Antonio Cruz (born April 23, 1977), known professionally as Tony Sunshine, is an American
R&B singer of
Puerto Rican descent, famous for his affiliation with
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
hip hop group
Terror Squad.
He sang on tracks such as
Cuban Link
Felix Delgado (born December 18, 1974), better known by his stage name Cuban Link, is a Cuban American rapper and original member of Terror Squad.
Biography
Delgado was born in Havana, Cuba, in 1974. He and his family emigrated to the Unite ...
's "Still Telling Lies",
Fat Joe
Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper from New York City. He began his music career as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.), then forged a sol ...
's "All I Need" and
Big Pun
Christopher Lee Rios (November 10, 1971 – February 7, 2000), better known by his stage name Big Pun (short for Big Punisher), was an American rapper. Emerging from the underground hip hop scene in the Bronx borough of New York City in the ea ...
's "100%". He released his debut single on
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, an ...
entitled "Oh My God" (featuring
Diddy and Dirtbag) in 2004.
Biography
Raised in the Bronx, Tony was taken in at the age of 13 by
Fat Joe
Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper from New York City. He began his music career as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.), then forged a sol ...
, who attempted to secure a recording contract for the teen. He took the name Tony Sunshine, and eventually became a member of
Terror Squad.
Fat Joe
Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper from New York City. He began his music career as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.), then forged a sol ...
is like a big brother to Sunshine, also respected and understood his unique talent.
[DubCNN Interview](_blank)
/ref> Tony has collaborated with R. Kelly
Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses.
During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwi ...
, Ginuwine
Elgin Baylor Lumpkin (born October 15, 1970), better known by his stage name Ginuwine, is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. He began his career as a member of Swing Mob in the early 1990s. Signing to Epic R ...
, T-Pain, Fabolous
John David Jackson (born November 18, 1977), better known by his stage name Fabolous, is an American rapper. Raised in Brooklyn, he first gained recognition while still a senior in high school, when he performed live on American music executive ...
and Capone-N-Noreaga
Capone-N-Noreaga (also known as C-N-N) are an American hip hop duo formed in 1995 from Queens, New York. The duo features East Coast rappers Capone and N.O.R.E.
History
In October 1995, Capone-N-Noreaga appeared in ''The Source'' magazine's ...
.
Music
Tony Sunshine has sung vocals for Big Pun
Christopher Lee Rios (November 10, 1971 – February 7, 2000), better known by his stage name Big Pun (short for Big Punisher), was an American rapper. Emerging from the underground hip hop scene in the Bronx borough of New York City in the ea ...
on songs like "100%", "Laughin at You", and "My Dick". He has also appeared on some of Fat Joe's songs including "TS Piece", and "All I need". Terror Squad's debut album entitled ''Terror Squad'' was released in 1999, Tony Sunshine appears on several songs on that album also.
Tony Sunshine working with music producer Aytekin Storch,
Fat Joe
Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper from New York City. He began his music career as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.), then forged a sol ...
was able to finalize a record deal for Tony in 2005 with Epic and Sony BMG
Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...
. Tony Sunshine was released from Sony BMG in May, 2006 and was signed to Urban Box Office. In November 2006, UBO folded, leaving the future of Tony Sunshine's 2007 debut release uncertain. Tony released "She's Like The Wind
"She's Like the Wind" is a 1987 song by American actor and singer Patrick Swayze from the soundtrack to the film ''Dirty Dancing''. The song features additional vocals from singer Wendy Fraser. The ballad reached number three on the US ''Billbo ...
", that featured fellow New York artist Lumidee
Lumidee Cedeño (born October 13, 1984) is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. She quickly rose to fame in 2003 with the release of her song "Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)", which peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, ...
. There is an English version and a Spanglish version.
In 2010, Tony 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, an ...
and is preparing his first full-length album with productions from Swizz Beatz
Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...
and T-Pain.
His first single "Say Hey" was released in July 2010 and was produced by Swizz Beatz.
Fast Forward to 2015, Tony has just released his new comeback mixtape where he skillfully blended R&B and Hiphop. Working with different producers and exploring his sound, his new mixtape "No Filter" has gotten acclaimed reviews on blogs, and online print. It is rumored that Tony is now working on a brand new LP with original material.
In 2016, Tony Sunshine reunited with Fat Joe and the Terror Squad. Tony Sunshine is working on a solo EP scheduled for release in late 2017, as well as highly anticipated joint ventures.
Discography
*2016: ''Danger''
*2016: ''Close''
*2018: TBA
Singles
*2003: "Grey Goose" (featuring Fat Joe
Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper from New York City. He began his music career as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.), then forged a sol ...
)
*2004: "Oh My God" (featuring Diddy & Dirtbag)
*2007: "She's Like the Wind" (featuring Lumidee
Lumidee Cedeño (born October 13, 1984) is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. She quickly rose to fame in 2003 with the release of her song "Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)", which peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, ...
)
*2010: "Say Hey"
*2011: "#1 Baby"
*2013: "Don't Deserve"
*2015: "Crying"
*2016: "Danger" (featuring Chris Rivers)
*2017: "Talk About it"
*2018: "Take Me Away"
*2019: "Bruce Leroy"
*2019: "Shots Fired"
*2020: "Wandas Son" (Featuring Dre of Cool N Dre)
*2021: "You Said"
Mixtapes
*2015: ''No Filter''
References
External links
Official Instagram Page
Tony Sunshine Official Home
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sunshine, Tony
American contemporary R&B singers
Terror Squad (group) members
People from the Bronx
Rappers from the Bronx
Living people
1977 births
21st-century American rappers
21st-century American singers