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Fade To Black (documentary)
''Fade to Black'' is a 2004 documentary film about the career of American rapper Jay-Z. It also features many other famous names in hip hop music. This live concert at Madison Square Garden was meant to be Jay-Z's final performance, as he announced his intentions to retire from the industry. ''Fade to Black'' runs through some of the major parts of Jay-Z's Madison Square Garden performance while cutting to Jay-Z and his exploits, as well as insights into the making of '' The Black Album''. Cast The following musicians are credited with an appearance in the film: *Jay-Z *Mary J. Blige * Foxy Brown * Diddy *Damon Dash *Missy Elliott *R. Kelly *Beyoncé Knowles * Usher References External links * *Fade to Black' at the TCM Movie Database Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bob Ezrin
Robert Alan Ezrin (born March 25, 1949) is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, best known for his work with Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Peter Gabriel, Andrea Bocelli and Phish. As of 2010, Ezrin's career in music had spanned four decades and his production work continued into the 21st century, with acts such as Deftones and Thirty Seconds to Mars. Ezrin is the winner of three Juno Awards. In 2011, he was awarded the Special Achievement Award at the 2011 SOCAN Awards held in Toronto. Early life Ezrin was born in Toronto, Ontario, on March 25, 1949. His family is Jewish. He resided in the Forest Hill area of Toronto. Music and production career As of 2014, Ezrin continues to work as a record producer, arranger and songwriter, in addition to being involved with a variety of other projects in digital media, live production, film, television, and theatrical production. Ezrin has worked on recordings with numerous major artists, in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Usher (entertainer)
Usher Raymond IV (born October 14, 1978) is an American R&B singer. He was born in Dallas, Texas, but raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee, until moving to Atlanta, Georgia. At the age of 12, his mother put him in local singing competitions before catching the attention of a music A&R from LaFace Records. He released his self-titled debut album '' Usher'' (1994), and rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his second album ''My Way'' (1997). It spawned his first U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 number-one single "Nice & Slow", and the top-two singles " You Make Me Wanna..." and "My Way". His third album, '' 8701'' (2001), produced the number-one singles "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad", as well as the top-three single "U Don't Have to Call". It sold eight million copies worldwide and won his first two Grammy Awards as Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 2002 and 2003. '' Confessions'' (2004) established him as one of the bestselling musical artists of the 2000s decade, cont ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinctive "stuttering" rhythmic style. In 2007, ''Entertainment Weekly'' stated that "just about every current pop trend can be traced back to him — from sultry, urban-edged R&B songstresses ... to the art of incorporating avant-garde sounds into No. 1 hits." Timbaland's first full credit production work was in 1996 on '' Ginuwine...the Bachelor'' for R&B singer Ginuwine. Further work on Aaliyah's second studio album '' One in a Million'' (1996) and Missy Elliott's debut studio album ''Supa Dupa Fly'' (1997) made him a prominent producer for R&B and hip hop artists. As a rapper he initially released several albums with fellow rapper Magoo, followed by his debut solo album '' Tim's Bio'' in 1998. In 2002, Timbaland produced the hit single ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Questlove
Ahmir Khalib Thompson (born January 20, 1971), known professionally as Questlove (stylized as ), is an American musician, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman (with Black Thought) for the hip hop band the Roots. The Roots have been serving as the in-house band for ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' since 2014, having the same role in ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon''. Questlove is also one of the producers of the cast album of the Broadway musical ''Hamilton''. He is the co-founder of the websites Okayplayer and OkayAfrica. Additionally, he is an adjunct professor at the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at New York University. Questlove has produced recordings for artists including Elvis Costello, Common, D'Angelo, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Bilal, Jay-Z, Nikka Costa, and more recently, Booker T. Jones, Al Green, Amy Winehouse, and John Legend. He is a member of the production teams the Soulquar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slick Rick
Richard Martin Lloyd Walters (born January 14, 1965), better known as Slick Rick, is an English-American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence with Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew in the mid-1980s. Their songs " The Show" and "La Di Da Di" are considered early hip hop classics. "La Di Da Di" is one of the most sampled songs in history. In 1986, Slick Rick became the third artist signed to Def Jam Records. He has released four albums: ''The Great Adventures of Slick Rick'' (1988), '' The Ruler's Back'' (1991), '' Behind Bars'' (1994) and ''The Art of Storytelling'' (1999). His music has been sampled and interpolated over 1,000 times, in dozens of songs by artists, including Eminem, Beyoncé, Mariah Carey, Beastie Boys, TLC, Nas, Miley Cyrus, Kanye West, Black Star, The Notorious B.I.G., Snoop Dogg, MC Ren, Montell Jordan and Color Me Badd. In the process, Slick Rick has become one of the most-sampled hip-hop artists ever. Many of these songs based on Slick Ric ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beanie Sigel
Dwight Equan Grant (born March 6, 1974), better known by his stage name Beanie Sigel, is an American rapper from South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He first became known for his association with Jay-Z and Roc-A-Fella Records, releasing his debut studio album ''The Truth'' through Roc-A-Fella in February 2000 to critical and commercial success. Sigel's second studio album, '' The Reason'', saw similar commercial success, but received mixed reviews from critics. His third album, '' The B. Coming'', was critically acclaimed and peaked at number 3 on the Billboard 200. After a short break from music, Sigel returned to Roc-A-Fella in 2007 and released his fourth studio album '' The Solution'' in December 2007 to positive reviews. After leaving Roc-A-Fella once again, Sigel's fifth and sixth studio albums, ''The Broad Street Bully'' and '' This Time'' were released independently in 2009 and 2012, respectively. Sigel is also known for his numerous legal issues, including a trial for at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rick Rubin
Frederick Jay Rubin (; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer. He is the co-founder (alongside Russell Simmons) of Def Jam Recordings, founder of American Recordings, and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin helped popularise hip hop by producing records for acts such as the Beastie Boys, Geto Boys, Run-DMC, Public Enemy, and LL Cool J. He has also produced hit records for acts from a variety of other genres, predominantly heavy metal ( Danzig, System of a Down, Metallica, and Slayer), alternative rock (The Cult, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Strokes, and Weezer), and country (Johnny Cash and The Chicks). In 2007, Rubin was called "the most important producer of the last 20 years" by MTVWhat's Up With That Bearded Guy From The '99 Problems' Video? – MTV.c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Q-Tip (rapper)
Kamaal Ibn John Fareed (born Jonathan William Davis, April 10, 1970), better known by his stage name Q-Tip, is an American rapper, record producer, singer, and DJ. Nicknamed The Abstract, he is noted for his innovative jazz-influenced style of hip hop production and his philosophical, esoteric and introspective lyrical themes. He embarked on his music career in the late 1980s, as an MC and main producer of the influential alternative hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. In the mid-1990s, he co-founded the production team The Ummah, followed by the release of his gold-certified solo debut '' Amplified'' in 1999. In the following decade, he released the Grammy Award-nominated album ''The Renaissance'' (2008) and the experimental album ''Kamaal the Abstract'' (2009). As an actor, Q-Tip has appeared in various films such as ''Poetic Justice'', ''She Hate Me'' and ''Prison Song'', the latter of which he co-wrote and played the lead role. As a DJ, he has hosted the Apple Music 1 radi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freeway (rapper)
Leslie Edward Pridgen (born August 6, 1978), better known by his stage name Freeway, is an American rapper from North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is best known as a member of the rap group State Property, during his time with Roc-A-Fella Records alongside Jay-Z. In 2009, Freeway was briefly signed to Cash Money Records, but returned to work again with Jay-Z at the mogul's entertainment organization and record label, Roc Nation, with his 2018 album ''Think Free''. Life and career Early life and career beginnings Freeway was born Leslie Pridgen on August 6, 1978. He adopted his moniker from the name of the infamous drug trafficker "Freeway" Rick Ross as he found no one wanted to listen to a rapper named Leslie. Freeway began his career by participating in freestyle battles in his high school and met fellow Philadelphia native Beanie Sigel, while rapping on stage at a hometown nightclub. Not long after being signed to Roc-A-Fella Records, Sigel put in a word for Freeway, w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Funkmaster Flex
Aston George Taylor Jr. (born August 5, 1968), professionally known as Funkmaster Flex, is an American DJ, rapper, record producer, and host on New York City's Hot 97 radio station. In 1992, he became host of the first hip hop radio show on Hot 97 in New York, which was a pop radio station at the time. Early life Aston Taylor Jr. was born in the Bronx borough of New York City to Jamaican immigrant parents. His father, DJ Aston George Taylor Sr., was a sound system professional. He was raised in a strict, religious household. At the age of 16, he began DJing at local nightclubs. Radio career By the age of 19, he began working with fellow Bronx native Chuck Chillout for WRKS 98.7 Kiss-FM in New York. He later left KISS, and spent a brief period at 107.5 WBLS-FM.Shapiro, Peter (2005) ''The Rough Guide to Hip-Hop'', Rough Guides, , p.149-150 In the early 1990s, Flex made club appearances at many of Vito Bruno's operated nightclubs. Bruno later convinced Joel Salkowitz, a regional ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Just Blaze
Justin Gregory Smith (born January 8, 1978), known professionally as Just Blaze, is an American hip hop record producer and DJ. Born in Paterson, New Jersey, Blaze attended Rutgers University for three years before dropping out to pursue his musical career. His stage name was inspired by the character Blaze Fielding from the '' Streets of Rage'' video game series. Blaze gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the early 2000s, pioneering the " chipmunk soul" sampling style that was prominent in the early to mid-2000s hip-hop scene. He appears in the video for the third single from Eminem's 2010 album ''Recovery'' entitled "No Love", which he produced. Blaze is also the CEO of Fort Knocks Entertainment. He has also composed soundtracks for video games, and was a character in ''NBA Street Vol. 2'' . His hometown of Paterson honored him in July 2018 with a key to the city in recognition of his "outstanding cultural contribution" to the city.Kuperinsky Amy"Oh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ghostface Killah
Dennis Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of ''Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)'', the members went on to pursue solo careers to varying levels of success. Ghostface Killah debuted his solo career with '' Ironman'', which was well received by music critics, in 1996. He has enjoyed continued success in the years that have followed, releasing critically acclaimed albums such as ''Supreme Clientele'' (2000) and ''Fishscale'' (2006). His stage name was taken from one of the characters in the 1979 kung fu film '' Mystery of Chessboxing''. He is the founder of his own record label, Starks Enterprises. Ghostface Killah is critically acclaimed for his loud, fast-paced flow, and his emotional stream-of-consciousness narratives containing cryptic slang and non-sequiturs. In 2006, MTV included him as an "honourable me ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
