Phalon Anton Alexander,
(born April 15, 1974), professionally known as Jazze Pha ( ), is an American record producer, singer, songwriter and rapper from
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
. He is the founder and chief executive officer of Sho'nuff Records, to which American R&B singer-songwriter
Ciara
Ciara Princess Wilson ( ; Harris; born October 25, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, model and entrepreneur. She released her debut studio album, '' Goodies'' in 2004, which spawned four singles: " Goodies" (featuring Petey Pa ...
was signed.
Early life
Jazze Pha was born and raised in
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
. His father is
James Alexander, bassist for the
Bar-Kays
The Bar-Kays are an American funk band formed in 1964. The band had dozens of charting singles from the 1960s to the 1980s, including "Soul Finger" (US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 number 17, R&B number 3) in 1967, "Son of Shaft" (R&B number 10) in ...
, an influential group on the Memphis soul scene in the 1960s. His mother, Denise Williams, is an accomplished singer, having worked with everyone from
Earth, Wind, and Fire
Earth, Wind & Fire (EW&F or EWF) is an American band whose music spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, big band, Latin, and Afro pop. They are among the best-selling bands of all time, with sales of over 90 million reco ...
to
Barbra Streisand
Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers awar ...
. Pha was named after the late
Phalon Jones
Phalon R. Jones, Jr. (1948 – December 10, 1967) was an American soul and R&B musician. Jones was a saxophonist for musical group the Bar-Kays, which recorded with and also played backup for Otis Redding. Jones and three other members of the Ba ...
, another member of the Bar-Kays, who died in the December 10, 1967, plane crash that also killed three other Bar-Kays members and
Otis Redding
Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...
.
Career
Pha is known for announcing "Ladies and gentlemen" or "This is a Jazze Phizzle product-shizzle!", both at the beginning and, occasionally, at the end of songs on which he is featured. In 1990, Pha was signed to
Elektra Records.
Discography
Guest appearances
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pha, Jazze
African-American record producers
African-American male rappers
20th-century African-American people
American male singers
American double-bassists
Male double-bassists
American hip hop record producers
American hip hop singers
American music industry executives
American rhythm and blues keyboardists
Atlantic Records artists
Businesspeople from Atlanta
Businesspeople from Tennessee
Living people
Rappers from Memphis, Tennessee
Rappers from Atlanta
Songwriters from Georgia (U.S. state)
Songwriters from Tennessee
Southern hip hop musicians
21st-century American rappers
21st-century double-bassists
21st-century American male musicians
1974 births
African-American songwriters
21st-century African-American musicians
American male songwriters