Edward Lee Knight (November 2, 1971 – July 24, 2001), best known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Big Ed the Assassin, often shortened to Big Ed, was an American

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

. Knight was signed to

Master P Percy Robert Miller Sr. (born April 29, 1967), known by his stage name Master P, is an American rapper, record executive, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the founder of the record label No Limit Records, which was relaunched as ...

No Limit Records No Limit Records is an American record company founded by Master P. The label's albums were distributed by Priority Records, Universal and Koch Records. The label included artists such as Snoop Dogg, Mercedes, Silkk the Shocker, Mystikal, Mia X, ...

in 1992, and appeared on numerous No Limit releases during the 1990s, contributing to releases by

C-Murder Corey Miller (born March 9, 1971), better known by his stage name C-Murder, is an American rapper and songwriter. He initially gained fame in the mid-1990s as a part of his brother Master P's label No Limit Records, primarily as a member of the ...

, Mac,

Soulja Slim James Adarryl Tapp Jr. (September 9, 1977 – November 26, 2003), better known by his stage name Soulja Slim, was an American rapper and songwriter. He is perhaps best known for featuring on the U.S. number one hit "Slow Motion". Early life Jam ...

and more. Knight later released his debut album, The Assassin through No Limit Records in 1998. Knight would go on to leave No Limit in 2000, starting his own label, Special Forces Records. Knight released his second album,

Special Forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

, through the label on May 9, 2000. Knights third and final album, Edward Lee Knight 1971-2001, was released posthumously in August 2002.

Early life

Knight was born in

Richmond, California Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was municipal corporation, incorporated on August 7, 1905, and has a Richmond, California City Council, city council.

, and attended Eastern Washington University from 1992 to 1993 on a basketball scholarship, but dropped out to pursue a career in rap music in the Bay Area with

's West Coast Bad Boy Clique.

Career

Big Ed was an original member of the rap group TRU (The Real Untouchables), appearing on the group's first three albums, '' Who's Da Killer?'', ''

Understanding the Criminal Mind ''Understanding the Criminal Mind'' is the debut album released by TRU. It was released in 1992 for In-a-Minute Records and was produced by Master P, E-A-Ski, CMT and K-Lou. It was later re-released in 1998 for No Limit Records No Limit Record ...

'' and ''

True True most commonly refers to truth, the state of being in congruence with fact or reality. True may also refer to: Places * True, West Virginia, an unincorporated community in the United States * True, Wisconsin, a town in the United States * ...

''. Throughout the 90s, Ed had guest spots on many of No Limit's other releases such as Master P's '' 99 Ways to Die'',

Silkk the Shocker Vyshonn King Miller (born June 18, 1975), better known by his stage name Silkk the Shocker, is an American rapper and actor. He originally went under the stage name Silkk, but later adopted Silkk the Shocker after the release of his first album ...

's debut '' The Shocker'' and

Mia X Mia Young (born January 9, 1970), better known by her stage name Mia X, is an American rapper and songwriter. She was the first female emcee to get a contract with rapper and entertainment magnate, Master P on his successful record label N ...

's ''

Unlady Like ''Unlady Like'' is the second album by American rapper Mia X. It was released on June 24, 1997, on No Limit Records, distributed by Priority Records and EMI, and featured production from Beats By the Pound. The album made it to #21 on the ''B ...

''.

Solo career

The Assassin and Special Forces Records

His debut album, '' The Assassin'', was released on September 1, 1998, and peaked at #15 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and #3 on the

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...

. In 2000, Big Ed left No Limit to start his own record label, Special Forces Records. He released his second album through this label, 2000's ''

'', which featured contributions from his former No Limit labelmates.

Death

Big Ed the Assassin died from lymphoma cancer on July 8, 2001. His third album, '' Edward Lee Knight 1971-2001'', was released

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' (E ...

the next month.

Discography

Studio albums

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Big Ed 1971 births 2001 deaths African-American male rappers American male rappers Musicians from Richmond, California West Coast hip hop musicians No Limit Records artists Rappers from California Gangsta rappers 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century African-American musicians Deaths from lymphoma Deaths from cancer in Louisiana