Moses Barrett III (born July 22, 1973), known by the

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Petey Pablo, is an American rapper from

Greenville, North Carolina Greenville is the county seat of and the most populous city in Pitt County, North Carolina, United States; the principal city of the Greenville metropolitan area; and the 12th-most populous city in North Carolina. Greenville is the health, e ...

. He is best known for his 2003

Crunk Crunk is a subgenre of hip hop music that emerged in the early 1990s and gained mainstream success during the mid 2000s. Crunk is often up-tempo and one of Southern hip hop's more dance and club oriented subgenres. An archetypal crunk track fre ...

hit single " Freek-a-Leek".

Biography

Born in Greenville, North Carolina, Barrett spent five years in prison for a 1993 armed robbery and upon his release moved to

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 U ...

, where he met Black Rob and

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver ...

, and, according to rumor, was signed to

Jive Records Jive Records was an American independent record label founded by Clive Calder in 1981 as a subsidiary to the Zomba Group. In the US, the label had offices in New York City and Chicago. Jive was best known for its successes with hip hop, R&B, ...

after the A&R director overheard him rapping in a club bathroom.Shapiro, Peter (2005) ''The Rough Guide to Reggae'', Rough Guides, ISBN, p.295-6

Musical career

2001–2002: Debut studio album

After getting signed to Jive Records, Petey Pablo began working on his debut album. The first single " Raise Up" was released in summer 2001, which was produced by

Timbaland Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinc ...

. "Raise Up" was helped by rotation on MTV and heavy airplay on urban radio, and reached number 25 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Petey Pablo's debut album '' Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry'' peaked at number 13 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and was certified Gold by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

2003–2006: Second studio album, and hiatus

In early 2003, '' Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry'' received a

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

nomination for Best Rap Album. It lost the award to

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

's ''

The Eminem Show ''The Eminem Show'' is the fourth studio album by American rapper Eminem. After it had originally scheduled for release on June 4, 2002, the album was released nine days earlier on May 26, 2002, through Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment, an ...

''. Petey Pablo's success continued with the release of his second studio album, '' Still Writing in My Diary: 2nd Entry'' which he started working on in 2003. The album was a critical and commercial success, peaking at number 4 on the Billboard 200 and was certified Gold by the RIAA. The lead single off the album, " Freek-a-Leek", produced by

Lil Jon Jonathan H. Smith (born January 17, 1971) better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, producer and former frontman of the rap group Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz. He was instrumental in the emergence of the hip hop subgenre cr ...

became Petey Pablo's biggest hit single of his career by reaching number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 2004, Petey Pablo achieved more mainstream success for his feature on

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 ...

's hit single " Goodies" which topped the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

. After the release of his second studio album, Petey Pablo went on a hiatus from music.

2010–present: Return to music and third studio album

After his departure from

, Petey Pablo founded his own

independent label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

, Carolina Music Group. He released a track in July 2010 entitled "Go", which was produced by Timbaland. In September 2011, Petey Pablo had released a single called "Get Low" on iTunes. On February 17, 2012, Petey Pablo released a mixtape called ''Carolina #1'' while in prison under the independent newly founded label "Carolina Music Group". Pablo had also confirmed working on his third studio album ''A&R: Anticipated Recordings'', which has yet to have a confirmed release date. In late 2015 Pablo released a new single titled "Never Imagined". On Sunday, January 17, 2016, after the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

' victory over the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...

in the 2016 NFC Divisional playoffs, Pablo released a new single via

Soundcloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming s ...

and

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 most ...

titled "Carolina Colors". The single was used as a hype song for the 2016 NFC Championship Game against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division, an ...

Acting career

In 2002, Petey Pablo appeared as himself in the film ''

Drumline Marching percussion instruments are instruments specially designed to be played while moving. This is achieved by attaching the drum(s) to a special harness (also called a carrier or rack) worn by the drummer, although not all marching bands us ...

'' where he performs "Club Banger", "You Can Find Me", "Raise Up", and "I Told Y'All". Petey Pablo had a guest appearance in "A Thousand Deaths", a 2005 episode of ''

The Shield ''The Shield'' is an American crime drama television series starring Michael Chiklis that premiered on March 12, 2002, on FX in the United States, and concluded on November 25, 2008, after seven seasons. Known for its portrayal of corrupt pol ...

''. In 2009, Petey Pablo appeared in the film ''Just Another Day'' where he played B-Bone. In 2015, Petey Pablo played Clyde in the episode "Without a Country" on the show ''

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

'', in which his character performed "Snitch Bitch" with Lucious Lyon (played by

Terrence Howard Terrence Dashon Howard (born March 11, 1969) is an American actor. Having his first major roles in the 1995 films '' Dead Presidents'' and '' Mr. Holland's Opus'', Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of television and cinema role ...

) in jail.

Arrest and incarceration

On September 11, 2010, Barrett was arrested at

Raleigh-Durham International Airport The Research Triangle, or simply The Triangle, are both common nicknames for a metropolitan area in the Piedmont region of North Carolina in the United States, anchored by the cities of Raleigh and Durham and the town of Chapel Hill, home to ...

after trying to carry a stolen 9mm semi-automatic pistol aboard a US Airways flight bound for Los Angeles. On September 26, 2011, he was sentenced to 35 months in prison, and entered incarceration at the Federal Correctional Institution (Beckley) on January 4, 2012. He was held at the Federal Correctional Institution (Fort Dix), with a release date of July 17, 2014, but he was released early on March 13, 2014.

Discography

;Studio albums *2001: '' Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry'' *2004: '' Still Writing in My Diary: 2nd Entry'' *2007: ''Proper Procedures'' *2018: ''Keep on Goin ;Mixtapes *2007: ''Same Eyez on Me'' *2008: ''Life on Death Row'' *2012: ''Carolina #1'' *2013: ''Enormous''

References

External links

Petey Pablo entry Petey may refer to: People * Petey Greene (1931–1984), African-American television and radio talk-show host * Petey Pablo (born 1973), stage name of American rapper Moses Barrett III * Petey Perot (born 1957), American retired National Football ...

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Petey Pablo 1973 births Living people African-American crunk musicians African-American male rappers American prisoners and detainees Death Row Records artists East Coast hip hop musicians Jive Records artists Musicians from North Carolina People from Greenville, North Carolina Rappers from New York City Rappers from North Carolina Southern hip hop musicians 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians