Immortal Technique
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Felipe Andres Coronel (born February 19, 1978), better known by the stage name Immortal Technique, is an American rapper. Most of his lyrics focus on controversial issues in global politics, from a radical left-wing perspective. Immortal Technique seeks to retain control over his production, and has stated in his music that record companies, not artists themselves, profit the most from mass production and marketing of music. He claimed in an interview to have sold close to a combined total of 200,000 copies of his first three official releases.


Early life

Coronel was born in a military hospital in
Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...
. He is of mostly Amerindian descent, and also has Spanish, French and African ancestry. His family immigrated to
Harlem, New York Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Harl ...
, in 1980 to escape the
Peruvian Civil War Peruvian Civil War may refer to the following: * Peruvian Civil War of 1834 * Peruvian Civil War of 1835–1836 * Peruvian Civil War of 1843–1844 * Peruvian Civil War of 1856–1858 * Peruvian Civil War of 1865 * Peruvian Civil War of 1867 * ...
. During his teenage years, he was arrested multiple times due in part to what he has said was "selfish and childish" behavior. He attended Hunter College High School on the
Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 96th Street to the north, the East River to the east, 59th Street to the south, and Central Park/Fifth Avenue to the wes ...
of
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, where his classmates included
Chris Hayes Christopher Loffredo Hayes (; born February 28, 1979) is an American political commentator, television news anchor, activist, and author. Hayes hosts '' All In with Chris Hayes'', a weekday news and opinion television show on MSNBC. Hayes also ...
and
Lin-Manuel Miranda Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, actor, playwright and filmmaker. He is known for creating the Broadway musicals ''Hamilton'' (2015) and '' In the Heights'' (2005), and the soundtracks for the Disney animat ...
, whom he bullied, although the two later became friends. Shortly after enrolling in Pennsylvania State University, he was arrested and charged with assault-related offenses due to his involvement in an altercation between fellow students; the charges stemming from this incident led to him being incarcerated for a year. After being paroled, he took
political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
classes at
Baruch College Baruch College (officially the Bernard M. Baruch College) is a public college in New York City. It is a constituent college of the City University of New York system. Named for financier and statesman Bernard M. Baruch, the college operates unde ...
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 ...
for two semesters at the behest of his father, who allowed Coronel to live with him on the condition that he went to school. Honing his rapping skills in jail, and unable to find decent wage-paying employment after his release, he began selling his music on the streets of New York and battling with other MCs. This, coupled with his victories in numerous freestyle rap competitions of the New York underground hip hop scene such as Rocksteady Anniversary and Braggin Rites, led to his reputation as a ferocious Battle MC.


Musical career


2000–2005: ''Revolutionary Vol. 1'' and ''Revolutionary Vol. 2''

In 2001, Immortal Technique released his first album ''
Revolutionary Vol. 1 ''Revolutionary Vol. 1'' is the debut album by rapper Immortal Technique, released on September 18, 2001, and re-pressed in 2004 (by Babygrande Records). The first edition had no distribution and no bar code; it was sold by the artist on the stree ...
'' without the help of a record label or distribution, instead using money earned from his rap battle triumphs. He also battled but lost to Posta Boy in
106 & Park ''106 & Park'' is an American hip hop and R&B music video show, set up in a countdown format, that was broadcast on weekdays at 6:00 pm ET/5:00 pm CT on BET; it aired on a one-day delay on BET International. It was the network's highest- rate ...
's
Freestyle Friday Freestyle Friday was a segment on BET's popular show ''106 & Park'', in which two aspiring rappers compete in a freestyle battle before the studio audience and the cypher (from 2006) and three celebrity judges (the DJ sometimes acts as the third ju ...
. ''Revolutionary Vol. 1'' also contained the underground classic "Dance With The Devil". In November 2002, he was listed by ''
The Source ''The Source'' is an American hip hop and entertainment website, and a magazine that publishes annually or . It is the world's longest-running rap periodical, being founded as a newsletter in 1988 by Jonathan Shecter. David Mays was the ma ...
'' in its "
Unsigned Hype ''The Source'' is an American hip hop and entertainment website, and a magazine that publishes annually or . It is the world's longest-running rap periodical, being founded as a newsletter in 1988 by Jonathan Shecter. David Mays was the magaz ...
" column, highlighting artists that are not signed to a record label. The following year, in September 2003, he received the coveted "Hip Hop Quotable" in ''The Source'' for a song entitled "Industrial Revolution" from his second album. Immortal Technique is the only rapper in history to have a "Hip Hop Quotable" while being unsigned. He released his second album '' Revolutionary Vol. 2'' in 2003. In 2004, Viper Records and, in 2005,
Babygrande Records Babygrande Records is an American independent record label based in New York City, founded by Chuck Wilson. Babygrande is distributed by The Orchard and represented by the Creative Artists Agency in Hollywood. History Babygrande Records wa ...
re-released Immortal Technique's debut, ''Revolutionary Vol. 1'', to make it available to a wider audience. "Point of No Return" from ''Revolutionary Vol 2'' was used as the entrance theme for
Rashad Evans Rashad Anton Evans (born September 25, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist. Evans started his professional career in 2003, he was the Heavyweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter 2 and is also a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, and a 2 ...
during the
UFC 88 ''UFC 88: Breakthrough'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on September 6, 2008, at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. The event was headlined by a light heavyweight bout between Chuck Liddell and Ras ...
Main Event between Chuck Liddell and Rashad Evans.


2005–present: ''The 3rd World'', ''The Martyr'' and ''The Middle Passage''

Between 2005 and 2007 Immortal Technique began working on ''The Middle Passage'' and ''
The 3rd World ''The 3rd World'' is the third studio album by American rapper Immortal Technique. It was released on June 24, 2008, through Viper Records, following a five-year absence since '' Revolutionary Vol. 2''. Recording sessions took place at Viper Stud ...
'', the two albums that would serve a follow up to '' Revolutionary Vol. 2'' and complete the series. He was also featured on several movie soundtracks and video game soundtracks, all the while touring relentlessly. In October 2011, Immortal Technique released '' The Martyr'', a free compilation album of previously unreleased material and new tracks. In an interview in 2020 with Latino USA, Immortal Technique discussed that he was working on writing a book. He also mentioned that he was in the process of creating his new album, but had faced setbacks because of the
Covid-19 Pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
.


Collaborations

The summer of 2005 saw the release of "Bin Laden", a vinyl single 12" featuring
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 ...
and
DJ Green Lantern James Christopher D'Agostino (born July 7, 1975), professionally known as DJ Green Lantern, is an American hip hop DJ and producer from Rochester, New York. In 2002, D'Agostino was signed by American rapper Eminem, to become the official DJ for S ...
. The single also contained a remix of the song featured Chuck D of
Public Enemy "Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe ...
and KRS-One. In early 2006, the song "Impeach the President", featuring
Dead Prez Dead Prez, often stylized as dead prez, is an American hip hop duo composed of stic.man and M-1, formed in 1996 in New York City. They are known for their confrontational style, combined with lyrics focused on both militant social justice, self ...
and Saigon turned up in the mixtape "Alive on Arrival"
DJ Green Lantern James Christopher D'Agostino (born July 7, 1975), professionally known as DJ Green Lantern, is an American hip hop DJ and producer from Rochester, New York. In 2002, D'Agostino was signed by American rapper Eminem, to become the official DJ for S ...
. This is a simple version of The Honeydrippers, 1973, in which Immortal Technique urged fans to organize a vote of censure against George W. Bush. In April 2009, a new song leaked on the internet named "Democratie Fasciste (Article 4)" by Brazilian-French rapper
Rockin' Squat Rockin' Squat or Mathias Cassel, whose real name is Mathias Crochon () (born September 7, 1970), is a French rapper, producer and director. He is the founder of Assassin, and co-founder of the Franco-Brazilian film festival Planeta Ginga. During ...
which featured Immortal Technique. The official release of the song and Rockin' Squat's album ''Confessions D'un Enfant Du Siècle Volume 2'' was on May 12, 2009. The instrumental from the song was sampled from Wendy Rene's "After Laughter". The song expresses the inequalities of the
Third World The term "Third World" arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO or the Warsaw Pact. The United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Western European nations and their allies represented the " First ...
and revolutionary events throughout history against tyranny and oppression. The song contains lyrics in English (Immortal Technique), French (Rockin' Squat) and brief shout outs in Spanish (Immortal Technique). This song is Immortal Technique's first official international collaboration. In early 2009, it was announced that there would be a collaboration between Technique and UK underground artist
Lowkey Kareem Dennis (born 23 May 1986), better known by his stage name Lowkey, is a British rapper and activist from London. He first became known through a series of mixtapes he released before he was 18, before taking a hiatus from the music bus ...
, on a single called "Voices of the Voiceless". On September 11, 2009, a "snippet" of the song was released on
YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
. The preview was released ahead of its September 21 launch on iTunes, as part of a web-campaign that included updates, promotion and links on forums, E-Magazines and several
social networking sites A social networking service or SNS (sometimes called a social networking site) is an online platform which people use to build social networks or social relationships with other people who share similar personal or career content, interests, act ...
. The song's lyrics cover a broad range of issues that are familiar to listeners of both artists –
racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonis ...
,
world revolution World revolution is the Marxist concept of overthrowing capitalism in all countries through the conscious revolutionary action of the organized working class. For theorists, these revolutions will not necessarily occur simultaneously, but whe ...
,
war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
,
socialism Socialism is a left-wing Economic ideology, economic philosophy and Political movement, movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to Private prop ...
, government control,
rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...
,
famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompani ...
,
colonialism Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colony, colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose the ...
,
Classism Class discrimination, also known as classism, is prejudice or discrimination on the basis of social class. It includes individual attitudes, behaviors, systems of policies and practices that are set up to benefit the upper class at the expense ...
, self-determination and the
war in Iraq This is a list of wars involving the Republic of Iraq and its predecessor states. Other armed conflicts involving Iraq * Wars during Mandatory Iraq ** Ikhwan raid on South Iraq 1921 * Smaller conflicts, revolutions, coups and periphery confli ...
.


Activism

Immortal Technique visits prisons to speak to youth and working with immigrant rights activists, and raising money for children's hospitals overseas. He created a writing grant program for high-school students as well. In June 2008, Immortal Technique partnered with ''Omeid International'', a non-profit human rights organization, and dubbed the work as "The Green Light Project". With the profits of the album ''The 3rd World'', he traveled to
Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
, Afghanistan, to help Omeid build an orphanage without any corporate or external funding. The orphanage, having been successfully established, currently houses over 20 orphaned children from Kabul.


Other work


Films

Immortal Technique featured in Ice-T's documentary '' Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap''.


''The (R)evolution of Immortal Technique''

A documentary about Immortal Technique was released in September 2011 and premiered at the Harlem Film Festival.''The (R)evolution of Immortal Technique'' (2011)
at the
Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
It was released on DVD on July 10, 2012.


''This Revolution''

Immortal Technique appeared as himself in a docudrama film entitled ''
This Revolution ''This Revolution'' is a 2005 political film directed by Stephen Marshall and starring Rosario Dawson. Plot Jake Cassevetes (Nathan Crooker) is a world-renowned cameraman who has just arrived back from being embedded during the U.S. invasion ...
'', which was recorded during the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York. The tape contains the protests surrounding the convention in the form of a documentary. It also featured Viper Records affiliates
Akir Akir is an American hip hop recording artist, producer, songwriter activist and, teaching artist known for his complex lyrics and social-political content. His name is an acronym for "Always Keep It Real". Biography Akir first entered th ...
and producer SouthPaw in roles. Since then, Immortal Technique has taken control of Viper Records and has signed a distribution deal with
Babygrande Records Babygrande Records is an American independent record label based in New York City, founded by Chuck Wilson. Babygrande is distributed by The Orchard and represented by the Creative Artists Agency in Hollywood. History Babygrande Records wa ...
/ E1 Entertainment to vent to their next album. SouthPaw has managed to establish himself as A&R of Viper Records.


Discography


Studio albums


Compilation album


Singles


References


External links

* {{Authority control 21st-century American rappers Hardcore hip hop artists Underground rappers Hispanic and Latino American rappers Rappers from Manhattan Hip hop activists Political music artists American music industry executives American socialists Baruch College alumni Pennsylvania State University alumni American people convicted of assault People from Harlem American people of indigenous peoples descent American people of Peruvian descent People from Lima Peruvian exiles 1978 births Living people Hunter College High School alumni