Mark Julian Felder (born July 21, 1983), more commonly known under simply Bizzle, is an American

Christian hip hop Christian hip hop (originally gospel rap, also known as Christian rap, gospel hip hop or holy hip hop) is a subgenre of contemporary Christian music and hip hop music. It emerged from urban contemporary music and Christian media in the United S ...

recording artist and entrepreneur. In January 2010, Bizzle released "You Got Some Explaining to Do" directed towards

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...

, calling the rap icon out on his negative references towards Jesus and Christianity in his music. The video caused much controversy and generated a buzz that even Bizzle couldn't anticipate. He released a statement in an interview with AllHipHop.com. He released his first mixtape, ''The Messenger'', in March 2010. Shortly after the release, he founded God Over Money Records in Houston, Texas. Since its creation, the label has released eight mixtapes, a collaborative album with artist Willie 'P-Dub' Moore Jr., three full-length studio albums, and signed two artists. Bizzle released his debut album, ''

Tough Love & Parables Tough Love & Parables is Bizzle Mark Julian Felder (born July 21, 1983), more commonly known under simply Bizzle, is an American Christian hip hop recording artist and entrepreneur. In January 2010, Bizzle released "You Got Some Explainin ...

'', on June 21, 2011 which debuted at No. 15 on the ''Billboard'' Gospel Albums chart. It appeared on the

iTunes Store The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...

swoosh= banner. ''

The Good Fight ''The Good Fight'' is an American legal drama produced for CBS's streaming service CBS All Access (later Paramount+). It is the platform's first original scripted series. The series, created by Robert King, Michelle King, and Phil Alden Robin ...

'' was released on May 7, 2013 and debuted at No. 2 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

s Gospel Albums chart, No. 7 on

Christian Albums Top Christian Albums is a weekly chart published in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the best-performing Christian albums in the United States. Like the ''Billboard'' 200, the data is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan based on each album's weekly ...

, No. 11 on

Top Rap 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 Jan ...

, and sold a total of 3,962 copies in its first week. Bizzle received nominations for ''Rap/Hip Hop Gospel CD of The Year'' at both the 2012 & 2014

Stellar Awards A Stellar Award is an award presented by SAGMA to recognize achievements in the Gospel music, gospel music industry.Sagma< ...

, sharing the category with artists

Derek Minor Derek Johnson, Jr., better known by his stage name Derek Minor and former stage name PRo, (born December 16, 1984) is an American Christian hip hop artist, singer, record producer, entrepreneur, actor, and screenwriter. He co-founded the hip-hop ...

Lecrae Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979), mononymously known as Lecrae, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record and film producer, record executive, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the president, co-owner and co-founder of the ind ...

, and

Thi'sl Travis Tremayne Tyler, (born March 17, 1977) better known by the stage name Thi'sl is an American Christian hip hop producer and songwriter from St. Louis, Missouri. In 2007 Thi'sl was signed to the record label X-Hustler where he recorded thr ...

. He also received three nominations at the 2012 & 2013 ''Kingdom Choice Awards'' and although he didn't win any in 2012, he won all three categories in 2013 for ''Rap Single of The Year'', ''Hip Hop Album of The Year'', and ''Music Video of The Year''. Bizzle caused a commotion in the media when he released ''Same Love: A Response'', the artist's reaction to a controversial wedding ceremony broadcast during the

56th Annual Grammy Awards The 56th Annual Grammy Awards presentation was held on January 26, 2014, at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The show was broadcast on CBS at 8 p.m. ET/PT and was hosted for the third time by LL Cool J. The show was moved to January to avoid comp ...

. As expected, the response track received a lot of media attention. Due to the extremely angry response Felder received, he created a website to draw attention to the apparent lack of tolerance toward Christians and their differing views on the definition of marriage.

Life and career

Early life

Mark Felder was raised mostly by his mother in Los Angeles, California. His father stayed in Compton, California. As a child growing up, his family was quite poor living in Section 8 housing. Mark was around thirteen the first time he stepped in a music studio. Listening to

Tupac Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

, he began to establish a talent for writing rhymes but noticed that his content usually mimicked those he listened to, whether it was his uncle or other rappers. Topics like shooting or packing pistols. After graduating, Mark put out five mixtapes and began circulating them in malls, clubs, radio stations and anywhere else he could. He eventually got an opportunity to open up for

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman (rapper), ...

Juelz Santana LaRon Louis James (born February 18, 1982), better known by his stage name Juelz Santana, is an American rapper and member of East Coast hip hop group The Diplomats, also known as Dipset. He is best known for his appearances on Cam'ron's 2002 si ...

during their ''I Can't Feel My Face'' tour. He also opened up for

Lil Boosie Torence Ivy Hatch (born November 14, 1982), better known by his stage name Boosie BadAzz or simply Boosie (formerly Lil Boosie), is an American rapper. Hatch began rapping in the 1990s as a member of the hip hop collective Concentration Camp, ev ...

. While trying to move his music, his financial situation got worse. As he stated in an interview, his "financial situation got so bad he was sleeping on a friend's floor and his car was a closet for his clothes." Mark began selling drugs and even became a

pimp Procuring or pandering is the facilitation or provision of a prostitute or other sex worker in the arrangement of a sex act with a customer. A procurer, colloquially called a pimp (if male) or a madam (if female, though the term pimp has still ...

to fund his music career and to maintain a certain image around those he aspired to become like in the industry.

2004–08 L.A.V. Mixtapes

Between the years 2004–2008 Bizzle released ''L.A.V. Mixtapes'' Volumes 1–5 in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

. He then released ''Dirty West Mixtapes'' 1 and 2 with J. Sin and 360 Records in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, Texas, and returned to California to release, ''Certified Mixtape. In 2005 he was offered a deal by 360 Records out of Houston and declined. Two years later, Bizzle had been offered a deal by

Barry Hankerson Barry Hankerson (born August 3, 1947) is an American record producer, music label owner and manager. Hankerson is the founder of Blackground Records. He is the uncle of singer and actress Aaliyah. Career Born and raised in Harlem, New York C ...

to sign with

Blackground Blackground Records 2.0 (legal name Blackground Records, LLC, formerly known as Blackground Records) is an American record label founded and owned by Jomo and Barry Hankerson. Initially named Blackground Enterprises, the label switched its name t ...

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a ...

, but he also declined that offer. Bizzle spent three years preparing his debut album ''Grind Pays''. Multiple singles where spread causing his Myspace plays to increase over 500,000.

Conversion to Christianity

Not long after, Mark established the God Over Money Records recording label and began making music with a different purpose.

2008–11 ''The Jay-Z diss, The Messenger trilogy & Tough Love & Parables''

The influence of his Christianity and Mark's exposure to the dark side of hip hop ultimately prompted his questioning of the dark imagery that appears to be promoted through the music of rappers like Kanye West, Rick Ross, and Jay-Z. On January 17, 2010 he released the track "You Got Some Explaining to Do", a song directed towards

, exposing him for his negative references towards Jesus in his lyrics. The result of the

diss song A diss track, diss record or diss song (diss – abbr. from ''disrespect'') is a song whose primary purpose is to verbally attack someone else, usually another artist. Diss tracks are often the result of an existing, escalating feud between the ...

led Bizzle to being called the "Christian Rapper that dissed Jay Z". Overwhelmed by the positive response and media attention he received, Mark decided to set out making music that both proclaimed the Gospel of the Bible as truth and exposes the evil working within the music industry. He released his first Christian

mixtape A mixtape (alternatively mix-tape, mix tape or mixed tape) is a compilation of music, typically from multiple sources, recorded onto a medium. With origins in the 1980s, the term normally describes a homemade compilation of music onto a cassette ...

, ''The Messenger'', on March 30, 2010 on DatPiff. The mixtape received much success and has been downloaded over 1 million times since its release. ''The Messenger 2: Delivered'' & ''The Messenger 3: Truth Music'' followed in 2010 & 2011 respectively. On June 21, 2011, Felder released his first full-length studio album titled ''

''.

2012–14 ''BoBW, The Good Fight and working with Boi-1da''

On February 7, 2012 Felder and Willie Moore, Jr. released ''Best of Both Worlds: The Album''. They hit No. 5 spot on the iTunes Hip Hop/Rap Chart on their debut. On May 7, 2013, Bizzle released his second studio album ''The Good Fight''. The album features production-works from Grammy-winning producer

Boi-1da Matthew Jehu Samuels (born October 12, 1986), known professionally as Boi-1da ( , a play on "boy wonder"), is a Jamaican-Canadian Record production, record producer and songwriter based in Toronto, Ontario. The Toronto raised producer has work ...

. Originally set for an April 26, 2013 release, it was pushed-back to a later date. Its first single, "Soldier" was released January 26, 2013 and features

No Malice Gene Elliott Thornton Jr. (born August 18, 1972), better known by his stage name No Malice (formerly known as Malicious and later Malice), is an American rapper from Virginia Beach, Virginia. He is best known for being one half of hip hop duo C ...

and included a music video. Later singles were "Dear Hip-Hop" and "My Confession" (featuring Sevin). The album debuted on the ''Billboard''

at No. 11. His previous works with Boi-1da include "Forgive Me" released on March 16, 2011 which features rapper

MC Jin Jin Au-Yeung (; born June 4, 1982), known professionally as MC Jin, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor and comedian of Chinese descent. Jin is notable for being the first Asian American solo rapper to be signed to a major record label ...

and "Lost and Found" on his collaborative mixtape ''Martyrs in the Making'' with Bumps INF. Bizzle stated that Boi-1da reached out to him on YouTube stating his personal beliefs in Christianity and respect for Bizzle's work and worked free of charge. The collaborative work between the two was highlighted in the 2012 September edition of '' XXL''.

"Same Love" controversy

On January 28, 2014, Bizzle released a single entitled "Same Love (A Response)" that takes its cue from the pro-gay rights single "

Same Love Same may refer to: * Sameness or identity Places * Same (Homer), an island mentioned by Homer in the ''Odyssey'' * Same (polis), an ancient city * Same, East Timor Same ( ) is a town in the Same administrative post in the interior of East ...

" by

Macklemore Benjamin Hammond Haggerty (born June 19, 1983), better known by his stage name Macklemore ( ; (formerly Professor Macklemore), is an American rapper and songwriter. A native of Seattle, Washington, he has collaborated with producer Ryan Lewi ...

and

Ryan Lewis Ryan Scott Lewis (born March 25, 1988) is an American record producer, DJ, videographer, photographer, graphic designer, music video director, rapper, and songwriter. Along with producing his own album, ''Instrumentals'', Lewis produced the alb ...

. It opens with the rapper reciting a quotation from the Book of Timothy then leads into the same instrumental track as Macklemore's original. The song is critical of the media in its promotion of homosexuality, stating that it is hypocritical to call for tolerance for same-sex relationships while at the same time branding opponents of them as "hateful". He also takes offense at the analogy of gay rights with the civil rights struggle of blacks, He also encourages Christians who struggle with homosexuality to "fight the good fight". Three days after its release, the song garnered over 30,000 views on YouTube. ''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

'' called the track "very disturbing". '' The Advocate'', a newspaper that represents the LGBTQ+ community, said Bizzle's single "uses the instrumental hook from Macklemore's 'Same Love' to say that LGBT people are sinful, violent, and just like pedophiles." Bizzle has reported that he has received death threats because of the song, created a website that chronicles the backlash against him, and maintains that he is not homophobic but simply stating an opposing argument to that in popular media.

Justin Bieber Instagram handle controversy

On February 11, 2014,

US Magazine ''Us Weekly'' is a weekly celebrity and entertainment magazine based in New York City. ''Us Weekly'' was founded in 1977 by The New York Times Company, who sold it in 1980. It was acquired by Wenner Media in 1986, and sold to American Media Inc ...

reported that

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...

had changed his Instagram handle to 'bizzle' citing that "''the moniker ‘Bizzle’ actually belongs to a Christian rapper based in L.A.''"

Personal life

Felder was born and raised in Los Angeles. After 18 years of recording in Los Angeles, Bizzle relocated to

, Texas, where he currently lives with his wife and two children.

Discography

Albums

*2011: ''

'' *2012: ''Best of Both Worlds: The Album'' (with Willie 'P-Dub' Moore Jr.) *2013: ''

'' *2014: ''Well Wishes'' *2015: ''

Surrender Surrender may refer to: * Surrender (law), the early relinquishment of a tenancy * Surrender (military), the relinquishment of territory, combatants, facilities, or armaments to another power Film and television * ''Surrender'' (1927 film), an ...

'' *2016: '' Crowns and Crosses'' *2018: ''Light Work'' (EP) *2019: ''Light Work 2: Bars & Melodies'' *2020: ''The Messenger 4'' *2021: ''Soul Therapy'' (EP)

Mixtapes

*2010: ''The Messenger'' *2010: ''The Messenger 2: Delivered'' *2010: ''Best of Both Worlds: The Mixtape'' *2011: ''The Messenger 3: Truth Music'' *2012: ''Martyrs In the Making'' (Bizzle and Bumps INF) *2013: ''Martyrs In the Making 2'' (Bizzle, Bumps INF, Flo and Selah the Corner)

Additional label releases

*2010: ''Who is Mark James?'' (Bumps INF mixtape project) *2011: ''Who is Mark James 2?'' (Bumps INF re-release) *2012: ''Pain in Paragraphs'' (Bumps INF debut album)

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1983 births African-American Christians African-American male rappers American male rappers African-American poets African-American record producers American evangelicals American hip hop record producers Living people American performers of Christian hip hop music Rappers from Houston Songwriters from Texas West Coast hip hop musicians Southern hip hop musicians 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American poets Record producers from Texas 21st-century American male musicians African-American songwriters 21st-century African-American writers 20th-century African-American people American male songwriters