Aaron Phillip (born January 31, 1974), better known by his stage name Afu-Ra, is an American underground rapper. A member of the

Gang Starr Foundation Gang Starr Foundation is a collective of east coast rappers led by the hip hop group Gang Starr. It was co-founded by Boston legend Big Shug. It was established in 1993. Group members Current members *Big Shug * Jeru the Damaja * Group Hom ...

, he has worked closely with its members, including

Gang Starr Gang Starr was an American hip hop duo, consisting of Texas record producer DJ Premier and Massachusetts rapper Guru. For the entirety of their association, they were based out of Brooklyn, New York. Gang Starr was at its height from 1989 to 2 ...

, Jeru the Damaja,

Big Shug Cary Guy (born December 13, 1961), better known as Big Shug, is a rapper and actor from Boston, Massachusetts, a co-founder of Gang Starr and a member of the Gang Starr Foundation collective. Biography Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Cary spen ...

and

Group Home A group home, congregate living facility, or care home (the latter especially in British English and Australian English) is a residence model of medical care for those with complex health needs. Traditionally, the model has been used for children ...

Career

Afu-Ra grew up in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, with frequent collaborator Jeru the Damaja. Afu-Ra's first studio appearance was on Jeru's 1994 album '' The Sun Rises in the East'', on the song "Mental Stamina". He made another appearance on Jeru's second album '' Wrath of the Math'', on the track "Physical Stamina", in 1996. Afu's debut single, "Whirlwind Thru Cities", was released in 1998, reaching the top 20 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'''s

Hot Rap Singles Hot Rap Songs (formerly known as Hot Rap Tracks and Hot Rap Singles) is a chart released weekly by ''Billboard'' in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stati ...

chart. In 1999, he released his second single, "Defeat" b/w "Mortal Kombat". His debut album, '' Body of the Life Force'', was released in October 2000. The album featured production from

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 du ...

, DJ Muggs,

True Master Derrick Harris (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name True Master, is an American hip-hop record producer and occasional rapper, known for his affiliation with the Wu-Tang Clan. Production credits 1995 *''Guru presents Ill Kid ...

and Da Beatminerz. Guests included

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close aff ...

's GZA and

Masta Killa Jamel Irief (born Elgin Turner; August 18, 1969), better known by his stage name Masta Killa, is an American rapper and member of the Wu-Tang Clan. Though one of the lesser-known members of the group (he was featured on only one track on their 1 ...

, M.O.P.,

Ky-Mani Marley Ky-Mani Marley (born 26 February 1976) is a Jamaican singer and musician. His name is of East African origin, and means "Adventurous Traveler". He is the only child of Bob Marley with Anita Belnavis, a Jamaican table tennis champion. In 200 ...

, and the Cocoa Brovaz. The album peaked at 183 on the

Billboard 200 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of ar ...

, 13 on the

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

chart, and 42 on hip hop. Afu released his second effort '' Life Force Radio'' in May 2002 on

Koch Records MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch", formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had ...

, featuring production from DJ Premier,

Easy Mo Bee Osten Harvey Jr. (born December 8, 1965), better known by his stage name Easy Mo Bee, is an American hip hop and R&B record producer, known for his production work for artists such as Big Daddy Kane and Miles Davis, as well as his affiliation ...

, Domingo and

Ayatollah Ayatollah ( ; fa, آیت‌الله, āyatollāh) is an honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy in Iran and Iraq that came into widespread usage in the 20th century. Etymology The title is originally derived from Arabic word ...

. Guests included

Guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan- Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverential ...

Big Daddy Kane Antonio Hardy (born September 10, 1968), better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is an American rapper who began his career in 1986 as a member of the Juice Crew. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential and skilled MCs in ...

, RZA, and

Teena Marie Mary Christine Brockert (March 5, 1956 – December 26, 2010), known professionally as Teena Marie, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, composer, arranger, and producer. She was known by her childhood nickname Tina before taking the sta ...

. The album was slightly less successful, peaking at 184 on the ''Billboard'' 200, 17 on the independent album chart, though 29 on hip hop. In 2004, he released a compilation album titled ''Afu-Ra presents Perverted Monks'', followed by a studio album in 2005, titled '' State of the Arts'' on

Decon Records Decon'' is a New York-based creative studio that houses production, creative, strategy, and music divisions. The company creates campaigns on behalf of brands and advertising agencies. History Originally named Deconstruction Company, the comp ...

. The latter featured production by DJ Premier and

Bronze Nazareth Bronze Nazareth (born Justin Cross; December 8, 1979 in Grand Rapids, Michigan) is a hip hop music producer and emcee associated with the Wu-Tang Clan. He has a solo career as an emcee and is also a part of the hip-hop group Wisemen along with ...

and guest vocals from Masta Killa,

Royce da 5'9" Ryan Daniel Montgomery, known professionally as Royce da 5'9" (or simply Royce 5'9"), is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Montgomery is currently one half of the rap duo Bad Meets Evil with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, a ...

, and

Gentleman A gentleman (Old French: ''gentilz hom'', gentle + man) is any man of good and courteous conduct. Originally, ''gentleman'' was the lowest rank of the landed gentry of England, ranking below an esquire and above a yeoman; by definition, the r ...

. In 2012, he independently released ''Body Of The Life Force 2'', which was poorly received.

Discography

References

1974 births African-American male rappers American male rappers Five percenters Gee Street Records artists Rappers from New York City Rappers from Brooklyn Living people Underground rappers East Coast hip hop musicians 20th-century American rappers 21st-century American rappers 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American musicians Gang Starr Foundation members {{US-hiphop-bio-stub