Corey Isiah Christie (born August 24, 1977), better known as Reks (styled in

all caps In typography, all caps (short for "all capitals") refers to text or a font in which all letters are capital letters, for example: "THIS TEXT IS IN ALL CAPS". All caps may be used for emphasis (for a word or phrase). They are commonly seen in ...

as REKS), is an American

rapper 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 ...

. Reks emerged from

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

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 ...

' underground rap scene. His debut underground album, ''

Along Came The Chosen Corey Isiah Christie (born August 24, 1977), better known as Reks (styled in all caps as REKS), is an American rapper. Reks emerged from Lawrence, Massachusetts' underground rap scene. His debut underground album, '' Along Came The Chosen'', ...

'', was released on Brick Records in 2001. Reks has released eight additional albums and has appeared on various albums and

mixtape A mixtape (alternatively mix-tape, mix tape or mixed tape) is a compilation of music, typically from multiple sources, recorded onto a medium. With origins in the 1980s, the term normally describes a homemade compilation of music onto a cassette ...

Early career

Reks was a

breakdancer Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in t ...

in his teens and was part of a local B-boy crew called Funk Town Connection. By the time he entered college at

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...

, Reks had built a reputation for himself in the local

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

rap scene, and eventually quit school to begin recording for Brick Records. A few 12" singles, "I Could Have Done More" and "Fearless," arrived first in early 2001, before Brick issued his debut LP, ''Along Came the Chosen'', later that year. This earned Reks nominations for Hip-Hop Album and Artist of the Year by the

Boston Music Awards 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 ...

. Reks worked with

DJ Premier Christopher Edward Martin (born March 21, 1966), known professionally as DJ Premier (also known as Preemo), is an American record producer and DJ. He is considered one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time. He was half of the hip hop duo ...

Styles P David R. Styles (born November 28, 1974), better known by his stage name Styles P (also known mononymously as Styles), is an American rapper, best known as a member of hip hop group the Lox, alongside childhood friends Sheek Louch and Jadakiss. ...

Alchemist Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscience, protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in Chinese alchemy, C ...

Hi-Tek Tony Cottrell, better known as Hi-Tek (born May 5, 1976), is an American rapper and record producer from Cincinnati, Ohio. He is best known for his work with Talib Kweli. His father is singer Willie Cottrell of the Willie Cottrell Band, whom Hi- ...

, and many others on his 2011 album

Rhythmatic Eternal King Supreme Rhythmatic Eternal King Supreme is the fifth studio album by rapper Reks. the album was released on March 8, 2011, under ShowOff and Brick Records. The album received favorable reviews from most music critics. The album was nominated for Hip-Hop ...

. On October 14, 2016 he released the critically acclaimed album "

The Greatest X ''The Greatest X'' (pronounced as "The Greatest Unknown") is the tenth studio album by American hip hop recording artist Reks. It was released on September 9, 2016, by Brick Records. The album features guest appearances from artists such as Terma ...

Discography

Albums

*2001: ''Along Came the Chosen'' *2003: ''Rekless'' *2005: ''Happy Holidays'' *2008: ''

Grey Hairs Grey Hairs is the third studio album by American rapper Reks Corey Isiah Christie (born August 24, 1977), better known as Reks (styled in all caps as REKS), is an American rapper. Reks emerged from Lawrence, Massachusetts' underground rap s ...

'' *2009: ''

More Grey Hairs More Grey Hairs is a compilation album by the American rapper Reks, released on March 10, 2009, by ShowOff Records. The album contains previously unreleased songs that were cut from Reks' previous album, ''Grey Hairs Grey Hairs is the third st ...

'' *2011: ''

'' *2012: '' Straight, No Chaser'' *2012: ''

REBELutionary ''REBELutionary'' is the seventh studio album by Massachusetts rapper Reks. It was released on July 23, 2012 by Gracie Productions. The album is the follow-up to '' Straight, No Chaser''. The album was entirely produced by Numonics. It features g ...

'' *2013: ''Revolution Cocktail'' *2014: ''Eyes Watching God'' *2016: ''

'' *2018: ''Order In Chaos'' *2020: ''T.H.I.N.G.S. (The Hunger Inside Never Gets Satisfied)''

EPs

*''Skills 101 / Science of Life / Final Four'' (Brick Records 2000) *''DJ Shame / Dead Prez / Reks & Virtuoso – No More Re-Mixes Vol 1: Behind Enemy Lines / The Setup'' (Raptivism 2000) *''I Could Have Done More / In Who We Trust / Healthy Habitat'' (Raptivism 2000) *''Fearless/ Skills 201 / My City'' (Brick Records 2001) *''Easy / Easy (remix) / Beantown to Cali'' (Brick Records 2001) *''Soul Supreme /Reks – Queen (Hip-Hop)/Still Searchin'' (Grit 2002) *''Say Goodnight / Big Dreamers (Lawtown Remix)'' (Showoff Records/Brick Records 2008)

Guest Appearances

*08. "Drunk & High" with (

Termanology Daniel Carrillo (born October 8, 1982), better known by his stage name Termanology, is an American rapper and record producer. He first gained major attention with the 2006 single "Watch How It Go Down". A solo album, '' Politics as Usual'', was ...

, &

N.O.R.E. Victor James Santiago Jr. (born September 6, 1977), better known by his stage names Noreaga and later N.O.R.E., is an American rapper. Born and raised in Queens, New York, Santiago first rose to prominence as one half of the East Coast hip hop du ...

) on (

Cameo King III This is the discography of Termanology. Albums Studio albums Collaborative albums Extended plays Mixtapes Guest appearances Production 2012 Ghostface Killah and Sheek Louch - ''Wu Block'' * 08. "Drivin' Round" (feat. Masta Killa, G ...

) *"Way it Goes" with Mr. Green & Lucky Dice (2017, single) *"Red or Blue Pill" with Rec Riddles on "Brilliant but Disturbed" (2016) *"C.T.D." with Finnish rap duo "JXO" (2018) *"Daddy's Guitar" with TooBusy on "Red Tape" (2020) *"Written In Stone" feat Suave-Ski roduced by Fuzzy Ed2022 (Mythology)

Mixtapes

*2010: ''In Between the Lines'' *2011: ''In Between the Lines 2'' *2014: ''All Eyes on Reks''

Awards

*2011 Best Indie Album MA

Nominations

*''Album of the Year 2011'' (Boston Music Awards) *''Hip Hop Artist of the Year 2011'' (Boston Music Awards) *''The UMA Male Artist of the Year 2011'' *''Indie Album of the Year 2011''

References

External links

* Rappers from Massachusetts African-American male rappers Living people People from Lawrence, Massachusetts Songwriters from Massachusetts 1977 births Indie rappers Underground rappers East Coast hip hop musicians 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians African-American songwriters 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people American male songwriters {{US-hiphop-bio-stub