name	Sway
image size	400px
background	solo_singer
birth date	September 05, 1983
origin	Hornsey, North London, UK
genre	British hip hop, Grime
years active	2004–present
label	Konvict, Dcypha, All Around the World Productions
website
Associated acts	Chamillionaire, Lemar, Lupe Fiasco, Akon, Mr Hudson, Flux Pavillion, Jayso, Ed Sheeran, Two Fingers, I Blame Coco }}

Derek Andrew Safo (born 5 September 1983) is a British musician of Ghanaian descent who uses the stage names Sway DaSafo or Sway. He is signed to Akon's Konvict Muzik record label and is also a producer, having established DCypha Productions.

Biography[link]

Childhood[link]

Sway was born in London to Ghanaian parents. Sway attended Campsbourne Primary School where he first began experimenting with music and rewriting the lyrics to tracks by his favourite artists. He attended Highgate Wood Secondary School in North London and spent his spare time using the school equipment for musical production. Producing tracks for local artists, he was told to use his personality to write songs by adding his humour with his lyrical talent. Sway is a cousin of footballer Quincy Owusu-Abeyie, and grime MC Lethal Bizzle.

Early career[link]

At the age of 16, Sway had a place in the grand final of an open mic session at Dingwalls in London. He lost to Chester P of Task Force. It was at this age that Sway was a member of Tottenham-based hip hop trio Phynix Crew. Following his defeat at Dingwalls, Sway got into the finals of Choice FM's ''Rapology '99'' with his rap group where they lost. Phynix Crew merged with two other rap groups to form One. Sway was now studying at college, as well as having a part-time job and producing ringtones for a company. Sway began to create a studio in his bedroom with the money he earned so that he could start to produce his own songs.

Sway produced many solo singles despite being in a rap group and his first break was under the name 'Sway DaSafo' on the track "On My Own" which reached the A-list of BBC Radio 1Xtra when the station was launched. He continued to produce music. When One released their first debut album, called ''Onederful World'', 50% of the 10-track CD was produced by Sway. A member of the 'MOBO Unsung' committee enjoyed it and nominated it for the 'MOBO Unsung' competition, which resulted in the group reaching the final five of the competition. They did not win, however, DJ Tim Westwood of BBC Radio 1 and DJ Semtex of BBC Radio 1Xtra began giving them airplay.

Dcypha[link]

In 2004 after finding himself in business and recording situations he describes as "bait" and foreseeing the attitude of labels towards rappers due to the actions of other acts such as So Solid Crew to name a few, he established Dcypha Productions along with DJ Turkish and Junior Dcypha to record, promote and release their own music, a move which they would make in order to steer Sway's career the way they had envisioned and give them full autonomy in decision making. As Sway describes in an interview: " me and the team decide my singles, what sort of marketing tactics to use etc etc, it's all done in-house"

Since 2004, Dcypha Productions have been known to have either signed or been affiliated with underground acts such as Bigfoot, Klayz, Bigz, Baby Blue, Chiefer and Raptor.

Debut[link]

In 2003, Sway started to pursue a solo career in the British music scene. He was invited by his cousin, DJ Ink, to feature on some of his drum and bass tracks and he became a member of the group Fifth Element. In 2004, Sway established DCypha Productions along with Junior Dcypha (brother of long time friend Chiefer who also features on "one for the journey EP" on "move back" and is also an actor) and Dj Turkish to enable him to release his mixtapes and debut solo album, ''This Is My Demo''. At DCypha, Sway produces his beats and songs alongside his long-time friend Bigz.

Sway launched his solo career upon the disbanding of his group One by releasing two independent mixtapes, called ''This Is My Promo'' Volumes 1 and 2. They were underground successes, and his debut album ''This Is My Demo'' was released on 6 February 2006. Its second single, "Little Derek", headed in at #38 on the UK national charts. Remixes are also available featuring Baby Blue. His song "Hype Boys" is used in the video game ''Need for Speed: Carbon'', and the song "Flo Fashion" is used in the video game ''FIFA Street 2''. To coincide with the release of his debut album, Sway released a collaboration mixtape with LoveDough to promote LoveDough's nightclub in Newcastle upon Tyne. The compilation mixtape, called ''This Is My Rave'', featured Pyrelli and Bigz, amongst other UK hip hop and R&B; artists.

His debut has become controversial amongst UK hip hop artists due to his criticism of many modern rap artists "overhyping" themselves and glorifying themselves using elements from gang culture and street violence to make themselves seem 'harder' than they are and thus sell records to people who are potentially ignorant of the true roots of hip hop. He also argued against the use of nigger in hip hop and R&B; songs on an appearance on Sky News.

Sway was the main support act for The Streets' UK tour, which began in Manchester on 27 April 2006, and ended in Leeds on 12 May 2006. He has also been performing solo around Europe to promote ''This is My Demo''. He created a song in 2005 dedicated to his profile on MySpace. He also appeared on The Mitchell Brothers' single "Harvey Nicks" alongside The Streets' Mike Skinner.

Second album[link]

Following the release and critical acclaim of his debut album, Sway started recording his second album which he had been planning from the ''This Is My Promo'' mixtape series. In the run up to the album's release, Sway featured on numerous songs and signed to Akon's Konvict Muzik record label in 2007. Sway released the ''One for the Journey'' EP on 14 May 2007 on his DCypha Productions label which featured an appearance from Chamillionaire on a Part 2 version of "Up Your Speed". Following this, Sway released two mixtapes: ''The Dotted Lines'' and ''The Signature mixtape''. ''The Dotted Lines'' mixtape was released in early 2008 and announced the recording of his second album. It was released to coincide with the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, which was hosted in Ghana and to which the song "Black Stars", a remix of "Black Boys" by Bashy, is dedicated. The mixtape featured an interview with Sway Calloway of Sway & King Tech where Calloway argues that Sway DaSafo should not use the name Sway as it affects his reputation. It was announced on the mixtape that his second album ''The Signature LP'' would be released on 5 May 2008, however it was pushed back to 6 October 2008. The album included the song "F UR X" featuring $tush which was included on ''The Dotted Lines'' mixtape. Due to its success, it was decided that a music video should be produced and that it should be included on the new album. To coincide with the release of the album, Sway put up ''The Signature mixtape'' for download on his website.

During the recording of his second album, Sway diversified into other musical genres by featuring on songs with other British artists. In 2007, Sway collaborated with Madness to produce the song "Sorry" which also featured Baby Blue. This collaboration with the ska band was sparked by lead singer Suggs who read an interview with Sway in which he credits Madness as being an influence in his music career. Sway also produced a remix to Ian Brown's "Illegal Attacks" in 2007 and the remix was released along with the song on 17 September 2007. Maintaining an influence in the UK rock and indie rock scene, Sway featured on the remix of Mr Hudson & The Library's "Ask The DJ", which was released in 2006. A more recent collaboration is that with Kaiser Chiefs on the song "Half the Truth" off their album ''Off with Their Heads'', released on 20 October 2008. Sway also diversified into the dance music scene with his collaboration with Stanton Warriors on the track "Get 'Em High", which was featured on the ''One for the Journey'' EP. He also featured as the sole vocalist on "The Way We Go" which was produced by Jukey in May 2008. Nevertheless, Sway continued to work on hip hop collaborations such as his feature on "Chatterbox", produced by DJ Yoda and released on ''The Amazing Adventures of DJ Yoda'' in October 2006.

"F UR X" was included on the soundtrack to the UK film ''Adulthood'' prior to the release of ''The Signature LP''. The first single to be released from the album was "Saturday Night Hustle" featuring Lemar, which was poorly accepted and peaked at number 67 in the UK charts. The next single to be released from the album is "Silver and Gold" featuring Akon. On the week beginning 2 February 2009, "Silver & Gold" peaked at number 75 without any promotion. In 2007, Sway offered his support to a development project in Sierra Leone, which he visited with Dawn Angeliqué Richard and Samata Angel.

2009/2010[link]

In early 2009, it was announced that production of Sway's third studio album, ''The Signature LP 2'', had started. He has revealed that he is working with acts such as Craig David, Neutrino, Jay Sean and former Liverpool football player Ryan Babel.

On television, he played himself in the episode "Video Killed the Radio Star" of the TV series ''FM'' during which he performed "Say It Twice" (produced by Dj Turkish), which was aired during March 2009. In May 2009, Sway performed "The Phatso Dance" with Soccer AM's Tubes, and a cameo from Chris Kamara - it is unclear whether this will be released as a single. The song involved "Kammy" rapping "unbelieveable" every couple of seconds late on.

On 26 March 2009, Sway collaborated with Two Fingers to release an album named Two Fingers. Sway was the main lyricist on the album featuring on 7 of the twelve tracks and helping out with production.

On 26 June 2009, the day after Michael Jackson's death, BBC Radio 1 in the UK played a Michael Jackson tribute song called "The King. Full Stop". The song featured a stripped down arrangement with only Sway's vocal and an acoustic guitar. No plans have been announced to release the song as a single or to include this song on his forthcoming album. BBC Radio 1Xtra premièred a new track by UK rap artist Bigfoot entitled "Feel Like A King" which featured Sway on 24 July 2009.

Sway also worked on track for DJ Semtex entitled ''Nelson Lives'' to coincide with the anniversary of Mandela's release from prison. Other free internet songs by Sway that have been released during 2009 include a remix to Jay-Z's "''Run This Town''", "Jerusalem" which was unveiled under the name of MC Nobody as well as "Blackberry Man" which may be featured on the upcoming ''The Signature LP 2''. The first single off the album, "''Mercedes-Benz''", was released on 19 October 2009.

Sway announced on 2 August 2009 on ''Westwood Rap Show'' on BBC 1Xtra that after ''The Signature 2'' he will be working on his first worldwide release, ''Signed Sealed Delivered'' on Akon's Konvict label. No other information is available at present.

''The Delivery Mixtape''[link]

In December 2009, Sway announced that he was working on a new mixtape, and unveiling two tracks in the process: "Payback" and "The Watcher". Sway then released a download-only single on iTunes named "Everyday Valentine" to coincide with Valentine's Day in 2010. He offered those who were able to provide evidence for purchasing the single the opportunity to receive his mixtape prior to its release for free. The mixtape was due to be released on 14 February 2010, however this was pushed back due to continued work by Akon on the final song. The mixtape was released on 26 February 2010 from his website, to the public for free. It has been described online as 'better than most people's albums' and will feature Akon, Styles P, Kardinal Offishall, Giggs, Bigz and Mr Hudson. The Mixtape has been a smash hit online, boasting over 10,000 downloads in 10 days, both with the fans, other artists and critics and was reviewed by British newspaper ''Metro'' who picked up on Sway's ''"trademark sharp humour and quirky observations"'' going on to say that Sway ''"will reign over British rap sooner rather than later."''

''The Delivery 2''[link]

On 20 October 2010 Sway dropped his new Mixtape 'The Delivery 2' The sequel to the Delivery Mixtape and the prequel to his new Album 'The Deliverance' expected sometime in 2011. The first track to be dropped from the mixtape prior to its release was 'Bring Me' featuring young Dcypha member Klayz. It featured a competition to put a verse on the remix or meet Sway. It received airtime on both BBC Radio 1Xtra and BBC Radio 1. Then just a few days before release Sway leaked the track 'Whose Line is It Anyway?' It featured Sway spitting bars from other Hip Hop tracks leaving the last lines blank. It was regarded as very clever and Witty. The Mixtape features mostly other UK Artists with Sway saving his American contacts for his new album. Other people who feature on the mixtape are Monica, Leo LeVox, Raptor, Simon Webbe, Big Bad Benny-Demus, Rock City, Akon, & T-Pain. It also features one of Sway's spin off Characters Jason Waste who original featured in Sway's second album ''The Signature LP''.

Awards[link]

His reputation rose from underground to mainstream after coming into the public eye by winning a MOBO award in September 2005 for Best Hip Hop Act, defeating heavyweight hip hop artists 50 Cent and The Game to collect the award. He was also nominated for the second year running in the Best Hip Hop category and Best UK Male for the MOBO awards held at the end of September 2006 and in September 2008 for Best UK Male.

In July 2006, Sway's album ''This Is My Demo'' was nominated for the 2006 Mercury Music Prize but the award was won by the Arctic Monkeys at the ceremony on 6 September.

In 2008, Sway was nominated for two awards at the Urban Music Awards.

In November 2006, Sway won a BET Hip-Hop Award for "Best UK Hip-Hop Act", beating Blak Twang, Plan B, Dizzee Rascal and Kano. By being nominated and winning the BET for "BEST UK Hip-Hop Act", Sway appeared in a video showing himself in a cipher with Saigon, Remy Ma, and Rhymefest freestyling on a rooftop in New York. The freestyle was featured on ''The Dotted Lines'' mixtape.

Filmography [link]

Television
Year	Show	Role	! Notes
2011	''Top Boy''	Ross Rosten	2 Episodes (Season 1, Episode 1 and 2)

Discography[link]

''This Is My Demo''(2006)

''The Signature LP'' (2008)

''The Deliverance'' (TBA)

References[link]

External links[link]

Sway DaSafo - Official website

Sway interview on LeftLion.co.uk

Category:1983 births Category:Living people Category:Ghanaian musicians Category:Ghanaian rappers Category:Hip hop record producers Category:Grime artists Category:People from Hornsey Category:Rappers from London Category:Musicians from London Category:British people of Ghanaian descent de:Sway (Rapper)

name	Lupe Fiasco
background	solo_singer
birth name	Wasalu Muhammad Jaco
birth date	February 16, 1982
Birth place	Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
origin	Chicago, Illinois
religion	Islam
instrument	Vocals, keyboard
genre	Hip hop
occupation	Rapper, producer, songwriter
years active	2006–present
label	Atlantic
associated acts	Child Rebel Soldier, Japanese Cartoon, Matthew Santos, B.o.B, Kanye West, All City Chess Club, Sway DaSafo, Pharrell
website	}}

Wasalu Muhammad Jaco (born February 16, 1982), better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco ( ), is an American rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his debut album, ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor''. He also performs as the frontman of rock band Japanese Cartoon under his real name. As an entrepreneur, Fiasco is the chief executive officer of 1st and 15th Entertainment.

Raised in Chicago, Fiasco developed an interest in hip hop after initially disliking the genre for its use of vulgarity. After adopting the name Lupe Fiasco and recording songs in his father's basement, 19-year-old Fiasco joined a group called Da Pak. The group disbanded shortly after its inception, and Fiasco soon met rapper Jay-Z who helped him sign a record deal with Atlantic Records. In 2006, Fiasco released his debut album ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor'' on the label, which received three Grammy nominations. He released his second album, ''Lupe Fiasco's The Cool'', in December 2007. The lead single "Superstar" peaked at number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. He released ''Lasers'' on March 8, 2011 after a two-year delay. The album's lead single "The Show Goes On" peaked at number 9 on the chart, thus becoming his most successful single since "Superstar".

In addition to music, Fiasco has pursued other business ventures, including fashion. He runs two clothing lines, Righteous Kung-Fu and Trilly & Truly; he has designed sneakers for Reebok. He has been involved with charitable activities, including the Summit on the Summit expedition, and in 2010 he recorded a benefit single for victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Fiasco is also noted for his anti-establishment views, which he has expressed in both interviews and his music.

Life and career[link]

1982–98: Early life[link]

Fiasco was born Wasalu Muhammad Jaco on February 16, 1982 in Chicago, Illinois. Born of West African descent, he was one of nine children of Shirley, a gourmet chef, and Gregory, an engineer. His father, a member of the Black Panther Party, was a prolific African drummer, karate teacher, operating plant engineer, and owner of karate schools and army surplus stores. Fiasco was raised Muslim on the West Side of Chicago on Madison Terrace housing project. At the age of three, Fiasco began taking martial arts classes. His parents divorced when he was five, and he went on to live with his mother, but his father still remained an important part of his life. He described his father's influence over the family by saying, "After school, my father would come and get us and take us out into the world—one day, we're listening to N.W.A, the next day we're listening to Ravi Shankar, the next day, he's teaching us how to shoot an AK-47, the next day, we're at karate class, the next day, we're in Chinatown...". His father lived next door to a crack house and taught Fiasco to use guns to defend himself from drug dealers. Despite his unstable upbringing, Fiasco states that he was well-educated as a child, asserting that his parents exposed him to a diverse array of subjects and that reading was highly encouraged in his household. As a teenager, Fiasco participated in Academic Decathlon competitions. His mother described him by saying, "He was a great spirited child. Smart, a bit complex; he kind of was a loner; he didn't hang with a lot of people...He always had the glasses. Always had a book bag over his shoulder and some type of a writing tablet." Fiasco initially disliked hip hop music for its use of vulgarity, and preferred to listen to jazz; he idolized clarinet player Benny Goodman. His struggle to learn to play an instrument led him to create poetry instead, which led to his interest in the lyrical aspects of music.

He began rapping his poems in the eighth grade, and upon hearing Nas' 1996 album, ''It Was Written'', began to pursue hip hop. While attending Thornton Township High School, Fiasco met gang member Bishop G. The two became friends due to their shared interest in music. Fiasco's father allowed him and Bishop to make mixtapes in his basement, and the two gained notoriety at the school for their music. However, they were kicked off stage during their first performance because their eclectic musical style was not embraced by the hip hop community. Early in his career, he went by stage names Little Lu and Lu tha Underdog. Growing up, Fiasco was given the nickname "Lu", the last part of his first name, by his mother. "Lupe" is an extension of this nickname, which he borrowed from a friend from high school. "Fiasco" is a reference to The Firm song "Firm Fiasco"; the rapper "liked the way it looked on paper." He also said of his name, "You know how rappers always have names like MC Terrorist—like they're 'terrorizing' other rappers? I knew fiasco meant a great disaster or something like that, but I didn't realize that the person named Fiasco would be the disaster, and that you should be calling other MCs fiascos—not yourself...it kind of humbled me in a sense. It taught me like, 'Yo, stop rushing, or you're going to have some fiascos.'"

After turning away from gangsta rap, he developed a greater appreciation of the lyricism of Jay-Z and Nas. His mother also gave him a record of the influential group The Watts Prophets, one of the first bands to use spoken words with music. Although he was without a group for the first time, Fiasco continued to record music. One of these first self-recorded tracks was "Could Have Been", which described the career options he could have pursued had he not begun rapping. He viewed the song as a turning point in his career that marked a drastic change in the subject matter of his music.

He remixed another one of West's songs, "Diamonds from Sierra Leone", and renamed it as "Conflict Diamonds". With this remix, Fiasco wished to raise awareness of the conflict diamond business. This caught West's attention, and he asked Fiasco to perform on his song "Touch the Sky" off his album ''Late Registration''. The song, which sampled Curtis Mayfield's "Move On Up", became a hit in the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number forty-two. After this success his first single "Kick, Push" was released earlier than expected. The song was a love story about two people sharing a passion for skateboarding, a topic generally not discussed in hip hop. Fiasco explained, "[Skateboarding culture is] just as deep as hip-hop. I'm not the greatest skateboarder, but I'm a damn good rapper, so I made a damn good skateboarding song." The single, and its accompanying music video, helped Fiasco get attention in the hip-hop community and was later nominated for two 2007 Grammy Awards. During this time, he had guest appearances on singles on Tha' Rayne's "Kiss Me" and "Didn't You Know" and also K Foxx's 2004 "This Life".

2006–08: ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor'' and ''The Cool''[link]

Jay-Z assisted him in the production of what would become his debut album ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor''. The title of the album is a reference to 'Food and Liquor' stores common in Chicago. He explains, "The store is where everything is at...Food to me represents growth and progression. You eat food and you get strength. You need it to live. Liquor is not a necessity; it is a want. It destroys you. It breaks you down. I can see why it's prohibited in Islam...I've always felt like liquor represents the bad, the food represents the good, and everyone is made up of a little of both." ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor'' was officially released on September 19, 2006. The album featured production from Jay-Z, Kanye West, Mike Shinoda, The Neptunes, Prolyfic, among others. The record spawned the singles "Kick, Push," "I Gotcha" and "Daydreamin'" featuring Jill Scott. The critically lauded album was later nominated for three Grammy Awards including Best Rap Album. Fiasco won "Best Urban/Alternative Performance" for "Daydreamin'". In the same year, he was voted by ''GQ'' magazine as the "Breakout Man of the Year."

In 2007, Fiasco announced his second album, ''Lupe Fiasco's The Cool'', a concept album that expands on the story of the track of the same name on his first album. While recording this album, Fiasco's father died of type II diabetes and his business partner, Charles "Chilly" Patton, was convicted of attempting to supply heroin to a drug ring and was eventually sentenced to 44 years in a correctional facility. These events greatly affected Fiasco and the subsequent themes discussed on the record. The disc was released in December 2007 in United States while the first single and video from the album, "Superstar" featuring Matthew Santos was released the first week of November 2007. ''Lupe Fiasco's The Cool'', a concept album that expanded upon recurring themes in ''Food & Liquor'', is about "a hustler who dies and comes back to life, only to get robbed by two little kids with the same gun that killed him." For the record, Fiasco decided not to work with well-known producers as he considered it to be "too expensive", noting the commercial failure of his Pharrell collaboration, "I Gotcha".

''Lupe Fiasco's The Cool'' was very well received by critics and was referred to as "one of the year’s best hip-hop albums" by ''The New York Times''. "Superstar", a semi-autobiographical account of his rise to fame, was released as the first single from the album, and peaked at number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Baseball's Hanley Ramirez, Troy Tulowitzki, Ryan Zimmerman, Gerald Laird and Ryan Braun have used "Superstar" as their at-bat song. The album's second single (released in the UK in April 2008) was "Paris, Tokyo" – a song based around Fiasco's experiences of touring the world between his first and second albums. CRS initially released one single, entitled "US Placers" and featuring a Thom Yorke sample. In an interview with ''The Village Voice'', Fiasco revealed that he was writing a novel about a window washer, aptly titled ''Reflections of a Window Washer''. In 2008, Fiasco and his band 1500 or Nothin joined Kanye West's Glow in the Dark Tour which also featured Rihanna and N.E.R.D. The tour stopped in several cities, including his hometown of Chicago. In 2008, MTV named Fiasco the 7th Hottest MC in the Game and announced that he was remixing ''The Cool'' with French electro house act Justice.

2009–present: ''Lasers and Food & Liquor 2'' [link]

At a performance in New Zealand in February 2010, Fiasco performed new material from the then-titled ''We Are Lasers'' for the first time. He claimed that the album was complete and waiting for a release date from his label, Atlantic Records. However, Atlantic feared that the record lacked commercial singles, and presented Fiasco with songs the label wanted him to record. Fiasco declined, as he was told he would not have any ownership of the songs. He explained, "I don't think the label cares about an album...People just want their number-one record." For six months, the cause of the album's delay remained unclear to the public. In response, Fiasco's fans created an online petition demanding that Atlantic Records release ''Lasers''. The petition garnered considerable attention on hip hop blog sites as well as over 16,000 signatures. Fiasco stated that the petition "brought [him] to tears", and in response to the petition, Fiasco released a song titled "B.M.F-Building Minds Faster" to thank his fans.

While waiting for ''Lasers'' to be released, Fiasco completed another album, titled ''Food and Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album''. He is unsure if the ''Food and Liquor II'' will ever be released, though he released the song "Go To Sleep" from the record "out of desperation" to put out new music. He also pursued numerous side projects in the midst of the delay. In April 2010, Fiasco formed the hip hop collective All City Chess Club along with Pharrell, Asher Roth, B.o.B., The Cool Kids, Charles Hamilton, Blu, Diggy Simmons, Wale, J. Cole, & Dosage. The group has so far made one song, a remix of Fiasco's "I'm Beamin". Additionally, On July 16, 2010, Fiasco released his rock side-project Japanese Cartoon's debut EP ''In The Jaws Of The Lords Of Death''. Japanese Cartoon was influenced by a variety of musical genres, with Fiasco saying, "I’ve always been a fan of all music...Hip hop is just something I actually know how to do but I always had aspirations to participate in other forms of music. Once I got to create some hip hop, it was like, 'Okay, what am I going to do now?' So my artistic side was like, 'Yo, let's do some rock music.'"

More than two and a half years after the album's completion, ''Lasers'' was released on March 8, 2011. The first single off of the record was "The Show Goes On", which samples "Float On" by Modest Mouse. "The Show Goes On" debuted at number 57 on the Billboard Hot 100. The lead single peaked at number 9 since then. The producers involved on the album include Alex Da Kidd, King David "The Future" and Jerry "Wonda" Duplessis, while featured artists include Skylar Grey, Trey Songz, and John Legend. Despite the album's commercial success, ''Lasers'' received mixed reviews from most music critics. Writing for Allmusic, editor Andy Kellman gave the record three out of five stars and criticized its "lumbering, overwrought choruses", writing that "If there is one MC whose rhymes should not be dulled for the sake of chasing pop trends, it’s Lupe Fiasco". ''Lasers'', however, was nominated Best Rap Album, with "The Show Goes On" nominated for Best Rap Performance, and Best Rap Song at the 54th Grammy Awards. Lupe Fiasco later involved himself at the Occupy Wall Street movement where he donated tents and released a poem in support of the protesters. He also released his "Friend of the People" mixtape on Thanksgiving Day. Fiasco has since announced the completion of his ''Food & Liquor 2'' album, as well as work being put into a joint album with fellow Child Rebel Soldier & All City Chess Club member Pharrell.

Lyrical style[link]

Fiasco, along with rappers Common, Rhymefest, and Talib Kweli, has been credited as a pioneer of the conscious hip hop movement, which focuses on social issues. Subjects touched upon on ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor'' include absent parents, terrorism, Islam and religion, war, and prostitution. Fiasco attributes his interest in social issues to his highly cultured upbringing, as he describes his mother as "very intellectual" and his father as a "Renaissance man". He rejects the misogyny common in hip hop, which he discusses in the song "Hurt Me Soul". Despite this, Fiasco is strongly opposed to censorship in music: "If we're going to [censor things] that are offensive, then we are going to have to blind and deafen everyone. Come on, man. Let's focus on education and literacy and poverty."

Fiasco employs various lyrical techniques in his songwriting. The rapper views hip-hop as a medium conducive to storytelling, a primary element of his lyrics due to his background in theater. He wrote plays as a child, which had a strong effect on his songwriting approaches. Fiasco utilizes both metaphors and literal statements in his work, which he describes as "getting from point A to point B in as few words as possible". His use of metaphors is exemplified by the song "Gotta Eat" from ''Lupe Fiasco's The Cool'', which is told from the perspective of a cheeseburger and addresses the poor nutrition in black communities in the United States.

Philanthropy and business ventures[link]

In 2001, Fiasco co-founded 1st & 15th Entertainment with Charles "Chilly" Patton. 1st & 15th is a vanity record label under Atlantic named after the traditional twice-monthly paycheck dates. Fiasco and singer Matthew Santos were two of the most recognizable signed artists. In November 2009, Fiasco announced he would discontinue the 1st & 15th label: "It was just such a 'this isn't right for you right now. This isn't gonna work for you right now. You need to be focused on you. Do you really want that, do you really have the capacity to do it?'"

In 2005, he founded Righteous Kung-Fu, a company that designs fashions, sneakers, toys, video games, comic books, and graphics for album covers and skateboard decks. Fiasco also runs a fashion line out of Righteous Kung-Fu called Trilly & Truly. He has sponsored a skateboard team and has endorsements from DGK Skateboards. In January 2006, Fiasco signed with major footwear and apparel corporation Reebok, becoming part of the "O.G" marketing campaign where rap artists such as Lil Wayne and Mike Jones designed their own personal colorway of the Reebok "O.G" model.

In 2009, Fiasco performed in ''The People Speak'', a documentary feature film that employs musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans, based on historian Howard Zinn's ''A People's History of the United States''. On January 7, 2010, Fiasco joined musician Kenna, actress Jessica Biel, and other celebrities and activists for an expedition to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro called Summit on the Summit to raise awareness of the billions of people worldwide who lack access to sanitary drinking water. On January 20, 2010, Fiasco released a track called "Resurrection" with Kenna in response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake. The song, part of a compilation released through the charity Music for Relief, aimed to encourage donations for immediate relief and long-term recovery following the disaster.

Political views[link]

Fiasco is noted for his anti-establishment views. In an interview with Stephen Colbert on the satirical news show ''The Colbert Report'', Fiasco stated his credo on political philosophy: "You should criticize power even if you agree with it." In another interview in June 2011 on the CBS program ''What's Trending'', Fiasco discussed the political content of his music, stating, "My fight against terrorism, to me, the biggest terrorist is Obama and the United States of America. I'm trying to fight the terrorism that's actually causing the other forms of terrorism. You know, the root cause of terrorism is the stuff the U.S. government allows to happen. The foreign policies that we have in place in different countries that inspire people to become terrorists." He additionally criticized Obama for his stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Despite his strong political opinions, Fiasco does not vote in U.S. elections nor does he involve himself in U.S. politics as he believes they are "meaningless."

Discography[link]

''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor'' (2006)

''Lupe Fiasco's The Cool'' (2007)

''Lasers'' (2011)

''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Part 1'' (2012)

''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Part 2'' (TBA)

''TBA'' (with Pharrell Williams) (2012)

See also[link]

List of awards and nominations received by Lupe Fiasco

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

''Biography Today - Lupe Fiasco'' (2009). Omnigraphics. Detroit, Michigan. ISBN-978-0-7808-1052-5.

External links[link]

Category:Living people Category:Midwest hip hop musicians Category:1982 births Category:African-American businesspeople Category:African-American Muslims Category:African American rappers Category:American hip hop record producers Category:Atlantic Records artists Category:Rappers from Chicago, Illinois Category:Hip hop activists Category:Pseudonymous rappers

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Name	Tinie Tempah
background	solo_singer
birth name	Patrick Junior Chukwuemeka Okogwu
birth date	November 07, 1988
birth place	Plumstead, London, England
religion	Roman Catholic
genre	Hip hop, grime, drum and bass
occupation	Rapper, songwriter
years active	2005–present
label	Parlophone, Disturbing London
Associated acts	Labrinth, Ellie Goulding, Swedish House Mafia, Chase & Status, Usher, Kelly Rowland, Eric Turner, Range, Emeli Sandé, Wiz Khalifa, Bei Maejor, Snoop Dogg, Ester Dean, Taio Cruz, Wretch 32, J. Cole, Lupe Fiasco, Rita Ora, Taylor ThePALACE
website	}}

Patrick Chukwuemeka Okogwu (born 7 November 1988), better known by his stage name Tinie Tempah, is an English rapper. He made his first mixtape in 2007 with 28 songs, freestyles and remixes, featuring Mz Bratt, Chipmunk and G-Unit. His first album, ''Disc-Overy'', debuted at number one on 10 October 2010 and was preceded by the number-one singles "Pass Out" and "Written in the Stars" and the UK Top 5 hits "Frisky" and "Miami 2 Ibiza".

Early life[link]

Patrick Chukwuemeka Okogwu, was born in London, England on 7 November 1988, and is of Ibusa, Delta State, Nigerian origin. He lived on the Aylesbury Estate in South East London until he was 12 with his parents and three younger siblings. He attended St. Paul's Catholic School in Abbey Wood, London SE2, (now known as St. Paul's Academy). He went on to study A Levels at St Francis Xavier Sixth Form College, SW12. Of his London upbringing, Tinie states: “London is one of the only places in the world where you can live in a council block and see a beautiful semi-detached house across the street. Growing up around that was inspirational, it kept me motivated".

Career history[link]

Early career[link]

In 2006, Tempah gained a great deal of airplay on British music TV channel, Channel AKA, for his song "Tears" and then in late 2007, he collaborated on a track with grime artist Ultra and producers/songwriters Agent X. The song was titled "Perfect GCD Hood Economics Room 147". He toured with [[Chipmunk (rapper)|Chipmunk ]] in February 2010. His first break as a musician came when Sony launched its PlayStation Portable (PSP) and used a track entitled "Listen To The Vibe" featuring Yasmin and DJ Ironik, and "Atlantic/Warner" for the futuristic racing game, ''Wipeout Pure''. This resulted in a promotional European tour alongside the likes of Sway and Dizzee Rascal.

Tinie and his manager and cousin Dumi Oburota founded the independent label Disturbing London primarily as an official outlet for Tinie's music, but with the idea of also signing other young artists. According to Dumi: "We wanted to have a platform to put out our music and there wasn't any Def Jam or Roc-A-Fella label equivalent in England. [Also] I wanted to create a major independent label with quality artists. I felt like the major labels had lost the passion for music." The activities of the label were initially largely funded by student loans and the proceeds from buying and selling cars.

When scout and music consultant Jade Richardson saw Tinie performing at the 2009 Wireless Festival she called Parlophone Records president Miles Leonard saying: “You’ve got to check out this guy Tinie Tempah. He came on at lunchtime and there’s about 1,000 kids screaming for him. He’s only put out one independent release and he’s got this huge audience.” Leonard and A&R; Nathan Thompson visited Tinie and his manager Dumi at their studio a few weeks later and were hugely impressed to hear about the work they had already done in developing Tinie's career and by the ambitious plans they had for his future. Leonard told HitQuarters: "I thought it was incredible that an artist and manager were doing so much so soon with so little ... That impressed as much as the music."

Tinie announced his signing to Parlophone in October 2009 by running a competition on his blog, with the winner invited to High Tea at Claridges to celebrate the deal.

2010–2011: Success and ''Disc-Overy''[link]

Tinie released his debut single "Pass Out" with Parlophone on 28 February 2010, with it entering the UK Singles Chart at number 1. Selling just over 92,000 copies, making this his first number 1 which it remained for two consecutive weeks. Tinie would later perform "Pass Out" on 25 June 2010 at Glastonbury on the Pyramid stage with Snoop Dogg. Tinie then announced his second single, "Frisky", which was released on 6 June 2010 entering the UK Singles Chart at number 2. Tinie supported Rihanna for four dates in May on her 10-date UK tour with Tinchy Stryder and Pixie Lott. Tinie performed at many summer balls at various universities around the United Kingdom. Tinie performed at Radio 1 Big Weekend in Bangor on 22 May 2010 on the In New Music We Trust stage. He also toured with Mr Hudson in May 2010. Tinie Tempah played the Summertime Ball at Wembley Stadium on 6 June 2010, at Wakestock in Abersoch on 3 July 2010, both T4 on the Beach and the Wireless Festival in London's Hyde Park on 4 July, and V Festival on 21 and 22 August 2010. Tinie released his third single "Written in the Stars" on 19 September 2010. This again charted at number 1 in the UK Singles Chart selling over 115,000 copies in its first week, making it his biggest-selling single to date. The song also went on to chart in a number of other countries. Tinie went on to team up with Swedish House Mafia for his fourth single "Miami 2 Ibiza" which was released on 1 October 2010. This went on to reach a peak of number 4 in the UK Singles Chart and his first number 1 in the Netherlands Mega Single Top 100 chart. He released his long-awaited debut album, ''Disc-Overy'' on 4 October 2010 which featured all his previous charted singles.

On 11 October 2010, he kicked off his first UK tour which was supported by Chiddy Bang. He went on to win his first 2 MOBO Awards in October. Tinie also featured on the Tinchy Stryder single "Game Over" which was released on 15 November 2010. This reached number 22 on the UK Singles Chart. On 25 December, Tinie released his fifth single "Invincible" featuring Kelly Rowland, which peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. "Wonderman", featuring Ellie Goulding, was released and was the fifth official single. Tinie joined Usher on the European leg of his OMG Tour in January 2011. Tinie was also nominated for 4 Brit Awards making him the most nominated artist at the awards. His single "Written in the Stars" was used for a WrestleMania XXVII countdown promo during the WWE PPV Royal Rumble on 30 January 2011. It was later confirmed by WWE that it will be the official theme for Wrestlemania XXVII. It's also the theme song for the 2011 MLB Post Season. On 15 February 2011, he won his first ever Brit Award, for Best British Breakthrough Act. He also won a Brit for Best British Single. On 7 March 2011, Tempah expressed his desire for his next album to go triple platinum. "I reckon in 2011, towards the end of it, I'm going to do an arena tour – and sell it out – then I reckon I'm going to release another album, and fingers crossed it can go platinum again, and double platinum, and triple. Let's just sell a million." In early 2011, Tinie Tempah announced a UK Arena tour. Support acts included Nero, Labrinth and Chase and Status (After Party DJ Set). In 2011, Labrinth revealed that Tinie will be releasing "Pass Out" in the United States, featuring a well recognised artist in the American rap game. On 28 November 2011, Tinie Tempah hosted an episode of the TV show, ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks''. Also in November, Tinie Tempah released two tracks, "Like It or Love It" which featured both Wretch 32 & J. Cole, and "Lucky Cunt" which featured Big Sean. On 16 December, Tinie released a 9-track mixtape/EP titled ''Happy Birthday''. In early 2012 Tinie featured with Eric Turner and Lupe Fiasco on a track called "Angels and Stars". Tinie's song "Written in the Stars" was used as the entrance song for the New York Giants before Super Bowl XLVI.

2012–present: ''Demonstration''[link]

By December 2010 Tempah was writing a second album, saying there will be a more electronic and live feel to it. It was originally intended for a late 2011 release. but is now scheduled for October 2012. During an interview, Tinie commented on his second album: "I always like to work with different people on each project I do, just so you get a different sound and angle. I will be working with some of the same people I did for the first album, you know what they say ‘if it ain't broke then don’t try and fix it’." Tinie hoped to collaborate with other artists; "I really want to collaborate with Toronto's very own Drake. I think he's amazing at what he does. I'd also like to collaborate with Adele, Sleigh Bells, Lykke Li, Dev, James Blake ― those are the few that I'd really like to work with." Tinie announced in an interview with ''Rolling Stone'' that his next single is to be called "Till I'm Gone" which will feature Wiz Khalifa and is produced by Stargate. The single and the video song were released at the end of June 2011. Tinie Tempah, world renowned drummer Travis Barker and Irish boxing champion Katie Taylor, joined forces to launch Lucozade’s new ''Yes Campaign'', which signals a repositioning of its sports and energy drink brand. Featuring a performance of Tinie's "Simply Unstoppable" with Travis Barker on drums, remixed especially for Lucozade Sport, the campaign was released in Summer 2011.

Tinie Tempah has asked a number of artists to appear on his upcoming second album, including Gary Barlow, Chris Martin, Dizzee Rascal, and The Script.

At the Brit Awards in 2012, Tinie announced the name of his second album to be called 'Demonstration' and stating it sounds "amazing".

Discography[link]

''Disc-Overy'' (2010)

''Demonstration'' (2012)

Awards and nominations[link]

!Year	!Event	!Prize	!Nominated work	!Result	!Ref
rowspan="18"	2010		Best Newcomer
Best Video
Best UK Act
Best Song
	Hottest Boy
Hottest Hook-up
	MP3 Music Awards	The UGG Award (Urban/Garage/Grime)
	Best Newcomer
Best Video
Best Hip-Hop Act
Best Collaboration
	Breakthrough Artist of the Year
Best Male Artist
Best Newcomer
Best Video
Best Song
	UK Festival Awards	Breakthrough Artist
	MTV Europe Music Awards	Best UK and Ireland New Act
rowspan="14"	2011		South Bank Awards	Pop Music	''Disc-Overy''
rowspan="4"	Brit Awards	Best British Male
Best Breakthrough Act
Best Single
Album of the Year	''Disc-Overy''
	Ivor Novello Awards	Best Contemporary Song
	BET Awards	Best International Act: UK
rowspan="5"	MOBO Awards	Best UK Hip Hop/Grime Act
Best Album	Disc-Overy
Best Song
Best Song
Best UK Act
	Mercury Prize	Album of the Year	Disc-Overy

References[link]

External links[link]

Category:English rappers Category:Black British people Category:English people of Igbo descent Category:English people of Nigerian descent Category:Grime artists Category:Black British musicians Category:Electro-hop musicians Category:Igbo musicians Category:Rappers from London Category:People from London Category:British hip hop musicians Category:1988 births Category:Living people

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name	Jessie J
background	solo_singer
birth name	Jessica Cornish
alias	Jessie J
birth date	March 27, 1988
birth place	Chadwell Heath, London, England, United Kingdom
genre	Pop, hip hop, R&B;, dance-pop, soul
years active	2005–present
label	Lava, Universal Republic, Island, Gut
website	100pxJessie J's official logo }}

Jessica Cornish (born 27 March 1988), better known by her stage name Jessie J, is an English singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, she studied at the BRIT School before signing with Gut Records and striking a songwriting deal with Sony/ATV Music Publishing where she wrote for artists such as Chris Brown and Miley Cyrus.

Signed with Universal, Jessie J came to prominence following the release of her debut single, "Do It Like a Dude", which peaked at number two on the UK Singles Charts. After scoring her first number one in the United Kingdom, France, Ireland, and New Zealand with the song "Price Tag", she released her debut album, ''Who You Are'' (2011) which charted at number two in the UK. Other releases from the album included "Nobody's Perfect", "Who's Laughing Now", and "Who You Are" which charted within the top 20 in the UK, but the release of fifth single "Domino" spawned international chart success, peaking at number 6 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the US, and becoming her second UK number one. The seventh single to be released from ''Who You Are'', "LaserLight", became her sixth top ten single from the album, making her the first British female artist to have six top ten singles on one album. Aside from her musical career, Jessie J served as coach and mentor on television show, ''The Voice UK''.

Citing various influences, Jessie J is recognized for an unconventional musical and performance style that mixes soul vocals with contemporary R&B;, pop, and hip-hop beats. Jessie J has garnered various awards and nominations for her contributions to the music industry, including the 2011 Critics' Choice BRIT Award and the BBC's Sound of 2011. As of April 2012, Jessie has sold over 11 million singles and 2.5 million albums worldwide.

Early life[link]

Jessie J was born Jessica Cornish in Chadwell Heath, London, daughter of Stephen Cornish and Rose Cornish (née Archer). She was educated at Mayfield High School in the London Borough of Redbridge. She attended Colin's Performing Arts School and as an 11-year old-was cast in Andrew Lloyd Webber's West End production of ''Whistle Down the Wind''. Jessie has two sisters, who are five and seven years older than her, who were both head girls at school. Unlike her academic sisters, Cornish has stated she was "never really that good at anything". She said, "At school they were like 'oh, you're a Cornish girl' and they kind of expected me to be the same as my sisters. Give me something to draw or an outfit to pick for someone, or hair, make-up, acting, write a song, I'm fine with it, but anything to do with sums – it was never my thing." She also said she never based her intelligence on her exam results. She also said she was always good at singing and it was her "thing". At the age of 16 she began studying at the BRIT School and at 17 she joined a girl group named Soul Deep. She graduated in the class of 2006 along with singers Adele and Leona Lewis. At 18 she suffered a stroke.

Music career[link]

2006–2010: Career beginnings[link]

Jessie J was signed to Gut Records, recording an album for the label, but the company went bankrupt before any material was released. She then found success as a songwriter, gaining a Sony ATV publishing contract. She was also the support act for Cyndi Lauper during Lauper's UK dates of her 2008 Bring Ya To The Brink tour (Lauper invited J to join her on stage for the performances of "Girls Just Want To Have Fun"). Jessie has also written lyrics for artists such as Chris Brown and Miley Cyrus, including "Party in the U.S.A.". Jessie J was also part of a girl band, called Soul Deep, for two years, however she left due to thoughts that "it wasn't going anywhere". Despite people thinking that her first notoriety was through YouTube, Jessie was signed for four years before her first video was posted. Jessie first came to the attention of Lava Records when her publisher at Sony/ATV, Rich Christina, sent Lava president Jason Flom a link to her MySpace page, which the record executive loved. After seeing an impressive U.S. showcase, Lava was, along with several other labels, keen to sign the artist but progress was hampered by her management's insistence on, what Flom called, a "crazy deal", and their refusal to let Jessie speak to any labels directly. Despite this, Senior Director of A&R; at Lava, Harinder Rana, made surreptitious efforts to meet Jessie on her own in winter of 2008. Later in the year a change in management to Sarah Stennett and Nadia Khan of Crown Music allowed record deal negotiations to take place. Jessie eventually signed with Lava as part of a joint venture with Universal Republic.

2010–2012: ''Who You Are'' [link]

Jessie J began recording her debut studio album in 2006 and it was completed on 19 January 2011. She revealed that "Big White Room" would be on the album and was written from an experience she had when she was 11 years old, although she wrote the song at age 17, in hospital, where a ward mate, a little boy, died. Jessie J says the album's title track, "Who You Are", is one of her proudest creations, she said the song is a "positive role model for young people" and "I always say that I'm half-artist, half-therapist". In late 2010 Jessie J released her first single, "Do It Like a Dude" which was co-written with George Astasio, Tj Normandin, Jason Pebworth, Jon Shave, Kyle Abrahams and Peter Ighile. Originally, she wrote the song with Rihanna in mind because "Rude Boy" was released at the time, partly inspiring the song. She then sent the song to her label, Island Records, before sending it to Rihanna's management. Island insisted the song become Jessie J's first single. She wishes to perform the song with Rihanna at one point. The single gained positive reception from critics. The single charted at number two on the UK Singles Charts. Her follow-up single "Price Tag" was released in late January 2011. This was written by Jessie J, Lukasz Gottwald, Claude Kelly, and Bobby Ray Simmons, Jr. and charted at number one in the top of the charts. "Price Tag" was released in the United States on 1 February 2011 and peaked at 23 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. "Price Tag" also charted at number-one in New Zealand and Ireland and is the most successful online video J has released. As of October 2011, the video has generated over 148 million views on Youtube and Vevo, making it the 22nd most viewed music video of all time. Her first American television appearance was as the musical guest on the 12 March 2011 episode of NBC's ''Saturday Night Live''.

On 25 February 2011 her debut album, ''Who You Are'', was released. The album first entered the charts on 6 March 2011 where it charted on the UK Album Charts at number two. The album charted into the top ten in a number of countries and number 11 in the United States. After the release she went on to release a third single from the album, "Nobody's Perfect". MTV reported that the single is, so far, only confirmed for release in the United Kingdom. The album's fourth single was "Who's Laughing Now". "Domino" was her second US single. The Dr. Luke-produced track was sent to mainstream radio on 6 September 2011. With the success of ''Who You Are'' in North America, Jessie was chosen to tour as the opening act for American pop artist Katy Perry's ''California Dreams Tour'' in 2011 but after she was unable to fully recover from her injuries during rehearsals she was forced to pull out under the doctor's orders. Jessie J served as the house artist at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, performing several of her original songs along with covers around commercial breaks.

James Morrison's third studio album, ''The Awakening'' features a collaboration with Jessie J called "Up", the song was released as a single on 4 December 2011. Jessie J re-released "Who You Are" on 9 November 2011, featuring the regular tracks plus "Domino" and two new songs. "Domino" became her first top 10 hit in the U.S., following the success of "Price Tag". The song also peaked at number 1 in January 2012 in the UK, before it was even officially released there.

2012–present: Second studio album and ''The Voice''[link]

On 4 October 2011, Jessie announced that she will be one of four coaches for new BBC program, ''The Voice UK''. The show was announced after the success of the US version, ''The Voice''. It premiered in March 2012 on BBC One. It was presented by Holly Willoughby and Reggie Yates, with will.i.am (of The Black Eyed Peas), Tom Jones and Danny O'Donoghue (of The Script) joining Jessie J on the coaching panel. The first stage of the competition, The Blind auditions, began in London on 18 January 2012 at the BBC Television Centre and finished filming on 22 January 2012. The winner will receive £100,000 and a record deal with Universal Republic. It was also reported that the four coaches recorded a cover of the Black Eyed Peas song, "I Gotta Feeling", and will release an accompanying music video to help promote the show.

With featured artist, David Guetta, Jessie J released the sixth single, "LaserLight", from her debut album on 4 May 2012. In the United Kingdom, the song debuted at number twenty-six on the UK Singles Chart on the chart issue dated 21 April 2012, selling 12,100 copies. The following week the song climbed twenty-one positions to number five with sales of 38,983 copies., making it her sixth top ten single from one album. With the success on the charts, she became the first UK female solo artist to achieve six top-ten singles from a single studio album. The achievement was compared with Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, and Michael Jackson, American recording artists who broke the same record. Boy band Take That received similar honours as a collective musical act.

On 31 January 2012, Jessie announced that she had begun recording for her second studio album. She also stated that she hopes to collaborate with many artists this year, possibly including some of her fellow coaches on ''The Voice''. It was revealed that she has worked in the studio with Cee-Lo Green after he tweeted her on twitter. Jessie has also revealed on Twitter that she has worked with Diane Warren as well as reuniting in the studio with her 'Price Tag' co-writer Claude Kelly. Via microblogging website, Twitter, Jessie J announced her first arena tour, called ''Nice to Meet You Tour'', will begin in March 2013. For Queen Elizabeth II at her Diamond Jubilee Concert in London, Jessie performed a duet with Will.i.am on 4 June 2012. Together, they performed "I Gotta Feeling", a song she previously recorded with the other four coaches of the televised singing competition, ''The Voice'' . After, Jessie J sang her international hit, "Domino".

Personal life[link]

In early 2011 she suffered a panic attack on stage after she was forced to perform in the dark. "I did a gig recently and had a panic attack on stage," she told ''NOW''. "The night was called 'Black Out' and I had to perform in the dark. I asked them to turn on the lights and they didn't. I was onstage in pitch black and, because I couldn't see anything, I started to panic. It was awful."

Jessie J is bisexual and stated in an interview on the "In Demand" radio show on 3 March 2011, "I've never denied it. Whoopie doo guys, yes, I've dated girls and I've dated boys – get over it." However, in April 2012 ''The Sun'' outed her as lesbian which she denied via Twitter, calling it a "yet another boring untrue story". According to ''The Guardian'', Jessie J's sexuality is valuable to young teens, especially for young girls unsure of themselves because of their sexuality and identity, to feel "that this does happen and this is normal."

On 12 June 2011 at the Capital Radio Summertime Ball, Jessie ruptured several tendons in her foot during rehearsals, and performed her set the following day while sitting on a gilded throne. For her appearance at Glastonbury Festival 2011 on 25 June 2011, she performed on the throne again, claiming her doctor had told her not to perform with her broken foot which would take six weeks to heal. Jessie J was scheduled to play at several festivals throughout the summer, however it was reported on 1 July 2011 that she would not be able to attend T in the Park, T4 On The Beach, Wembley:Orange, iTunes Festival, Lovebox and Oxegen due to the injuries to her foot. Jessie J personally tweeted before surgery; "Keep making nervous jokes with the doctor and he keeps looking at me blankly. Which is making me laugh even more. It's getting serious. I just took my nose stud out." Tweeting after the surgery, she wrote: "Can't keep tweeting. Still very dizzy and being sick. But I'm OK, I got through it." Her record label released an official statement on 30 June 2011 that under strict orders from her doctor, she will not be able to perform for a number of weeks so she can heal and recuperate properly. She returned to the concert circuit in late August, including sets at the V Festival and The Big Chill. For the 2011 VMA's she was still in a cast and using the throne to keep off it.

Jessie J confirmed on 2 August 2011 that she would be shaving her hair off for charity in 2012. Speaking via her official Twitter account she said: "It’s hair, It will grow back. Even if it takes 2 years, if it saves lives it’s worth it. Even if its 1 life that’s something."

‎Artistry and voice[link]

Although she was first identified as a soul singer, she primarily records songs of contemporary R&B; and pop music with hip-hop influences. Music critic Matthew Perpetua of Pitchfork Media compared Jessie J to her peers Adele and Amy Winehouse, but suggested she was missing something: "Whereas Adele and Winehouse also have powerhouse voices, they fit into clear aesthetic niches and invest their songs with depth and humanity. Jessie J doesn't have even a fraction of their restraint." Perpetua added: "Her idea of showcasing her gift is to shoot for a blaring melisma on "Mamma Knows Best" that makes Christina Aguilera seem as subtle as Joni Mitchell by comparison."

Ailbhe Malone of the music magazine NME also recognized Cornish's "undeniably potent voice". However, she pointed out the possible "identity crisis" that might have been caused by Jessie's songwriter past: "This is an album of singles for other artists. There’s Rihanna Jessie (‘Do It...’), Perry Jessie (‘Abracadabra’), Pixie Jessie (‘Mamma Knows Best’), Ellie Jessie ('Big White Room')." Caroline Sullivan of ''The Guardian'' shared her positive opinion about the singer, saying that "if any singer has the potential to be the British Katy Perry or Pink, with the accompanying millions of sales, it's her". Sullivan also complimented Cornish's attitude: "[Her songs] are delivered with a confidence that money can't buy." In spite of comparisons with Katy Perry, Jessie J has cited the "Part of Me" singer as an inspiration, admiring her work ethic. She said: "Her hard work, her dedication, and how she deals with having the world stare at her every move, personally and professionally, with such dignity and strength, is inspiring." Inspiration aside, Jessie J calls herself a huge fan of Perry's music.

''Entertainment Weekly'''s music critic Adam Markovitz said of Jessie: "The 23-year-old Brit has all the tools, from a monster voice to an ear for hooks — she co-wrote Miley Cyrus' 'Party in the U.S.A.' — and a manic persona that's equal parts Katy Perry, Kristin Chenoweth, and Alice Cooper."

Discography[link]

''Who You Are'' (2011)

Concert tours[link]

;Headlining

Stand Up Tour (2011)

Heartbeat Tour (2011-12)

Nice To Meet You Tour (2013)

Filmography[link]

+Television	Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
2012	''The Voice UK''	Herself

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Category:1988 births Category:Living people Category:Bisexual musicians Category:Brit Award winners Category:Electronica musicians Category:English female singers Category:English pop singers Category:English rhythm and blues singers Category:English singer-songwriters

Category:LGBT musicians from the United Kingdom Category:People educated at the BRIT School Category:Singers from London Category:Stroke survivors Category:The Voice judges Category:People from Chadwell Heath

af:Jessie J bg:Джеси Джей ca:Jessie J cs:Jessie J da:Jessie J de:Jessie J es:Jessie J fa:جسی جی fr:Jessie J fy:Jessie J ko:제시 제이 hr:Jessie J id:Jessie J it:Jessie J he:ג'סי ג'יי lv:Jessie J lt:Jessie J hu:Jessie J mk:Џеси Џеј nl:Jessie J ja:ジェシー・J no:Jessie J pl:Jessie J pt:Jessie J ro:Jessie J ru:Джесси Джей simple:Jessie J sk:Jessie J fi:Jessie J sv:Jessie J th:เจสซี เจ tr:Jessie J uk:Джессі Джей (співачка) vi:Jessie J zh:Jessie J

name	Rizwan Ahmed
birth date	December 01, 1982
birth place	Wembley, London, England
othername	Riz MC
occupation	Actor, rapper
yearsactive	2006-present
website	}}

Rizwan Ahmed (born 1 December 1982 in Wembley, London), also known as Riz Ahmed, the Rizmeister General, the Rizmadizzle, or Riz MC, is a British MC, musician and actor. He is noted for his lead performances in ''The Road to Guantanamo'', ''Shifty'', ''Britz'', and ''Four Lions''.

Biography[link]

Ethnic background[link]

Ahmed is a British Pakistani. Ahmed's parents belonged to Karachi in Sindh, Pakistan, before emigrating to the United Kingdom.

Education[link]

Ahmed attended Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood through a scholarship programme. He graduated from Christ Church, Oxford with a degree in PPE and studied acting at the Central School of Speech and Drama.

Television and film[link]

Ahmed's film career began in the Michael Winterbottom film ''The Road to Guantanamo'' in which he played the part of Shafiq Rasul, a member of the Tipton Three. Coincidentally, he and another actor involved in the film as well as two of the Tipton Three were detained at Luton Airport upon their return from the Berlin Film Festival where the film won a Silver Bear Award. Across his years as an actor he has also featured in various TV roles. He has played Sohail Waheed in the 2007 Channel 4 drama, ''Britz''. 2008 saw him perform as both Riq in the five-part horror thriller for E4, ''Dead Set'' and Manesh Kunzru in ITV1's finance fraud drama ''Wired''. In July 2009 in appeared in ''Freefall'' alongside Sarah Harding. Most notably, he featured in the title role of the 2009 independent film ''Shifty'' by Eran Creevy. Ahmed plays the charismatic young drug dealer in the film which sees a life in the day of this character. He was nominated for Best Actor at the 2008 British Independent Film Awards for this role, alongside Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson.

Continuing his film career, he featured in the 2009 Sally Potter production of ''Rage'' and in 2010, in Chris Morris' satire on terrorism, ''Four Lions'' and Neil Marshall's historical thriller ''Centurion''.

Stage[link]

Ahmed played a role in the Asian Dub Foundation opera ''Gaddafi'' and a starring role as psychotic serial-killer-turned-born-again-Christian Lucius in the Lighthouse Theatre's acclaimed production of Stephen Adly Guirgis's ''Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train'' (directed by Jack William Clift and Thomas Sweatman) as well as in Shan Khan's ''Prayer Room''.

Music[link]

In 2006, he released a satirical social-commentary rap track entitled "Post 9/11 Blues". The song was initially banned from British airplay because the lyrics were deemed ‘politically sensitive’. Other tracks he has released include "Sour Times" which was accompanied by a video featuring Scroobius Pip, Plan B and Jim Sturgess.

He was selected as a BBC Introducing artist in 2007, playing the Glastonbury Festival and the BBC Electric Proms. He opened the Meltdown Festival with Bristol-based trip-hop group Massive Attack at the Royal Festival Hall in 2008, and was appointed 'Emerging Artist in Residence' at the Southbank Centre in London. He played at the London Camp for Climate Action in August 2009.

Rizwan also co-founded the Oxford based night Hit & Run, which has since moved to Manchester. Hit & Run has gone on to become one of Manchester's leading underground music events.

He released his debut album ''MICroscope'' in 2011.

On 1 December 2011 it was announced that Riz MC had signed to Tru Thoughts, a Brighton-based independent label.

Filmography[link]

Year	Film	Role	Notes
	''The Path to 9/11''		TV film
''The Road to Guantanamo''	Shafiq
		Sohail Wahid	Two part serial for Channel 4
	Danny
		Riq	TV film
	Shifty	Nominated for Best Actor at the British Independent Film Award	Won Best Actor at the Geneva Cinéma Tout Ecran
	''Freefall''	Gary	TV film
	Vijay
	''Four Lions''	Omar
	Tarik
		Ali
''Trishna''	Jay
		Changez
''Ill Manors''	Aaron

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

''MICroscope'' (2011)

Singles[link]

"The Post 9/11 Blues" (2006)

"People Like People" (2007)

"Radar" (2008)

"Shifty" (with Sway & Plan B) (2009)

"Don't Sleep" (2009)

"Hundreds and Thousands" (2010)

"Get on It" (2010)

"All of You" (2011)

"Waiting Up (Prod. by Noah "40? Shebib) Feat. Drake" (2012)

Awards [link]

Shooting Stars Award 2012: Riz will receive this award at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival in February 2012, annual acting award for up-and-coming actors by European Film Promotion.

References[link]

External links[link]

Riz MC at BBC Maida Vale and Glastonbury

Confidential Collective

A short, sharp shock of a play ''The Telegraph''

When even actors aren't safe ''New Statesman''

Guardian piece on "Post 9/11 Blues"

Google video of "Post 9/11 Blues"

Official Shifty website

Official Hit & Run website

Profile on Shooting Stars

BBC Film Network: short films featuring Riz Ahmed

Category:Living people Category:English film actors Category:People educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood Category:English people of Pakistani descent Category:Muhajir people Category:1982 births Category:People from Wembley

de:Riz Ahmed es:Riz Ahmed mr:रिझवान अहमद zh:里兹·阿迈德