Tramayne Rayel Thompson (born October 22, 1979), known by his stage name Shade Sheist, is an American rapper from

Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

. He began his career in 2000 by contributing the single " Where I Wanna Be" to a compilation executive produced by himself and local producer Damizza. After writing and recording tracks for other artists, television, film and video game soundtracks, Shade Sheist released his debut album '' Informal Introduction'', featuring "Where I Wanna Be" in 2002 under Universal Records.

Early life

Thompson was born in

and grew up in both Inglewood and neighboring city South Central Los Angeles. He started writing music around the age of 10 and formed a performing group with his best friends that won first and second place prizes at local talent shows produced by

ASCAP The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

. He worked with producers

Johnny "J" Johnny Lee Jackson (August 28, 1969 – October 3, 2008) was a Mexican-American multi-platinum songwriter, music producer and rapper best known for his early career with Death Row Records, and for his work with 2Pac on ''Me Against the World ...

, Howie Hersh and Ronnie King on his early recordings.

Career

Shade Sheist performed from 1994 to 1999 as Shady Montage, signed to

Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label focuses in pop, rock, alternative, hip hop, and country genres, as well as specializing in mature recordings not suitable for the flagship Walt Disney Records l ...

. Two singles he released under this moniker, "Shake You Down" and "Leaving You Again" were well received and aired on major market radio stations nationally. At one point during this period he became label mates and recorded with

The Notorious B.I.G. Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...

As a teen, he appeared in several music videos including

2Pac Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

's "

So Many Tears "So Many Tears" is a song by American rapper 2Pac from his third studio album, ''Me Against the World'' (1995). It was released on June 13, 1995, as the album's second single. It was produced by Shock G, who used a sample of Stevie Wonder's That ...

" and

South Circle South Circle was an American hip hop group composed of Houston rappers Mr. Mike (Mike Walls) and Thorough (Rex Robeson) that was signed to Suave House Records in the mid-90s. The duo's only album, '' Anotha Day Anotha Balla'' was released on J ...

's "Attitudes". Shade Sheist graduated from Alexander Hamilton High School in 1997. He first performed commercially as Shade Sheist in 2000 on the song "If You Were My Bitch" from the compilation ''Irv Gotti Presents: The Murderers''. That year, he also appeared on the song "It's Your Life" from Ja Rule's triple Platinum-selling album '' Rule 3:36''. Additionally, Shade Sheist met

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

-based producer Damizza, who worked as senior director for artist relations at Los Angeles hip hop station Power 106 and released a various-artists compilation titled ''Where I Wanna Be''. Shade Sheist, Kurupt and

Nate Dogg Nathaniel Dwayne Hale (August 19, 1969 – March 15, 2011), known professionally as Nate Dogg, was an American singer and rapper. He gained recognition for providing guest vocals for a multitude of hit rap songs between 1992 and 2007, earning the ...

performed the title single, which peaked at No. 60 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart but at No. 1 on the Hot Rap Singles. Shade Sheist and

collaborated again on the track "Cali Diseaz" on the soundtrack to the 2001 film ''

The Fast and the Furious ''Fast & Furious'' (also known as ''The Fast and the Furious'') is a media franchise centered on a series of action films that are largely concerned with street racing, heists, spies, and family. The franchise also includes short films, a t ...

''. Damizza recorded the track "Bad News" with Shade Sheist and N.U.N.E. for the soundtrack to the

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

television drama '' Dark Angel''. In 2002, Shade Sheist released his debut album '' Informal Introduction'' through a deal between

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 wit ...

and his own Baby Ree label. ''Informal Introduction'' featured production by Timbaland, DJ Quik, Damizza and KayGee of Naughty by Nature. The singles included "Money Owners", "Wake Up", and "John Doe". The "Where I Wanna Be" music video featured cameos from N.U.N.E., TQ,

Irv Gotti Irving Domingo Lorenzo Jr. (born June 26, 1970), professionally known as Irv Gotti, is an American DJ, music producer, record executive, and the CEO and co-founder of Murder Inc. Records. He is best known for producing multiple number-one rec ...

, Ja Rule and

The D.O.C. Tracy Lynn Curry (born June 10, 1968), better known as The D.O.C., is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. In addition to a solo career, he was a member of the Southern hip hop group Fila Fresh Crew and later collaborated with gan ...

The "Money Owners" music video featured a special appearance from

Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...

, who worked in the studio room next door to Shade Sheist during the recording of the ''Informal Introduction'' album. Shade Sheist stated that Dr. Dre was a big help during the creation of his debut album. The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' asserted that Power 106 played Shade Sheist's singles more than any other urban radio station in the U.S. and reported that Peter Hart of Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting brought up

conflict of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations i ...

issues given that Emmis Communications funded both the radio station and Shade Sheist's label Baby Ree. Power 106 decided to disclose its ties to Shade Sheist after the ''LA Times'' brought up the issue. Emmis president Rick Cummings stated that his station played Shade Sheist's music based on listener tastes. Shade Sheist returned in 2004 with the single "What Would You Do" featuring

and

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

. The track appeared on Shade Sheist's second album ''Before the Waitin' Before the Hatin which originally released in 2005 and re-released in late 2006 with new tracks included. In 2008, Shade Sheist and N.U.N.E. set off on an international tour that would cover two years and several continents. In 2010, Shade Sheist released a new album with N.U.N.E., ''Movin Units'' which was his first original studio release in four years. The album featured the single "Movin Like a Boss" which spawned several international remixes. On August 1, 2013, Shade Sheist released a brand-new seven-track EP titled ''Blackops: Lite'', which featured himself on production as well as vocals. The EP served as a preview of his upcoming full-length LP of the same title. Shade Sheist simultaneously unveiled his Gfunkisforever label with the release of the EP.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Other charted songs

References

External links

Shade Sheist EP at DUBCNN.comShade Sheist Interview at BLKDMNDS.comShade Sheist Interview at PlanetUrban.com.auShade Sheist Interview at SoPrupRadio.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheist, Shade 1979 births Living people 21st-century American rappers Gangsta rappers Hardcore hip hop artists People from Inglewood, California Rappers from Los Angeles Universal Records artists West Coast hip hop musicians