Jared Bridgeman, better known by his stage name Akrobatik, is an American rapper from the
Dorchester neighborhood of
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
.
He is also a part of the hip hop collective named
The Perceptionists
The Perceptionists is an American hip hop group from Boston, Massachusetts. The group initially had three members: Mr. Lif, Akrobatik, and DJ Fakts One. The group was signed to the Definitive Jux label. In 2005, the trio released a studio albu ...
with
Mr. Lif
Jeffrey Haynes (born December 28, 1977), better known by his stage name Mr. Lif, is an American rapper from Boston, Massachusetts. While being praised because of his political lyrics, he has released two studio albums on Definitive Jux and one ...
and
DJ Fakts One
Fakts One (born April 6, 1977) is an American hip hop DJ & producer from Boston, Massachusetts. Fakts One was a founding member of the hip hop group The Perceptionists with long-time collaborators Akrobatik and Mr. Lif but left the group shortly ...
, which released ''
Black Dialogue
''Black Dialogue'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop group The Perceptionists. It was released on Definitive Jux on March 22, 2005.
Critical reception
At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from m ...
'' in 2005.
[
]
Career
In 1998, Akrobatik released his first single, "Ruff Enough", on Boston's Detonator Records label. It was followed by "Internet MCs" and "Say Yes Say Word".[
His music has appeared on television series such as HBO's '']The Wire
''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...
'' and ESPN's ''Playmakers
''Playmakers'' is an American drama series that aired on ESPN from August 26 to November 11, 2003. It depicted the lives of the Cougars, a fictional professional football team in an unidentified city. The show starred Omar Gooding, Marcello Thed ...
'', in films such as ''Date Movie
''Date Movie'' is a 2006 American romantic comedy parody film written by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, directed by Seltzer, and produced by Paul Schiff and Friedberg. It was released on February 17, 2006 by 20th Century Fox and stars Alys ...
'' and ''Wholetrain
''Wholetrain'' is a 2006 German drama film directed by . It portraits a group of friends spraying Graffitis on trains at night.
Cast
* Elyas M'Barek - Elyas
* - David
* - Tino
* Jacob Matschenz - Achim
* Alexander Held
Gerald Alexander Held ...
'', and in video games such as '' NBA Live '06'', ''Amplitude
The amplitude of a periodic variable is a measure of its change in a single period (such as time or spatial period). The amplitude of a non-periodic signal is its magnitude compared with a reference value. There are various definitions of amplit ...
'', ''Frequency'', and '' Need for Speed: Most Wanted''.
In 2003, Akrobatik released an album, ''Balance
Balance or balancing may refer to:
Common meanings
* Balance (ability) in biomechanics
* Balance (accounting)
* Balance or weighing scale
* Balance as in equality or equilibrium
Arts and entertainment Film
* ''Balance'' (1983 film), a Bulgarian ...
'', on Coup D'état. It ranked at number 4 on CMJ
CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events and online media company, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music Monthly'' and ''CMJ New Music Report''. Th ...
's "Hip-Hop 2003" chart.
In December 2005, Akrobatik signed to Fat Beats Records. The Brooklyn-based label released his second studio album, ''Absolute Value
In mathematics, the absolute value or modulus of a real number x, is the non-negative value without regard to its sign. Namely, , x, =x if is a positive number, and , x, =-x if x is negative (in which case negating x makes -x positive), an ...
'', in 2008. It received positive reviews from AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
, ''HipHopDX
''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of hip hop music criticism and news. The website's current president and publisher is Sharath Cherian and the Head Of Content is Jerry L. Barrow. ''HipHopDX'' is the flagship publication of Cheri Media Group.
...
'', Okayplayer
Okayplayer is an online hip-hop and alternative music website and community, described by ''Rolling Stone'' as a "tastemaker" and "an antidote to dull promotional Web sites used by most artists".
The community was founded by The Roots' drummer ...
, and ''PopMatters
''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
''.
In 2011, Akrobatik suffered a ruptured heart valve and was rushed to Massachusetts General Hospital
Massachusetts General Hospital (Mass General or MGH) is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School located in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the third oldest general hospital in the United Stat ...
, where he underwent an emergency valve replacement surgery. In 2014, he released an album, ''Built to Last'', which was listed by ''Spin
Spin or spinning most often refers to:
* Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning
* Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis
* Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...
'' as one of the 40 best hip-hop albums of the year.
Discography
Studio albums
* ''Balance
Balance or balancing may refer to:
Common meanings
* Balance (ability) in biomechanics
* Balance (accounting)
* Balance or weighing scale
* Balance as in equality or equilibrium
Arts and entertainment Film
* ''Balance'' (1983 film), a Bulgarian ...
'' (2003)
* ''Absolute Value
In mathematics, the absolute value or modulus of a real number x, is the non-negative value without regard to its sign. Namely, , x, =x if is a positive number, and , x, =-x if x is negative (in which case negating x makes -x positive), an ...
'' (2008)
* ''Built to Last'' (2014)
Compilation albums
* ''Detonator Records Vol.1 Compilation'' (2002)
* ''The Lost Adats'' (2003)
* ''Essential Akrobatik, Vol. 1'' (2007)
EPs
* ''The EP'' (2002)
Singles
* "Ruff Enuff" b/w "Woman" (1998)
* "Say Yes Say Word" (1999)
* "Internet MCs" (2000)
* "U Got It" (2001)
* ”Hypocrite" b/w "Strictly for the DJ's" (2002)
* "Remind My Soul" (2003)
* "A to the K" b/w "Beast Mode" (2006)
* "Put Ya Stamp on It" (2008)
* "Alive" (2012)
* "Adapt and Prosper" (2017)
* "Verbal Assault" (2017)
Guests appearances
* Mr. Lif
Jeffrey Haynes (born December 28, 1977), better known by his stage name Mr. Lif, is an American rapper from Boston, Massachusetts. While being praised because of his political lyrics, he has released two studio albums on Definitive Jux and one ...
– "Avengers" from ''Enter the Colossus'' (2000)
* 7L & Esoteric
7L & Esoteric (7LES) are an underground hip hop duo from Boston, Massachusetts, known for battle rhymes and boom bap production. 7L is the duo's DJ/ producer and Esoteric is the MC. 7L & Esoteric are both prominent members of underground hip ...
– "State of the Art" from ''The Soul Purpose'' (2001)
* Mr. Lif – "Intro (Missing Person's File)" from ''Emergency Rations
Emergency rations are items of food and drink that a person stores and relies on in case of an emergency. Emergency food supplies can be purchased for camping trips or wilderness adventures. These supplies are meant to last for several days. M ...
'' (2002)
* Mr. Lif – "Post Mortem" from ''I Phantom
''I Phantom'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Mr. Lif. It was produced mostly by alternative hip hop artist El-P, among others, at Boston Butta Beats in Boston and the New York City-based Steel Acres, The Danger Room, and Def Jux Stud ...
'' (2002)
* Push Button Objects
Edgar Farinas, (born December 7, 1974), better known by his stage name Push Button Objects (abbreviated PBO), is an American hip hop producer from Miami, Florida. He is one half of Ko-Wreck Technique along with DJ Craze. Push Button Objects has r ...
– "Fly" from ''Ghetto Blaster
A boombox is a transistorized portable music player featuring one or two cassette tape recorder/players and AM/FM radio, generally with a carrying handle. Beginning in the mid 1980s, a CD player was often included. Sound is delivered throug ...
'' (2003)
* Raw Produce – "Rick Cerrone" from ''The Feeling of Now'' (2004)
* Mr. Lif – "Mo' Mega" from '' Mo' Mega'' (2006)
* The Mighty Underdogs
The Mighty Underdogs is an American hip hop supergroup from the San Francisco Bay Area. It consists of rappers Gift of Gab and Lateef the Truthspeaker and producer Headnodic.
History
The Mighty Underdogs was formed when Lateef the Truthspeaker, p ...
– "Escape" from '' Droppin' Science Fiction'' (2008)
* Effect – "Crush the Competition" from ''Fine Tuned Tantrum'' (2008)
* Fabio Musta – "I Still Want More" from ''Passport'' (2009)
* Virtuoso – "No Fear" from ''The Final Conflict'' (2011)
* Mister Jason – "Mister Jason Has a Posse" (2011)
* Snowgoons
History
Snowgoons is a German underground hip hop production team composed of DJ Illegal (Manuu Rückert) and Det Gunner (D. Keller). In 2011, producers Sicknature (Jeppe Andersen) from Denmark and J.S. Kuster (Johann Sebastian Kuster) from Ger ...
– "The Real Talk" from ''Black Snow 2'' (2013)
* DJ Nefarious – "Classic Mindset" from ''Classic Mindset'' (2014)
* Golden Brown Sound – "Fight" from ''Great Man Theory'' (2014)
* N.B.S. – "We on That" from ''Budavets'' (2014)
* Thoughtsarizen – "Trippin (Kelly Dean Remix)" from ''Traveling Dragon Man'' (2015)
* Reks
Corey Isiah Christie (born August 24, 1977), better known as Reks (styled in all caps as REKS), is an American rapper. Reks emerged from Lawrence, Massachusetts' underground rap scene. His debut underground album, ''Along Came The Chosen'', w ...
– "Plane Gang" from ''The Greatest X'' (2016)
* Ripshop & Reel Drama – "Real as They Come" from ''Regime Change'' (2016)
* L'Orange & Mr. Lif – "The Scribe" and "Strange Technology" from ''The Life & Death of Scenery'' (2016)
* The Funk Junkie – "Touch the Ground" from ''Moondirt'' (2017)
* Ben Shorr – "Over The Bullshit" from ''Pyrokinesis'' (2017)
* Craig G - "Wake up Dead" from ''The 20/20 Ep'' (2020)
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Akrobatik
African-American male rappers
American male rappers
Living people
Rappers from Boston
East Coast hip hop musicians
20th-century American rappers
21st-century American rappers
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
Year of birth missing (living people)
20th-century African-American musicians
21st-century African-American musicians
Rappers from Massachusetts