Besnik E. Sadikay (; born August 26, 1984), better known by the stage name Big Body Bes 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 ...

and

TV presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for people who garner ...

. He is best known for his association with

Action Bronson Ariyan Arslani (born December 2, 1983), professionally known as Action Bronson, is an American rapper, songwriter, chef, wrestler, exotic olive oil taster, and television presenter. Born and raised in Queens, New York, he embarked on his musical ...

, who describes Bes as his "Albanian cousin". He has been heavily featured on Action Bronson's musical and television projects.

Early life

Bes was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

n parents Erik Sadik and Elmia Sadikay immigrants from southern Albania in Gjirokastra and

Berat Berat (; sq-definite, Berati) is the ninth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Berat County and Berat Municipality. By air, it is north of Gjirokastër, west of Korçë, south of Tirana, and east of Fier. Berat is located in ...

in 1983. He was raised in

Spring Creek, Brooklyn Spring Creek, previously called Spring Creek Basin, is a neighborhood A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographic ...

in New York City with his brother Ilir. Bes met future collaborators Meyhem Lauren and Action Bronson at the age of 15. He sold drugs on the streets and first went to juvenile detention at age 13 for robbery and assault. He has also been arrested for trespassing, grand larceny and burglary. He eventually landed a job as a custodian in a bodega in East New York, Brooklyn. Bes received the nickname "Big Body" due to his large stature.

Career

Bes began his music career in 2011 at the age of 27, on Action Bronson's debut album ''Dr. Lecter'' with his forte of

spoken word Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...

, a strong composition of the elements of NYC street life, economic struggle and barbaric humor. Bes rejects the notion that he's a "hypeman" or that his features on Bronson's songs are "skits", going as far as to say "...I wouldn’t even call them features, I would call them experiences". He considers his "breakout" appearance to be his feature on "9-24-11" off Bronson's mixtape Blue Chips. Starting in 2016, Bes has also been on a TV show called '' Traveling the Stars: Action Bronson and Friends Watch 'Ancient Aliens'''. Other hosts include Action Bronson,

Knxwledge Glen Earl Boothe (born March 8, 1988), professionally known as Knxwledge (pronounced "knowledge"), is an American hip hop record producer and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California. Since 2009, he has had over 100 releases via Bandcamp. His ...

ScHoolboy Q Quincy Matthew Hanley (born October 26, 1986), better known by his stage name Schoolboy Q (stylized as ScHoolboy Q), is an American rapper. In 2009, Hanley signed to Carson-based independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) and in late ...

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Tyler, The Creator Tyler Gregory Okonma (born March 6, 1991), known professionally as Tyler, the Creator, is an American rapper and record producer. He is one of the founding members of the music collective Odd Future. Okonma self-released his debut mixtape ' ...

Andy Milonakis Andrew Michael Milonakis (; born January 30, 1976) is an American actor, comedian, rapper, and streamer. He is best known for his work on '' The Andy Milonakis Show'', a sketch comedy series that aired on MTV and MTV2 from 2005 to 2007. Othe ...

Dirt Nasty Simon Rex Cutright (born July 20, 1974), is an American actor, rapper, comedian, and former model. Rising to fame as an MTV VJ, Rex later became an actor known for '' What I Like About You'', starring in three films of the ''Scary Movie'' fr ...

MC Eiht Aaron Tyler (born May 22, 1971), better known by his stage name MC Eiht (pronounced MC eight), is an American rapper and actor. Many of his songs are based on his life in Compton. His stage name was partly inspired by the numeral in KRS-One's nam ...

The Alchemist An alchemist is a person who practices alchemy. Alchemist or Alchemyst may also refer to: Books and stories * ''The Alchemist'' (novel), the translated title of a 1988 allegorical novel by Paulo Coelho * ''The Alchemist'' (play), a play by Be ...

Eric André Eric Samuel André (born April 4, 1983) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, producer, television host and writer. He is best known as the creator, host, and co-writer of the Adult Swim comedy series '' The Eric Andre Show'' (2012–present) ...

Too $hort Todd Anthony Shaw (born April 28, 1966), better known by the stage name Too Short (stylized as Too $hort), is an American rapper and record producer. He became famous in the West Coast hip hop scene in the late 1980s, with lyrics often based on ...

, and

Melissa Etheridge Melissa Lou Etheridge (born May 29, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and guitarist. Her eponymous debut album was released in 1988 and became an underground success. It peaked at No. 22 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and its lead ...

. In the first episode of the series, Bes declares he doesn't believe in dinosaurs. Big Body Bes has recently been married to longtime girlfriend Danielle Castellano.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Body Language'' (TBA)

Guest appearances

Filmography

Videography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Big Body Bes 1984 births American male rappers American people of Albanian descent East Coast hip hop musicians Living people Rappers from Brooklyn 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians People from East New York, Brooklyn