Jeffrey Haynes (born December 28, 1977), better known by his stage name Mr. Lif, is an American rapper from Boston, Massachusetts. While being praised because of his political lyrics, he has released two studio albums on

Definitive Jux Definitive Jux was a record label based in New York City. It was co-founded in 1999 by El-P and Amaechi Uzoigwe. History Definitive Jux was initially known as Def Jux. However, popular hip hop label Def Jam Recordings sued Def Jux over the nam ...

and one on Bloodbot Tactical Enterprises. Mr. Lif is also a member of the hip hop group

The Perceptionists The Perceptionists is an American hip hop group from Boston, Massachusetts. The group initially had three members: Mr. Lif, Akrobatik, and DJ Fakts One. The group was signed to the Definitive Jux label. In 2005, the trio released a studio albu ...

with long-time friends and collaborators

Akrobatik Jared Bridgeman, better known by his stage name Akrobatik, is an American rapper from the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. He is also a part of the hip hop collective named The Perceptionists with Mr. Lif and DJ Fakts One, which ...

and

DJ Fakts One Fakts One (born April 6, 1977) is an American hip hop DJ & producer from Boston, Massachusetts. Fakts One was a founding member of the hip hop group The Perceptionists with long-time collaborators Akrobatik and Mr. Lif but left the group shortly ...

Early life

Haynes grew up in the neighborhood of

Brighton, Boston Brighton is a former town and current neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, located in the northwestern corner of the city. It is named after the English city of Brighton. Initially Brighton was part of Cambridge, and known as "L ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. After attending the Dedham private school

Noble and Greenough School The Noble and Greenough School, commonly known as Nobles, is a coeducational, nonsectarian day and five-day boarding school for students in grades seven through twelve. It is near Boston on a campus that borders the Charles River in Dedham, Massa ...

, he went on to attend

Colgate University Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York. The college was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York and operated under that name until 1823, when it was renamed Hamilton Theologi ...

for two years, and he eventually dropped out. He became a performer in 1994. Mr. Lif's family ancestry is

Bajan Bajan may refer to: Geography and culture Barbados * Barbadians, known by the colloquialism Bajan(s) (pronounced 'bay-jun') * Barbadian English language * Bajan Creole, a Creole language Other location * Something or someone from Baja ...

. Haynes adopted the stage name "Mr. Lif" after ingesting

psilocybin mushroom Psilocybin mushrooms, commonly known as magic mushrooms, are a polyphyletic informal group of mushroom, fungi that contain psilocybin which turns into psilocin upon ingestion. Biological genera containing psilocybin mushrooms include ''Psilocyb ...

s at an outdoor

Phish Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band is known for musical improvisation, extended jams, blending of genres, and a dedicated fan base. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon ...

concert during his freshman year at

in 1994. He imagined a fictional character called The Liftedly Man while under the influence, which gave way to "Mr. Lif". He later said in an interview for the ''

Times Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the Sept. 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ''Daily Co ...

'': "I don't know any Phish songs. I went to the show, and I still don't know anything about them now."

Career

Influenced by legendary MC's like

Chuck D Carlton Douglas Ridenhour (born August 1, 1960), known professionally as Chuck D, is an American rapper, best known as the leader and frontman of the hip hop group Public Enemy, which he co-founded in 1985 with Flavor Flav. Chuck D helped creat ...

KRS-One Lawrence "Kris" Parker (born August 20, 1965), better known by his stage names KRS-One (; an abbreviation of "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone") and Teacha, is an American rapper from New York City. He rose to prominence as part of ...

, and

Rakim William Michael Griffin Jr. (born January 28, 1968), better known by his stage name Rakim Allah or simply Rakim (), is an American rapper and record producer. One half of golden age hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

, Mr. Lif began releasing singles in the late '90s, when party rap and gangsta rap were the dominant styles for hip hop music, but Mr. Lif's lyrical agenda was a political and socially conscious one. Mr. Lif released his first single, ''Elektro'', in 1998, attracting the attention of labels Grand Royal and

. Working closely with producer and Definitive Jux label head

El-P Jaime Meline (born March 2, 1975), better known by the stage name El-P (shortened from his previous stage name El Producto), is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Starting his career as a member of Company Flow, he has been a ...

, Lif released a series of critically acclaimed singles and EPs, starting with ''Enters the Colossus'' in 2000. In 2000 and 2001, he won the

Boston Music Award Founded in 1987, the Boston Music Awards are a set of music awards given annually that showcase talent in the Boston, Massachusetts, area. Past shows have featured such notable talent as Aerosmith, Paula Cole, Esperanza Spalding, Boston, Rubyhor ...

for Outstanding

Rap 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 ...

/ Hip Hop Act. Touring kept him busy for the next year, but he still found time to release the ''Cro-Magnon'' single and a live CD. His track "Pull Out Your Cut" was featured in the soundtrack to the ESPN Video Game ESPN NFL 2K5. In 2002, Mr. Lif released a pair of concept releases. ''The Emergency Rations'' EP bookended collaborations with

Edan Idan or Edan may refers to: People Given name * Edan (musician), American alternative hip hop artist *Edan Everly, American guitarist, musician, singer songwriter *Edan Gross, American child actor *Edan Milton Hughes, American art dealer and art c ...

and

in an MC abduction scenario, while the ''I Phantom'' full-length formed a saga that led him from birth to apocalypse. He revisited his

collaboration in 2005, when the pair joined producer

to form

, who released ''Black Dialogue'', also on

. One year later, he returned with ''Mo' Mega'', his follow-up to ''I Phantom'', featuring eight productions from

and features from

Murs Murs may refer to: People * Marc Athanase Parfait Œillet des Murs (1804-1878), French ornithologist * Olly Murs (born 1984), English singer-songwriter * Murs (rapper) (born 1978), American rapper Places * Murs, Indre, France * Murs, Vaucluse, ...

Aesop Rock Ian Matthias Bavitz (born June 5, 1976), better known by his stage name Aesop Rock, is an American rapper and producer from Long Island, New York. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip hop acts that emerge ...

, and

Blueprint A blueprint is a reproduction of a technical drawing or engineering drawing using a contact print process on light-sensitive sheets. Introduced by Sir John Herschel in 1842, the process allowed rapid and accurate production of an unlimited number ...

. Mr. Lif has also collaborated with Otis Grove,

Thievery Corporation Thievery Corporation is an American electronic music duo consisting of Rob Garza and Eric Hilton. Their musical style mixes elements of dub, acid jazz, reggae, Indian classical, Middle Eastern music, hip hop and Brazilian music, including bo ...

and

Anomie Belle Anomie Belle (an·o·me bel) is an American multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter, producer, and '' artivist'' from Seattle. Originally a classically-trained violinist and songwriter, Belle began writing and recording music as a child. Bell ...

. ''I Heard It Today'' was released on Bloodbot Tactical Enterprises in 2009. Mr Lif embraced ''I Heard It Today'' using the album as a tool to address various political issues affecting people all over the world. ''I Heard It Today'' is the third full-length studio album by Mr. Lif. The album was released on April 21, 2009, on Mr. Lif's own label Bloodbot Tactical Enterprises. Mr. Lif has stated that the album is "dedicated to capturing the pulse of this tumultuous era we're living through." In June 2014, Mr. Lif announced on his

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

that he is working on an album with The Polish Ambassador that will be released in the fall. In September 2014, the pair embarked on a national 5-week

Permaculture Permaculture is an approach to land management and settlement design that adopts arrangements observed in flourishing natural ecosystems. It includes a set of design principles derived using whole-systems thinking. It applies these principle ...

Action tour with fellow musicians Ayla Nereo and Liminus. The musicians performed 4–5 days a week and then participated in weekly "Permaculture Action Days" where they held permaculture themed events and activities within the communities they were visiting. The tour raised over $40,000. Lif is also a vocalist for

and a member of the band's live performance group. In 2011, Lif recorded the title track to their 2012 album, "Culture of Fear". He continues to tour with the band today. Lif also appears on 2017 album "The Temple Of I & I", performing two tracks – the single "Ghetto Matrix" and "Fight To Survive"

Discography

Albums

*''

I Phantom ''I Phantom'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Mr. Lif. It was produced mostly by alternative hip hop artist El-P, among others, at Boston Butta Beats in Boston and the New York City-based Steel Acres, The Danger Room, and Def Jux Stud ...

'' (

, 2002) *'' Mo' Mega'' (Definitive Jux, 2006) *'' I Heard It Today'' (Bloodbot Tactical Enterprises, 2009) *'' Don't Look Down'' (

Mello Music Group Mello Music Group (MMG) is an American independent record label based in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 2007, Mello Music has released hip hop compilations and albums by producers and rappers such as Oddisee, Apollo Brown, Mr. Lif, Ghostface Killah ...

, 2016)

EPs

*'' Enters the Colossus'' (Definitive Jux, 2000) *''

Emergency Rations Emergency rations are items of food and drink that a person stores and relies on in case of an emergency. Emergency food supplies can be purchased for camping trips or wilderness adventures. These supplies are meant to last for several days. M ...

'' (Definitive Jux, 2002)

Collaborations

*''

Black Dialogue ''Black Dialogue'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop group The Perceptionists. It was released on Definitive Jux on March 22, 2005. Critical reception At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from m ...

'' (Definitive Jux, 2005) – with

and

*''The Life & Death of Scenery'' (Mello Music Group, 2016) – with L'Orange *''Terra Bella'' The Polish Ambassador, Mr. Lif, Ayla Nereo (2016) *
Vanguard
' (Fat Beats Records, 2020) – with Stu Bangas

References

External links

Official website
*
Mr. Lif
interview at ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Lif, Mr. 1977 births Living people African-American male rappers American people of Barbadian descent Indie rappers Rappers from Boston East Coast hip hop musicians Alternative hip hop musicians African-American record producers American hip hop record producers Definitive Jux artists Mello Music Group artists Noble and Greenough School alumni 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians Rappers from Massachusetts 20th-century African-American people