Charles Smith (born September 30, 1985), better known as Blaqstarr or DJ Blaqstarr, is 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 ...
, singer,
producer and DJ. He is best known for his work with
M.I.A.
Biography
Blaqstarr had local success in the early 2000s with the songs "Get My Gun", "Ryda Girl", "Jiggle It", "Hands Up Thumbs Down" and "Feel It In the Air", released via Starr Productions.
[ DJ Blaqstarrat ]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 ...
In 2005, he contributed songs such as "Tote It" to the album ''Operation Playtime'' and the songs "Supastarr" and "So Horney" to the album ''Baltimore Club 9''.
In December 2005,
M.I.A. travelled to America to work with Blaqstarr on her second album, telling ''
The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'', "I arrived at 9 am and he'd been arrested at seven; he was still up from the night before. That's his studio, and it's got a washer-dryer in the back and a sofa bed, that's his whole set-up; that's why he doesn't make it out of Baltimore."
"Shake It to The Ground" featured
Rye Rye
Ryeisha Berrain (born November 25, 1990), known by her stage name Rye Rye, is an American rapper, singer, dancer and actress. Signed to N.E.E.T. Recordings, she released her first mixtape RYEot PowRR in 2011 and her anticipated debut album ''Go! P ...
, an affiliate of Blaqstarr's in Baltimore, became a club hit in 2006. Blaqstarr introduced Rye Rye to M.I.A. after the singer asked for a meeting, leading to both touring with the artist and collaborations on her album ''
Kala
Kala or Kalah may refer to:
Religion Hinduism
*Kāla, a Sanskrit word meaning ''time''
*Kāla, a Hindu deity of time, destiny, death and destruction closely related to Yama and Shiva.
*Kalā, a Sanskrit word meaning ''performing arts''
* Kala Bo, ...
'' which led to wide recognition.
His EP, ''Supastarr'', was released, its first single being the rereleased "Shake It To the Ground" for which a music video was made,
and another EP, titled ''Shake It To the Ground'' was also released in 2007.
In January 2008, Blaqstarr released the album ''King of Roq''. He toured with Diplo, M.I.A. and Rye Rye, and participated in the
Rock the Bells
Rock the Bells was an annual hip-hop festival that originally took place in Southern California only, but has since toured throughout the world. The concert featured a line-up of high-profile alternative hip-hop artists, often headlined by a mor ...
tour. He also produced and recorded tracks with M.I.A.,
Mos Def
Yasiin Bey (; born Dante Terrell Smith, December 11, 1973), previously and more commonly known by his stage name Mos Def (), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. His hip hop career began in 1994, alongside his siblings in the s ...
,
Switch
In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type of ...
and Rye Rye. In June 2008, he contributed a track to the album ''Hollertronix 8'', along with DJ Sega.
In early 2009, Blaqstarr released a single in collaboration with the DJ
Diplo
Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...
titled "Get Off". M.I.A. and Blaqstarr released a song and video "Way Down in the Hole" following him signing to the
N.E.E.T. Recordings
N.E.E.T. Recordings was a vanity record label of Sri Lankan English hip hop recording artist M.I.A. as an imprint of Interscope Records in 2008. N.E.E.T. is an acronym for " Not in Education, Employment or Training".
The first artist signed to ...
record label. He also produced some of the tracks for the 2009
K-Swift album ''Greatest Hits''.
In 2009, Blaqstarr was chosen to perform at the People's Inaugural Ball in Washington D.C., one of the
unofficial pre-inaugural events which took place in the days leading up to the
inauguration of Barack Obama.
Blaqstarr was on the lineup for the
SXSW
South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...
Festival, which took place in Austin, Texas, from March 13 to 22, 2009. He released an EP entitled "The Divine" on January 25, 2011. It includes six songs: "All The World", "Rider Girl", "Oh My Darlin'", "Divine", "Wonder Women" and "Turning Out".
Critical reception
Music critic Chris Richards of ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', in reviewing the 2008 recording ''I'm Bangin' 2'', wrote, "If Blaqstarr's hallucinogenic odes to sex, drugs and Baltimore don't make him a legend in his day, they should certainly cement his cult status in some dystopian future." ''
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 ...
'' wrote, regarding ''King of Roq'', "Much of the music sounds like standard hip-hop fare but sped up to Alvin & the Chipmunks speed; it's fast, furious and dirty."
Discography
EPs
* ''Supastarr'' (2007)
* ''Shake It to the Ground (feat.
Rye Rye
Ryeisha Berrain (born November 25, 1990), known by her stage name Rye Rye, is an American rapper, singer, dancer and actress. Signed to N.E.E.T. Recordings, she released her first mixtape RYEot PowRR in 2011 and her anticipated debut album ''Go! P ...
)'' (Mad Decent, 2007)
* ''Hollertronix #8'' (2008)
* ''
The Divine EP'' (2011)
* The Blaq Files (2014)
* Trinity EP, vol 1 (2014)
* Trinity EP, vol 1.5 (2014)
* Moan Her Lease Her (2016)
* M.I.A Aim. (2017)
Mixtapes
* ''Blaqstarr The Mixtape'' (2011)
Videography
* 2007: "Shake It To The Ground"
* 2009: "S.U.S. (Save Ur Souls)/Way Down In The Hole" w/
M.I.A.
* 2010: "Oh My Darlin'"
* 2011: "Rider Gyrl"
* 2011: "Never Hesitant"
* 2014: "Dear Diamond" ft Common
References
External links
*
Blaqstarr at AllMusic*
Interview, HitQuarters July 2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blaqstarr
American male singers
American hip hop record producers
American DJs
Rappers from Baltimore
American hip hop singers
Living people
1985 births
21st-century American rappers
21st-century American male musicians
African-American male rappers
21st-century African-American musicians
20th-century African-American people