E-40
E-40 in September 2007.
Background information
Birth name	Earl Stevens
Born	(1967-11-15) November 15, 1967 (age 44) Vallejo, California, USA
Genres	Hip hop
Occupations	Rapper, entrepreneur, and investor
Years active	1990–present
Labels	Sick Wid It, Jive, BME, Warner Bros.
Associated acts	The Click, D-Shot, B-Legit, Suga T, Lil Jon, Too Short, 2Pac, Snoop Dogg, Spice-1, 50 Cent, brokeNCYDE, Akon, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Krizz Kaliko
Website	www.facebook.com/e40

Earl Stevens (born November 15, 1967)^[1] better known by his stage name E-40, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, and investor from Vallejo, California. He is a member of the rap group The Click, and the founder of Sick Wid It Records. He has released over ten albums, appeared on numerous movie soundtracks, and has also done guest appearances on a host of other rap albums. Initially an underground artist, his 1995 solo album In a Major Way opened him up to a wider audience. Beginning in 1998, he began collaborating with more mainstream rappers outside of the Bay Area. He rose to even higher mainstream popularity in 2006 with his single Tell Me When to Go which was produced by Lil Jon.

Music career[link]

1990–1999[link]

E-40 made his rap debut in 1990, with the EP Let's Side as a member of The Click. The EP was co-produced by Mike Mosley and Al Eaton and was released on Sick Wid It Records, an independent label founded by E-40. In 1992 they released second album, Down and Dirty, and in 1993 E-40 made his solo album debut. Federal, a nine-track LP/14-track CD produced by Studio Ton and released by Sick Wid' It Records in association with SMG (Solar Music Group), a regional distributor. After a talent show at Grambling State University, the emcee and his cousin B-Legit decided to attempt a career in rap. Together, and with his sister Suga-T, they released their 1993 mainstream radio hit Captain Save a Hoe. They moved back to Vallejo and teamed up with D-Shot, E-40's brother, to form the group MVP or Most Valuable Players. E-40's gospel singing uncle (Saint Charles) helped them put out the record.^[2] Suga-T was then added to the group to form The Click.^[3]

Synonymous with Bay Area rap, E-40 garnered a regional following, and eventually a national one, with his flamboyant raps, while his entrepreneurial spirit, embodied by his homegrown record label, Sick Wid' It Records, did much to cultivate a flourishing rap scene to the east of San Francisco Bay, in communities such as Oakland and his native Vallejo. Along with Too Short, Spice 1, and Ant Banks, E-40 was among the first West Coast rappers to sign a major-label deal, penning a deal with Jive Records in 1994, after years of releasing music independently. Thus, six additional solo albums were to follow, beginning with In a Major Way in 1995 as well as remastered versions of E-40's independent Sick Wid It recordings from previous years. In a Major Way was regionally well-received, with guest spots by such rappers as Tupac Shakur and Mac Mall, as well as his son Droop-E. Although having a large following within West Coast, E-40 did not have a large mainstream audience, so only two of his songs released under Jive Records, "1-Luv" featuring Levitti and "Things'll Never Change" featuring Bo-Roc, charted on the Billboard Hot 100.^[4] He had been working nearly exclusively with rappers from the Bay Area until 1997, when he released the double disc compilation Southwest Riders featuring exclusively rap acts from the Bay Area and the south. His collaboration with southern rappers continued in 1998, when he was given guest appearances on albums by Southern rappers, including Lost by Eightball, and MP Da Last Don by Master P.^[4]

2000–2010[link]

In 2003, E-40 began hosting E-Feezy Radio, a weekly program San Francisco hip-hop radio station KMEL that showcased Bay Area hip hop.^[5] KMEL regularly broadcast the program until 2008. After completing a deal with Jive Records he signed with Lil Jon's BME Recordings and Warner Bros. Records. After the signing, he appeared on Lil Jon's single "Snap Yo Fingers", also featuring Sean P of YoungBloodz, which became a hit reaching the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. Afterwards, his single "Tell Me When To Go", featuring Oakland rapper Keak Da Sneak, became popular throughout the United States, and E-40 appeared on MTV's Direct Effect and BET's 106 & Park. Publicity for E-40 was achieved through the MTV special My Block: The Bay.^[6] He later released "U And Dat" in April 2006, featuring T-Pain and Kandi Girl and produced by Lil Jon. His album My Ghetto Report Card debuted at #1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and #3 on the Billboard Hot 200 on March 14, 2006.^[7] Released through Sick Wid It/BME/Warner Bros. Records, the album was produced by Lil Jon, Rick Rock, and E-40's son, Droop-E.^[8] He was also featured on DJ Shadow's new album The Outsider, on a track called Dat's My Part. In 2006, he also appeared on Tech N9ne's Everready: The Religion CD on a track titled Jellysickle. In that same year, he contributed a verse to the official remix of It's Okay (One Blood) by fellow West coast rapper The Game along with 24 other prominent MCs. In 2008, E-40's new album The Ball Street Journal came out, with "Wake it Up" featuring Akon as the lead single. "Got Rich Twice" featuring Turf Talk followed. The album peaked at #42 on the Billboard 200.

In 2009, 40 was featured on the track "Santana DVX" on the album Incredibad from the comedy group The Lonely Island. E-40 is listed in the credits as one of the writers. In the song, E-40 assumes the identity of Carlos Santana and raps about his personalized brand of sparkling white wine.

E-40 was featured on BrokeNCYDE's album I'm Not A Fan, But The Kids Like It! on the song Booty Call.

E-40 was also featured on the song "Kush Is My Cologne" (along with Bun B & Devin The Dude) on Gucci Mane's 2009 album The State vs. Radric Davis.

On March 30, 2010, E-40 released two albums called Revenue Retrievin': Day Shift and Revenue Retrievin': Night Shift.^[9] Both include guest apperances from Too Short, Snoop Dogg, Gucci Mane, Bobby V more. They debuted at numbers 47 & 49 respectively on the 200. On March 29, 2011, E-40 released two albums called Revenue Retrievin': Overtime Shift and Revenue Retrievin': Graveyard Shift. They include guest spots from Lil Jon, Bun B, Slim Thug, Tech N9ne & more. They both entered on the 200 chart at #'s 42 & 40.

In November 2010, E-40 and Too Short announced that they will release a collaborative album in Summer 2012 entitled The History Channel. E-40 will also perform at the Gathering of the Juggalos.^[10]

2011–present[link]

E-40 made a cameo in the music video for Drake's "The Motto" in December 2011.^[11]

In 2012, E-40 released three solo albums: The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil series 1, 2, and 3, and will release a collaboration album with Too Short.^[12] The first single from the second Block Brochure album is "Function" featuring YG, IAmSu & Problem. The volumes include Juicy J, 2 Chainz, Tech N9ne, Snoop Dogg, Twista, Kendrick Lamar, Too Short, & T-Pain as guests. They each debuted at #'s 58, 59 & 72 on the Billboard 200, respectively, and the triple album box set that contains all three Block Brochure volumes debuted at #44.

Entrepreneurship and investing[link]

In addition to his career as a musician, E-40 is an entrepreneur and investor who has ventured into other business and investment opportunities. He invested in Microsoft, but he said that he should have invested in Apple. ^[13] Along with former NFL player Chester McGlockton, E-40 opened a Fatburger franchise in Pleasant Hill, California, which has now been shut down. E-40 recently authored the book, E-40's Book of Slang to be published by Warner Books. He is also a spokesperson for Landy Cognac, and he opened the now-defunct Ambassador's Lounge, a nightclub in Downtown San Jose.^[14] On Nov 16th, 2007 it was announced that Stevens signed a franchise agreement with Wingstop Restaurants, Inc. and will open one in Southampton shopping center located in Benicia, California. "I was introduced to Wingstop in Dallas and as soon as I tasted the wings I was hooked. I love the food," said Stevens. "I chose to open in the Bay Area because this is the soil where I was born and raised, and I still live here to this day. People here are going to love these things." In late 2007, E-40 announced a new line of energy drinks called "40 Water."

Slang and nicknames[link]

E-40 is well known for his contributions to hip-hop slang culture, best embodied in the growing list of nicknames he has given himself.^[15]

• E-Fizzle
• Charlie Hustle
• Forty Water
• Fonzarelli / Forty Fonzarelli
• The Ballatician
• E-Feezy
• The Ambassador of the Bay
• Mess Crunklin
• Bay City Black
• Bay City Brown
• Table

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• Federal (1993)
• In a Major Way (1995)
• Tha Hall of Game (1996)
• The Element of Surprise (1998)
• Charlie Hustle: The Blueprint of a Self-Made Millionaire (1999)
• Loyalty & Betrayal (2000)
• Grit & Grind (2002)
• Breakin' News (2003)
• My Ghetto Report Card (2006)
• The Ball Street Journal (2008)
• Revenue Retrievin': Day Shift (2010)
• Revenue Retrievin': Night Shift (2010)
• Revenue Retrievin': Overtime Shift (2011)
• Revenue Retrievin': Graveyard Shift (2011)
• The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 1 (2012)
• The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 2 (2012)
• The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil 3 (2012)

Collaboration albums

• The History Channel (with Too Short)^[16] (2012)

Extended plays

• Mr. Flamboyant (1991)
• The Mail Man (1993)

Filmography[link]

Film[link]

• The Breaks (1999)
• 3 Strikes (2000)
• Obstacles (2000)
• Malibooty (2003)
• Hair Show (2004)
• Survival of the Illest (2004)
• Dead Heist (2007)

Television[link]

Appearances as self[link]

• Soul Train (1995)
• Soul Train (2004)
• Blowin' Up (2006)
• 106 & Park (2006)
• Punk'd (2006)
• Wild 'n Out (2006)
• Yo Momma (2006)
• BET Hip Hop Awards (2007)
• Def Jam: Icon (2007)
• From G's to Gents (Season 2) (2009)
• Played by Fame (Season 1) (2009)

Appearances as a fictional character[link]

• The Jamie Foxx Show (2001)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: E-40

• E-40 on Myspace
• E-40 at Allmusic
• E-40 at the Internet Movie Database
• E-40's Official justRHYMES.com profile
• Synthesis.net Live footage of E-40 at Warner Brother 2007 Inaugural Ball in the Roosevelt Hollywood,Ca
• Interview with Submerge Magazine "Revenue Retrieval" August, 2009

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth^[1] (born June 17, 1987), simply known as Kendrick Lamar, is an American rapper and songwriter from Compton, California currently signed to Top Dawg, Aftermath and Interscope. He first gained major attention after the release of his 2010 mixtape Overly Dedicated. In 2011, his album Section.80, released exclusively through iTunes, instantly ranked as one of the top digital hip hop releases of the year.^[2] Lamar has amassed a large internet following, is a member of hip hop collective Black Hippy, along with Jay Rock, Schoolboy Q and Ab-Soul, and has worked with Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Wiz Khalifa, Game, Drake, Busta Rhymes and Tech N9ne among other popular artists.^[3]

Biography[link]

1987-2009: Early life and career beginnings[link]

Kendrick Lamar was born in Compton, California, a community southeast of Los Angeles city limits, to parents from Chicago, Illinois.^[4] At the age of eight, in 1995, Lamar witnessed his idols, Tupac Shakur and Dr. Dre film the music video for their hit single "California Love," a very significant moment in Lamar's life.^[5] In 2003 at the young age of sixteen, Lamar released his first mixtape, Youngest Head Nigga In Charge under the name K. Dot.^[6] The mixtape was able to garner enough attention for Lamar to get a record deal with Top Dawg Entertainment, a Los Angeles-based independent record label.^[6] He then released a twenty-six track mixtape two years later titled Training Day.^[7] More recognition came Lamar's way after a video of a Charles Hamilton show surfaced, where Hamilton goes in the crowd and battles rappers at attendance. Lamar didn't hesitate and began rapping a verse over Milkbone's "Keep It Real", that would later appear on a track titled "West Coast Wu-Tang".^[5] In 2008 Lamar made a cameo appearance on Jay Rock's "All My Life (In the Ghetto)" music video. After receiving a co-sign from Lil Wayne, he released his third mixtape in 2009 titled C4, heavily themed around Tha Carter III LP.^[8] Soon after, he decided to drop his stage name K. Dot and go by his real name. This resulted in him releasing a self-titled EP; the Kendrick Lamar EP in late 2009.^[9]

[edit] 2010–2011: Overly Dedicated and Section.80

Kendrick performing at a concert in Toronto, Canada

In 2010 he toured with Tech N9ne and Jay Rock on The Independent Grind tour.^[6] On September 23, 2010 he released O(verly) D(edicated) a highly acclaimed mixtape that included a song titled "Ignorance is Bliss" in which he glorifies gangsta rap and street crime but ends each verse with "ignorance is bliss" giving the message "we know not what we do".^[10][11] It was that song specifically that made hip hop producer Dr. Dre want to work with Lamar.^[12] This led to him working with Dre and Snoop Dogg on Dre's Detox album and him considering signing to Aftermath Entertainment.^[6][13] In January 2011 Lamar said his debut album was 90% finished.^[6]

In early 2011 Lamar was featured on XXL Magazine's 2011 Freshman cover along with CyHi the Prynce, Meek Mill, Mac Miller, Yelawolf, Lil B, Big K.R.I.T. and Diggy Simmons among others.^[14] On July 2, 2011, Lamar released his third solo project Section.80 to critical acclaim. It features guest appearances from GLC, Colin Munroe, Schoolboy Q, Ab-Soul and includes production from longtime collaborator Sounwave, Wyldfyer, Terrace Martin, J. Cole and more. On the topic of whether Section.80 would be an album or a mixtape Lamar said "I treat every project like it’s an album anyway. It’s not gonna be nothing leftover. I never do nothing like that. These are my leftover songs y’all can have ‘em, nah. I’m gonna put my best out. My best effort. I’m tryna look for an album in 2012". The first single for Section.80 was the J. Cole produced track "HiiiPower", of which the concept was to further explain the HiiiPower movement. Section.80 went on to sell over 10,000 copies in its first week^[15] without any television or radio coverage and received many very positive reviews. In the second half of 2011, Lamar appeared on Game's The R.E.D. Album, Tech N9ne's All 6's and 7's, 9th Wonder's The Wonder Years and Drake's Take Care.

In August 2011, while onstage with Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and Game, at the West Los Angeles concert, the three of them crowned him the "New King of the West Coast"^[16]

[edit] 2012–present: Good Kid in a Mad City

On February 15, 2012, a song titled "Cartoons & Cereal" featuring Gunplay of Triple C's was leaked.^[17] Lamar revealed later that the track was for his upcoming album and he was planning to shoot a video for it.^[18]

In March 2012, MTV announced that Top Dawg Entertainment, the independent record label Lamar is signed to, have closed a joint venture deal with Interscope Records and Aftermath Entertainment, marking the end of his career as an independent artist. Under the new deal, Kendrick Lamar’s projects, including his upcoming debut studio album Good Kid in a Mad City will be jointly released via Top Dawg, Aftermath and Interscope, while releases from the rest of Black Hippy will be distributed via Top Dawg and Interscope.^[19]

Lamar premiered "The Recipe", his debut single and the lead single from Good Kid in a Mad City, at Power 106 on April 2, 2012. The track was released for digital download the following day. The song was produced by Scoop DeVille and features Dr. Dre.^{[citation needed]}

It was announced on May 14, 2012, that Lamar is working on a collaborative album with J. Cole. In an interview with Bootleg Kev, Cole stated that "I just started working with Kendrick the other day. We got it in, finally, again. We got maybe four or five [songs] together."

Personal life[link]

In high school, Centennial in Compton, Lamar was a good student.^[4] Lamar said that he has seen relatives who have died in his dreams for years. Tupac Shakur is also his favorite rapper, and influences not only his music, but his day-to-day lifestyle as well. In terms of subject matter, Kendrick Lamar has often been compared to Tupac Shakur. ^[6][20][21] He revealed that his favorite and most influential rappers are Tupac Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G., Nas, Jay-Z and his label-mate Eminem.

Discography[link]

• Section.80 (2011)
• Good Kid in a Mad City (2012)

References[link]