Crew of a spacecraft.

A crew is a body or a class of people who work at a common activity, generally in a structured or hierarchical organization. A location in which a crew works is called a crewyard or a workyard. The word has nautical resonances: the tasks involved in operating a ship, particularly a sailing ship, providing numerous specialities within a ship's crew, often organised with a chain of command. Traditional nautical usage strongly distinguishes officers from crew, though the two groups combined form the ship's company. Members of a crew are often referred to by the title "Crewman".

"Crew" also refers to the sport of rowing, where teams row competitively in racing shells.^[1]

"Crew" is used colloquially to refer to a small, tight-knit group of friends or associates engaged in criminal activity. Also used in reference to the traditional "unit" of criminals under the supervision of a caporegime in the American Mafia. However, the term is not specific to (Mafia-affiliated) organized crime.

Crew can refer simply to a group of friends, unrelated to crime or violence.

References[link]

See also[link]

• For a specific sporting usage, see Rowing (sport).
• For filmmaking usage, see Film crew.
• For live music usage, see Road crew.
• For analogous entities in research on human judgment and decision-making, see Team and Judge–advisor system.
• For stagecraft usage, see Stage crew.
• For video production usage, see Television crew
• For the comic strip, see Motley's Crew.
• For the sports team, see Columbus Crew.

The Weeknd
Background information
Birth name	Abel Tesfaye
Born	(1990-02-16) February 16, 1990 (age 22) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genres	Contemporary R&B, post-dubstep, downtempo
Years active	2010–present
Associated acts	Drake, Doc McKinney, Illangelo,
Website	www.the-weeknd.com

Abel Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), better known by his stage name The Weeknd, is an R&B^[1] Canadian recording artist and record producer from Toronto. He began recording songs under The Weeknd and uploading them to YouTube in late 2010,^[2] though the identity of the individual behind the project was initially unknown.^[3][4] In March 2011, The Weeknd released a nine-song free album, House of Balloons which was critically acclaimed.^[5] The title track is based on a sample of Siouxsie and the Banshees' hit single "Happy House.^[6] The first album is a part of a trilogy which includes Thursday released in August of the same year and Echoes of Silence issued in December.^[7] In June, House of Balloons was named as one of ten shortlisted nominees of 2011 Polaris Music Prize but eventually lost to Arcade Fire's The Suburbs.^[8] On December 21, 2011 at 11:07 p.m. EST Tesfaye released his highly anticipated third mixtape Echoes of Silence. The Weeknd's site crashed shortly after due to the large number of downloads. The Weeknd quickly provided a Hulkshare link to keep the album available while the official site was down.

Since hitting the scene, The Weeknd has received praise from a number of musical publications, including those of Pitchfork,^[1] MTV,^[9] BET, Rolling Stone, XXL and The Source, who have all dubbed him the "Songbird of his Generation", as well as the "best musical talent since Michael Jackson" (John Norris, MTV).

[edit] House of Balloons

In late 2010, Abel Tesfaye uploaded three songs: "What You Need," "Loft Music," and "The Morning" to YouTube.^[10] A nine-track free album titled House of Balloons was digitally released on 21 March 2011 through the artist's official website.^[11] The title track is based on the sample of Siouxsie and the Banshees' 1980 hit single "Happy House" with Tesfaye covering the chorus.^[5] Tesfaye’s eclectic music also blends other samples ranging from Beach House to Aaliyah.^[12] Hip-hop artist Drake has been partly credited for generating public awareness for The Weeknd, after he quoted a line from the track "Wicked Games" via Twitter and linked to the singer's music on his website.^[11][13]

House of Balloons was met with universal critical acclaim. Pitchfork's Joe Colly wrote that "all the thematic and sonic pieces fit together - these weird, morning-after tales of lust, hurt, and over-indulgence ... are matched by this incredibly lush, downcast music. It's hard to think of a record since probably The xx's debut ... that so fully embodies such a specific nocturnal quality."^[1] Frontier Psychiatrist's L.V. Lopez claimed the album was "brilliant, disturbing, and not safe for work," calling the song "Loft Music" a song that is "so unsafe it should come with a child-proof cap, so dirty that you’ll feel guilty the next time you see your wife."^[14] Tom Ewing of The Guardian said that although the singing and songwriting on House of Balloons "aren't especially strong by R&B standards," the Weeknd is receiving "so much attention" as a result of its "command of mood."^[15] Sean Fennessey of The Village Voice called the album "impressive" and added, "It's patient, often gorgeous, and consistently louche ... with the sort of blown-out underbelly and echo-laden crooning that has already made Drake's less-than-a-year-old Thank Me Later such an influential guidepost."^[16] Maegan McGregor of Exclaim! also praised the album: "Packed full of sex, drugs and some downright killer production, this easily stands as one of the year's best debuts so far, hipster, Top 40 or otherwise."^[17] Sputnik Music's Tyler Fisher said that "despite being a free album, House of Balloons feels like a true album, a true labor of love."^[18]

In July, The Weeknd then went on tour and gave his first performance at the Mod Club on College Street in Toronto. The hour-and-a-half long performance created a lot of buzz about the young R&B singer.^[19] Tesfaye’s next performance took place at Toronto’s Molson Canadian Amphitheatre. He collaborated with rapper Drake and appeared as one of the special guests to Drake’s 2nd Annual OVO Fest on July 31, 2011 ^[20] That same month, the song "High for This" was featured in the promo for the final season of the HBO show Entourage.^[21]

During the summer, the press noted that Tesfaye refused to give interviews and choose to only communicate via Twitter.^[22]

When House of Balloons was named #1 album of 2011 by Complex magazine, it beat both Drake's Take Care and Watch the Throne by Jay-Z and Kanye West for the number 1 spot.^[12]

[edit] Thursday

Thursday (mixtape) is the second mixtape released by The Weeknd . The mixtape was released shortly after House of Balloons on August 18, 2011. Thursday was released on XO's label along with his other two mixtapes. Although the mixtape was released for free on his website as a digital download, the feedback it received was enormously positive.^[23] Thursday was produced in Toronto, Ontario with the help of Doc McKinney and Illangelo.^[24]

[edit] Echoes of Silence

The Weeknd's third mixtape, entitled Echoes of Silence, was released in December 21, 2011.^[23][25] Echoes of Silence has been described as his most lyrically powerful and emotional mixtape to date.^[24]

In April 2012, The Weeknd debuted his US tour by performing at the Coachella Festival.^[26] Tesfaye and his band visited the Union’s coasts, with a dozen of gigs in various major cities^[26] which culminated in New York where the two sold out shows were positively reviewed by Rolling Stone.^[27] Then, they will be also performing in European major festivals, including the Primavera Sound Festivals in Spain and Portugal,^[28] Wireless Festival in London,^[29] plus concerts in Paris and Brussels.

Discography[link]

Mixtapes[link]

Guest Appearances and Production[link]

Awards[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Official blog

New Boyz
Legacy (left) and Ben J (right)
Background information
Origin	Hesperia, California, United States
Genres	Hip hop, rap, jerkin
Years active	2008–present
Labels	Shotty, Asylum, Warner Bros.
Associated acts	Chris Brown, Tyga, Ray J, Iyaz, Big Sean, The Cataracs, Dev, Yellow Bone Cherry , Young Cam
Website	www.thenewboyz.com
Members
Legacy Ben J

New Boyz is an American hip hop/rap group and a former jerkin crew duo^[1] consisting of rappers Earl "Ben J" Benjamin (born October 13, 1991) and Dominic "Legacy" Thomas (born October 12, 1991)^[2] from Hesperia, California. They debuted in summer 2009 with their viral hit, "You're a Jerk", taken from their debut studio album Skinny Jeanz and a Mic, released in September 2009. The song peaked in the top thirty of the Billboard Hot 100, and it was the first song to bring the jerkin' style to the national forefront. A second single, "Tie Me Down" featuring Ray J, was also successful and peaked in the top thirty. In May 2011, their second studio album, Too Cool to Care, was released. It includes the top 40 hits "Backseat", featuring The Cataracs and Dev, and "Better with the Lights Off" featuring Chris Brown. The New Boyz have also been featured on Hot Chelle Rae's song "I Like It Like That", which peaked at #28 on the Hot 100.

Biography[link]

The two were originally rivals, but became friends over a common interest in music.^[3] Dominic began rapping at the age of eight after watching a music video by Bow Wow, but Benjamin did not have plans to pursue a musical career, instead, he intended to play football at San Diego State University.^[4] However, Benjamin decided to focus more on music after he discovered that Dominic was achieving success in rapping. With their October birthdays only a day apart, they pooled their gift money to buy recording equipment. Dominic then taught himself how to make beats for the group's songs with a computer program called Fruity Loops, saying "I had to teach myself. We didn’t want to pay for beats."^[5] After Thomas transferred to a new school, they decided to form a group. With Benjamin being "Ben J" and Thomas being "Legacy", they began performing together as the Swagger Boyz on July 4, 2008.^[4] and created a MySpace page to promote their self-published single "Colorz".^[3] In 2009, New Boyz performed at a basketball game for Bishop Alemany High School in Mission Hills, CA.

Discography[link]

Mixtapes[link]

• Foolie Tape (2012)^[6]

1.FM$ ( Prod By Legacy ) #FXS 2.Rain Dance ft Cory Gunz ( Prod By C P Dubb ) #FXS 3.Bars ( Prod By Legacy ) #FXS 4.Kim #FXS 5.Starters ( Prod By C P Dubb ) #FXS 6.Closure ft Tinashe ( Prod By J.LBS ) #FXS 7.Same Shit , Different City ft Dizzy Wright ( Prod By The Futuristiks ) #FXS 8.Movin ( Prod By Prophit ) #FXS 9.Soul Out ( Prod By Prophit ) #FXS 10.Smoking Habit ( Prod By DJ Burn One ) #FXS

Studio albums[link]

Singles[link]

Promotional singles[link]

As featured artist[link]

"Fat Pussy" (Ty$ & Joe Moses featuring The Rej3ctz & The New Boyz)

Music videos[link]

• You're a Jerk
• Dot Com
• Tie Me Down featuring Ray J
• So Dope
• Cricketz featuring Tyga
• Break My Bank featuring Iyaz
• Crush On You featuring YG
• Backseat featuring The Cataracs and Dev
• Tough Kids featuring Sabi
• Better With the Lights Off featuring Chris Brown
• Found My Swag featuring The Bangz
• Dancing Around the Truth (the Stunners)

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official site
• New Boyz channel at Youtube

This article reads more like a story than an encyclopedia entry. To meet Wikipedia's quality standards and conform to the neutral point of view policy, please help to introduce a more formal style and remove any personally invested tone. (November 2011)

Terry Crews
Crews at the San Diego Comic-Con International in July 2010
Born	Terrence Alan Crews (1968-07-30) July 30, 1968 (age 43) Flint, Michigan, U.S.
Other names	Terry Alan Crews, Big T, T-Money, Squeegee Lo, Henry David Thoreau, Terry Crews, Jr.
Occupation	Football player (1991-1996) Actor, comedian, voice artist (1999–present)
Years active	1999–present
Spouse	Rebecca Crews (1990–present) 5 children
Website
http://www.terrycrews.com/

Terrence Alan "Terry" Crews (born July 30, 1968) is an American actor, comedian, voice artist and a former player in the National Football League. He is perhaps best known for his role as family patriarch Julius on the UPN/CW sitcom Everybody Hates Chris. Currently, he stars in the TBS sitcom Are We There Yet? as Nick Kingston-Persons. Additionally, he stars in the BET reality series The Family Crews, and has appeared in such films as The 6th Day, Friday After Next, White Chicks, Idiocracy and The Expendables.

In 2010 Crews was featured in several Old Spice TV commercials for their "Odor Blocker Body Wash", and in 2012 for their body spray, directed by Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim.

Early life[link]

Crews was born in Flint, Michigan,^[1] the son of Patricia and Terry Crews, Sr. He attended Flint Southwestern Academy.^[2] He earned an Art Excellence Scholarship to attend the Interlochen Center for the Arts and then Western Michigan University.^[3]

While completing his studies as hop an Art major, Crews was a key member of the WMU football team, where he earned all-conference honors as a defensive end. Crews was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams of the NFL in the 11th round of the 1991 NFL Draft.^[4] He carved out a career that lasted seven^[5] seasons, including stints with the Rams, San Diego Chargers, the Washington Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles.

Career[link]

After retiring from the NFL in 1997, Crews pursued an acting career and took a stint as T-Money on Battle Dome (modeled after American Gladiators). Crews played the beefcake "he-man" in movies, such as White Chicks. Crews also played Damon Pearly in Friday After Next, starring Ice Cube and Mike Epps. He has also done commercials with Nike. He last starred in the sitcom Everybody Hates Chris as Julius Rock, and his more modern movie appearances were alongside Adam Sandler in The Longest Yard, Click, and The Benchwarmers (as well as the long-delayed Mike Judge film Idiocracy, where Crews played President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho).

Crews has made many cameo appearances. He was in blink-182's music video of Down as a police officer, in Jamie Kennedy's Rollin' with Saget as the security guard, and in films such as Training Day and Soul Plane.

Crews usually portrays buff-looking characters with a humorous softer side, singing along with 80's music or becoming engaged with soap operas (as well as his signature robot dance). But more recently, he has been able to alternate with more serious projects such as his recent appearances in Harsh Times, Street Kings and the action movie, The Expendables.

He has been featured recently in several Old Spice TV commercials for their "Odor Blocker Body Wash". The ads were directed by Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim.

In the sitcom Are We There Yet?, Crews had a lead role as Nick Kingston-Persons. In the series' first trailer, Ice Cube said that Crews is the perfect person to replace him as Nick, and that his physical comedy is undeniable. The series was picked up for 90 new episodes^[6] (approx six seasons) by August 2010, while Crews enjoyed box office success in three movies in August 2010 (Middle Men, The Expendables, Lottery Ticket).^[7]

He also stars in his own reality series on BET entitled The Family Crews which is about his everyday life with his family. The show premiered on February 21, 2010.

Personal life[link]

Crews at the 79th Annual Academy Awards Children Uniting Nations/Billboard afterparty.

Crews has four daughters and one son (with one being a stepdaughter from his wife's previous relationship) with his wife of 22 years, Rebecca King-Crews, a former beauty queen and gospel recording artist.

Filmography[link]

Television work[link]

• Battle Dome - T-Money (1999–2001)
• Everybody Hates Chris - Julius (2005–2009)
• My Wife and Kids - Daryl (2005; Guest star)
• The Boondocks - Multiple characters (voice) (2006; Guest star)
• Are We There Yet? - Nick Kingston-Persons (2010–present)
• The Family Crews - Himself (2010–present)

Music videos[link]

• Blink-182 - "Down" - Police Officer (2004)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Terry Crews

• Official website
• Terry Crews at the Internet Movie Database
• BET Shows - The Family Crews Website
• Squeegee Lo Website
• NFL stats at Databasefootball.com
• Terry Crews reality show - The Family Crews