Joe Budden
Joe Budden performing live at Rialto Theater in Tucson, AZ (April 11, 2012).
Background information
Birth name	Joseph Anthony Budden II
Born	(1980-08-31) August 31, 1980 (age 31)
Origin	Jersey City, New Jersey
Genres	Hip hop
Occupations	Rapper
Years active	2002 – present
Labels	Def Jam, Desert Storm, Amalgam Digital, E1, Shady Records
Associated acts	Slaughterhouse, Emanny
Website	www.joebuddentv.com

Joe Budden (born August 31, 1980) is an American rapper from Jersey City, New Jersey.

Career[link]

In the year 2003, Budden released his debut solo studio album, Joe Budden. It included Budden's 2003 Grammy-nominated summer hit "Pump It Up", and was also featured in the soundtrack for the movie 2 Fast 2 Furious and the video games Def Jam Vendetta, Def Jam Fight for NY, and Madden NFL 2004. The song "Focus" was also featured in the game and Joe Budden was also a character. Its second single was "Fire" featuring Busta Rhymes, which was in the movie Mean Girls. The song "Drop Drop" was featured on the soundtrack for the movie Cradle 2 the Grave. Joe has hinted in many songs that he was a recovering drug addict and has reaffirmed his position several times through multiple outlets.

After his debut album, Budden's sophomore release titled ‘The Growth’ was hampered due to the label's problems with Joe and his Def Jam seniors not happy with the direction of his music. The production of the album appeared to end up in a development hell and was ultimately not released. Continued disagreements between Budden and Def Jam forced the two sides to part ways.^[1] However, Budden managed to release the first and second installments of his Mood Muzik mixtape series while on Def Jam, and the series has been met with critical acclaim.^[2]

In December 2007 Budden signed a multi-album deal with Amalgam Digital and released his independent debut Padded Room as well as Mood Muzik 3: The Album, Halfway House, and Escape Route.

Joe Budden reached out to Crooked I, Royce da 5'9", Joell Ortiz and Nino Bless for a track titled "Slaughterhouse" on one of his Amalgam Digital releases, Halfway House.^[3] Based on the reception of the track, they decided to form a group, minus Nino Bless, and named it after the first song they made together.^[3] They released numerous songs throughout early 2009, leading up to their self-titled album, which was released through E1 on August 11, 2009.^[4] The album features production from Alchemist, DJ Khalil, Mr. Porter, Streetrunner, plus guest appearances from Pharoahe Monch, K. Young, and The New Royales.^[5] The group signed with Shady Records on January 12, 2011.^[6]

Personal life[link]

Budden has a son from a previous relationship.^[7] In 2010, he was wanted by New Jersey police in relation to unpaid child support payments.^[8]

Budden has also been in the spotlight for his numerous controversies with other rappers including Grafh, Jay-Z, Game, Prodigy, Canibus, Maino, G-Unit, Saigon, J-Hood, Busta Rhymes, Sky Highh, Ransom, MoeRoc and an incident involving several members of the Wu-Tang Clan^[9]

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

• 2003: Joe Budden
• 2008: Halfway House
• 2009: Padded Room
• 2009: Escape Route
• TBA: The Great Escape

Collaboration albums[link]

• 2009: Slaughterhouse (with Slaughterhouse)
• 2011: Slaughterhouse EP (with Slaughterhouse)
• 2012: Welcome to: Our House (with Slaughterhouse)

Mixtapes[link]

• 2004: Mood Muzik: The Worst of Joe Budden
• 2006: Mood Muzik 2: Can It Get Any Worse?
• 2007: Mood Muzik 3: For Better or for Worse
• 2010: Mood Muzik 4: A Turn 4 The Worst
• 2011: Mood Muzik 4.5: The Worst Is Yet To Come

Awards and nominations[link]

• Grammy Awards
  • 2004, Best Male Rap Solo Performance: "Pump It Up" (nominated).

• Other awards
  • 2003 Vibe Next Award (winner).
  • United Kingdom, MOBO (Music of Black Origin) Award for "Clubbin" with Marques Houston (nominated).
  • United Kingdom, MOBO (Music of Black Origin) Award for Best Rap Performance (nominated).
  • 2004 Black Reel Award for Best Song from a Movie for "Pump It Up" in 2 Fast 2 Furious (nominated).

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Joe Budden on Twitter
• Joe Budden on Myspace