Capital D (real name David J. Kelly), also known as Cap D, is an underground rapper and lawyer from

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. He is known for his solo work, his collaboration with Tony Fields as the duo "All Natural," and for founding the label All Natural Records, on which all his music has been released.

Early life and education

Kelly grew up in a Catholic family on the South Side of Chicago, before his family moved to

Flossmoor Flossmoor () is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 9,704 at the 2020 census. Flossmoor is approximately 25 miles south of the Chicago Loop. Geography Flossmoor is located at (41.541684, -87.684970). According ...

, where he attended

Homewood-Flossmoor High School Homewood-Flossmoor High School (H-F) is a comprehensive public high school in Flossmoor, Illinois. The district encompasses nearly 11.5 square miles drawing students from Homewood, Flossmoor, Chicago Heights, Glenwood, Hazel Crest, and Olympia ...

. He later attended

Morehouse College , mottoeng = And there was light (literal translation of Latin itself translated from Hebrew: "And light was made") , type = Private historically black men's liberal arts college , academic_affiliations ...

(B.A., 1996) and the

University of Illinois Law School The University of Illinois College of Law (Illinois Law or UIUC Law) is the law school of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a public university in Champaign, Illinois. It was established in 1897 and offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S. ...

. (J.D., 2004).

Musical career

Kelly started the label "All Natural" in 1997, on which he released his first album, ''Writer's Block (The Movie)'' with The Molemen, in 2002. He was also a member of a rap group, also called "All Natural", with Tony Fields, aka "Tony B. Nimble", which they started in 1993. This duo intended to release their first single, "50 Years", on the short-lived label Wild Pitch. After this label folded, they started the All Natural label to release "50 Years," and on which they released their debut album, ''No Additives, No Preservatives,'' in 1998.

Greg Kot Greg Kot (born March 3, 1957) is an American music journalist and author. From 1990 until 2020, Kot was the rock music critic at the ''Chicago Tribune'', where he covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and busines ...

praised the album as one of "the year's freshest rap releases" and wrote that "Though it lacks the cinematic production of the best East Coast hip-hop, it marks the arrival of an assertive and unusually insightful new voice in Kelly." He released his second solo album, ''Insomnia'', in 2004 on the same label, shortly after he received his law degree. ''Insomnia'' was noted for its heavily political themes, which led some critics to compare it to

Noam Chomsky Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is an American public intellectual: a linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic, and political activist. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is ...

, and was also highlighted for addressing Kelly's newfound religion of Islam. All Natural's third album, ''Vintage'', was released in 2005 and was also heavily influenced by Kelly's religious views. Kelly released his third album, ''Return of the Renegade'', as "Cap D" in 2007. He described this album as more for the sake of hip-hop and less of a bold political statement than ''Insomnia'' had been. His fourth album, ''Polymath'', was released in 2010, also under the alias of "Cap D". Kot ranked it as the best indie Chicago album of that year.

Legal career

Kelly also formerly worked as a transactional associate at

Katten Muchin Rosenman Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP (Katten) is a full-service law firm with nearly 700 attorneys in locations across the United States, London and Shanghai. The firm's core areas of practice include commercial finance, corporate, financial markets and f ...

, where he frequently did work for local sports teams such as the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

. He currently works as Vice President and General Counsel for the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

Personal life

Kelly converted to Islam in 2000. He is married and has three children.David Kelly
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Discography

Solo

*''Writer's Block (the Movie)'' (All Natural, 2002) *''Insomnia'' (All Natural, 2004) *(as Cap D) ''Return of the Renegade'' (All Natural, 2007) *(as Cap D) ''Polymath'' (All Natural, 2010)

With All Natural

*''Writers' Block'' (All Natural single, 1997) *''No Additives, No Preservatives'' (All Natural, 1998) *''Second Nature'' (All Natural, 2001) *''Vintage'' (All Natural, 2005) *''Elements (Fire)'' (All Natural, 2008) *''Dark Night'' (All Natural & Panik, 2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Capital D (rapper) Rappers from Chicago Living people 20th-century births Muslims from Illinois Morehouse College alumni University of Illinois College of Law alumni Underground rappers Converts to Islam from Catholicism Illinois lawyers People from Flossmoor, Illinois 21st-century American rappers Year of birth missing (living people) Homewood-Flossmoor High School alumni