Leonard Grant (born July 25, 1980), better known by his stage name Uncle Murda, is an American rapper from

East New York, Brooklyn East New York is a residential neighborhood in the eastern section of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, United States. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are roughly the Cemetery Belt and the Queens borough lin ...

. He is Afro Panamanian of his mother's side. He is currently signed to

G-Unit Records G-Unit Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group. Founded in 2002 by rapper 50 Cent, for the first eleven years of operation, G-Unit ran in conjunction with, and was distributed by, Interscope Records. In February 2014, ...

. He is known for his annual retrospective "Rap Up" song series, which he began in 2014.

Career

In 2007, his manager and

DJ Green Lantern James Christopher D'Agostino (born July 7, 1975), professionally known as DJ Green Lantern, is an American hip hop DJ and producer from Rochester, New York. In 2002, D'Agostino was signed by American rapper Eminem, to become the official DJ for S ...

introduced Uncle Murda's music to

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...

. The Brooklyn-born rapper/CEO signed Uncle Murda to

Roc-A-Fella Roc-A-Fella Records was an American hip hop record label and music management company founded by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon "Dame" Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke in 1994. History 1994–2000: Formation ...

Records soon after. They started to promote him immediately by placing him on a track with popular label-mates

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

for the song "Brooklyn" (featured on ''

From Nothin' to Somethin' ''From Nothin' to Somethin is the fourth studio album by American rapper Fabolous. The album was released on June 12, 2007, by Desert Storm Records, Street Family Records and Def Jam Recordings. The production on the album was handled by Akon ...

'' album) and everything seemed to be going well for the rapper. However in late 2008 rumors that Uncle Murda left

Def Jam Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The ...

came about. In an interview with DJ Vlad, Uncle Murda confirmed the rumors that he has split from

and

Roc-A-Fella Records Roc-A-Fella Records was an American hip hop record label and music management company founded by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon "Dame" Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke in 1994. History 1994–2000: Formation ...

claiming everything went downhill since

's departure. On November 8, 2016, Uncle Murda signed a deal with

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

and

Shooting

On January 22, 2008, Uncle Murda was shot directly in the head while in a parked car on Linden Blvd. in

East New York East New York is a residential neighborhood in the eastern section of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, United States. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are roughly the Cemetery Belt and the Queens borough lin ...

, but was not seriously hurt. Murda would later give contradictory accounts of the incident, saying he was only grazed by a bullet or hit by a piece of glass. The shooting happened after the rapper released his mixtape entitled "Respect the Shooter". He discharged himself from the hospital less than 24 hours after he was admitted, with the bullet still in his skull. Uncle Murda called the nationally syndicated ''

The Wendy Williams Experience ''The Wendy Williams Experience'' is an American reality television series that aired on VH1 from October 20, 2006, to December 9, 2006. It chronicles Wendy Williams as she hosts her radio show on (WBLS, 107.5 WBLS) with Charlamagne Tha God, Char ...

'' radio show after the shooting and told her he was using "

Hennessy Jas Hennessy & Co., commonly known simply as Hennessy (), is a French producer of cognac, which has its headquarters in Cognac, France. It is one of the "big four" cognac houses, along with Martell, Courvoisier, and Rémy Martin, who together ma ...

and Newports to cope with the pain". No charges were filed, as Uncle Murda refused to cooperate with investigators, blaming the police for the shooting.

Discography

Studio albums

*2023: ''The Lenny Grant Story''

Mixtapes

*2005: ''Murder Capitol'' *2006: ''Say Uncle: 2 Hard for Hip-Hop'' *2006: ''Respect the Shooter'' *2007: ''Murda Muzik'' *2008: ''Hard to Kill'' *2008: ''Back on My Bullshit'' *2008: ''Rudy King'' *2008: ''Murda Muzik 2: Return of the Bad Guy'' *2009: ''Summer Time Shootouts'' *2013: ''The First 48'' *2013: ''Murda Muzik 3'' *2014: ''Ain't Nothin' Sweet'' *2016: ''Yellow Tape'' (with Maino) *2017: ''Don't Come Outside, Vol. 1'' *2020: ''Don't Come Outside, Vol. 2'' *2021: ''Don't Come Outside, Vol.3'' *2022: ''Love Don't Live Here''

Singles

*2007: "Bullet Bullet" *2007: "Run The City" *2007: "Children's Story" *2007: "Hard to Kill" *2008: "Still Run The City" *2008: "Anybody Can Get It" (original song made and featured in

Grand Theft Auto IV ''Grand Theft Auto IV'' is a 2008 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the sixth main entry in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2004's '' Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'', and the ...

) *2009: "Murdera" (featuring

Akon Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam (; born April 16, 1973), known mononymously as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of " Locked Up" (featuring Styles P) ...

) *2011: "Warning" *2011: "Warning (Remix)" (featuring

French Montana Karim Kharbouch (Arabic: æɾiːm χɑɾbuːʃ born November 9, 1984), better known by his stage name French Montana, is a Moroccan-American rapper. Born and raised in Morocco, he emigrated to the United States with his family when he was 13. ...

Jadakiss Jason Terrance Phillips (born May 27, 1975), better known by his stage name Jadakiss, is an American rapper from Yonkers, New York. He began his career in the 1990s as a member of the rap trio The Lox, managed by Ruff Ryders and signed with Bad ...

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. ...

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American preacher, political activist and mass murderer. He led the Peoples Temple, a new religious movement, between 1955 and 1978. In what he called "revolutionary suicide", ...

, Vado and

Cam'ron Cameron Ezike Giles (born February 4, 1976), better known by his stage name Cam'ron, is an American rapper, record executive, and actor from Harlem, New York City. Beginning his career in the mid-1990s as Killa Cam, Giles signed to Lance "Un" ...

) *2011: "Warning (Remix)" (featuring

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 ...

and

Young Jeezy Jay Wayne Jenkins (born September 28, 1977), known by his stage name Jeezy (or Young Jeezy), is an American rapper. Signing to Def Jam Recordings in 2004, his major label debut, '' Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101'', was released the followin ...

) *2012: "Money Work" (featuring

) *2013: "9's and 45's" *2014: "Yearly Rap Up" *2015: "Body Dance" (featuring

Bobby Shmurda Ackquille Jean Pollard (born August 4, 1994), known professionally as Bobby Shmurda, is an American rapper. Along with Rowdy Rebel, Shmurda is considered a pioneer of Brooklyn drill music. He rose to international fame in 2014 when his song "Hot ...

) *2015: "Right Now" (featuring

Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ...

) *2016: "Thot" (featuring

Young M.A Katorah Kasanova Marrero (born April 3, 1992), better known by her stage name Young M.A (acronym for Young Me. Always), is an American rapper. She first gained widespread recognition with the release of the quadruple-platinum hit single " Ooouuu ...

and Dios Moreno) *2017: "On & On" (featuring 50 Cent and

Jeremih Jeremy Phillip Felton (born July 17, 1987), known professionally as Jeremih ( ), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. In 2009, he signed a record deal with Def Jam Recordings. Jeremih's commercial debut single, "Birthday Sex", ...

) *2018: "Get the Strap" (featuring

Casanova Giacomo Girolamo Casanova (, ; 2 April 1725 – 4 June 1798) was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, (''Story of My Life''), is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of information about the c ...

6ix9ine Daniel Hernandez (born May 8, 1996), known professionally as 6ix9ine (stylized 6IX9INE and pronounced "six nine") and also as Tekashi69, is an American rapper. His music has been marked by an aggressive style of rapping, while his controversia ...

and 50 Cent) *2018: "Hold Up" (featuring

Dave East David Lawrence Brewster Jr. (born June 3, 1988), better known by his stage name Dave East, is an American rapper. East began his career in 2010, and gained attention in 2014 from his eighth mixtape, ''Black Rose''. Its release garnered the attent ...

) *2019: "62" (feat

Tory Lanez Daystar Shemuel Shua Peterson (born July 27, 1992), known professionally as Tory Lanez, is a Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter, and convicted felon. He received initial recognition from the mixtape ''Conflicts of My Soul: The 416 Story'', rel ...

) *2019: "It Hit Different" *2019: "Who The Boss Is" *2019: "God I F With You" *2019: "Dope Money" *2020: "Party Full Of Demons" (featuring Que Banz) *2021: "So What" (featuring Eli Fross) *2022: "Justin Laboy Page

Guest appearances

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murda, Uncle 1980 births Living people African-American male rappers Rappers from Brooklyn East Coast hip hop musicians Gangsta rappers American people of Panamanian descent 21st-century American rappers Shooting survivors 21st-century American male musicians People from East New York, Brooklyn 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people