Akon broke a record on the Hot 100, as he achieved the largest climb in the chart's 48-year-history with "Smack That" jumping from number 95 to 7. The leap was fueled by its number six debut on Hot Digital Songs with 67,000 downloads. The record has since been broken several times. In December 2006, Akon's "Smack That" was nominated for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards, but lost to Justin Timberlake and T.I.'s "My Love".
Speaking of his relationship with Michael Jackson to noted UK R&B; writer Pete Lewis of the award-winning 'Blues & Soul' in October 2008, Akon stated: "Mike is the King Of Pop, and I think that it's a dream come true for ANY major artist/songwriter/producer to be able to work with the best in the business! You know, to work with someone like Mike – who's created opportunities, opened doors for so many people, and achieved so much in the music world, period – is just an experience which would be enough to take home for ANYONE! I mean, when I first flew up to Vegas and met him it was almost like we'd known each other for YEARS! LITERALLY! 'Cause musically we were on the same exact page! The chemistry was just INCREDIBLE! And, as a person, he was the most cool, humble dude I've ever met! I mean, we even actually got to go to the movies together – in broad daylight! Which was an experience in itself!"
David Guetta collaborated with Akon in Sexy Bitch, a first house track by Akon, and has been a "summer anthem" across the globe. Reaching #1 in more than 6 countries, and charting at 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 , it is featured on Guetta's One Love album. Which has made it his 19th Top 20 hit worldwide.
Akon is planning to work on a full-length movie titled Illegal Alien. The film is based on some of the events of his life and actor Mekhi Phifer is set to play him. Besides Akon confirmed in August 2007, in the interview with Polish website INTERIA.PL, that he works on a movie "Cocaine Cowboys," which tells the story of Jon Roberts, the main pilot of Medellin Cartel (Colombian drug traffickers). He was also featured on a Verizon Wireless commercial and singing Snitch along with Obie Trice on a episode named "Poppin' Tags."
On November 30, 2007, Akon entered the Big Brother house in Pinoy Big Brother Celebrity Edition 2 as a guest so the housemates can meet him for only 100 seconds. He also appeared on November 17, 2008 edition of WWE Raw, with Santino Marella citing him in his speech. Because of Santino's Italian Stereotyping, he mispronounced Akon's name to "Akorn".
On April 27, 2008, Akon appeared with Colby O'Donis in Dance on Sunset. On January 27, 2010, Akon performed on the Brazilian reality show Big Brother Brasil.
He also has his own charity for underprivileged children in Africa called Konfidence Foundation. Akon owns a diamond mine in South Africa and denies the existence of blood diamonds (also known as "conflict diamonds") saying, "I don't believe in conflict diamonds. That's just a movie. Think about it. Nobody thought or cared about conflict diamonds until 'Blood Diamond' was released." However, he has since stated that he does accept that blood diamonds exist, and that he is partial-owner of an African mine that is dedicated to avoiding use of blood diamonds while also donating profits to local communities.
"The Smoking Gun" reported in April 2008 that much of Akon's purported criminal and incarceration history has been dramatically embellished. In particular, Akon's claims to be part of an auto-theft ring and his claim to have spent three years in prison were challenged with court records and interviews with detectives involved in Akon's case. According to "The Smoking Gun's" article, Akon was not convicted of any crime and did not serve any time in prison from 1999 to 2002 as previously claimed. He stated that "The Smoking Gun's" attempt to “discredit” him “makes no sense as it is something he is trying to forget.” Akon retorted that he never spent 3 years in prison consecutively, but many shorter sentences that add up to three years, and cites that as the mis-understanding by The Smoking Gun's article.
Political commentators Michelle Malkin, Laura Ingraham, and Bill O'Reilly criticized Akon for "degrading women." Malkin uploaded commentary about Akon to YouTube, using footage from music videos and the Trinidad concert, and Universal Music Group then forced its removal by issuing a DMCA takedown notice. The Electronic Frontier Foundation joined Malkin in contesting the removal as a misuse of copyright law, citing fair use. In May 2007, UMG rescinded its claim to the video, and the video returned to YouTube.
On June 3, 2007, at WSPK's KFEST concert at the Dutchess Stadium in Fishkill, New York, a concert attendee threw an object towards Akon on stage. Akon asked the crowd to identify who threw the object and that he be brought on stage. Security staff grabbed the young man and took him up to the stage. Akon then pulled him up from the crowd and hoisted him across his shoulders. The singer then tossed the attendee back into the crowd from his shoulders. Video of the incident was reviewed by Fishkill police. Akon has claimed that the incident was staged and that he in fact used the act to set up for the next record.
Name | Akon |
---|---|
Awards | 1 |
Nominations | 12 |
Americanw | 1 |
Americann | 3 |
Grammyn | 5 |
Mtvvideon | 4 |
Akon received four Grammy Award nominations in 2008, including Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for "The Sweet Escape" with Gwen Stefani, Best R&B; Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "Bartender" with T-Pain, Best Contemporary R&B; Album for Konvicted, and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration with "I Wanna Love You" with Snoop Dogg. The only award that Akon has received is Favorite Soul/R&B; Male Artist from the American Music Awards in 2007. Overall, Akon has received one award from twelve nominations.
|- |rowspan="3"| ||rowspan="3"| Akon || Favorite Soul/R&B; Male Artist || |- | Artist of the Year || |- | Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist ||
|- | || "Smack That" (with Eminem) || Best Rap/Sung Collaboration || |- |rowspan="4"| || "The Sweet Escape" (with Gwen Stefani) || Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals || |- | "Bartender" (with T-Pain) || Best R&B; Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group || |- | Konvicted || Best Contemporary R&B; Album || |- | "I Wanna Love You" (with Snoop Dogg) || Best Rap/Sung Collaboration ||
|- | || "Locked Up" || MTV2 Award || |- |rowspan="3"| || Akon || Male Artist of the Year || |- | "Smack That" (with Eminem) || Most Earthshattering Collaboration || |- | "The Sweet Escape" (with Gwen Stefani) || Most Earthshattering Collaboration ||
Note: Akon also won Artist Of The Year in 2007 by the Billboard Music Awards
Made the Billboard 200 Albums of the Year Chart in: 2009, 2007, 2005, 2004
Made the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Year Chart in: 2005, 2004
Category:1990s singers Category:2000s singers Category:2010s singers Category:African American singers Category:African American rappers Category:African American Muslims Category:American Muslims Category:American male singers Category:Dance musicians Category:Hip hop record producers Category:Hip hop singers Category:Musicians from New Jersey Category:Musicians from Missouri Category:Rappers from St. Louis, Missouri Category:People from Dakar Category:People from Newark, New Jersey Category:People from St. Louis, Missouri Category:American people of Senegalese descent Category:American hip hop record producers Category:Sony/ATV Music Publishing artists Category:World Music Awards winners Category:Living people Category:Senegalese expatriates in the United States Category:1973 births
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.