Charles Stewart (born June 26, 1971), better known as Chali 2na, is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

painter and rapper, associated with the groups Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli. He is known for his bass-baritone and quick delivery rapping style.

Personal life

Early life

As a young boy, Stewart moved to South Central Los Angeles, where the group Jurassic 5 was formed in 1993. He was raised by his grandmother, a practising Christian, he later converted to Islam. His stage name is a reference to Charlie the Tuna, the deep-voiced animated mascot of StarKist Tuna. He and Cut Chemist became friends in

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

. Together with Mark 7even, they were part of a three-man group called Unity Committee. The Unity Committee crew would often spend Thursday nights performing at the Good Life Café, where rappers and

spoken word Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics o ...

poets showed off their skills in an open mic format. They were, along with another three-person troupe called the Rebels of Rhythm, routinely chosen as the crowd's favorite performers. The two crews also appreciated one another's styles, and they teamed to record a 12" single, "Unified Rebelution", in 1995. The Rebels of Rhythm were MCs Akil and Daakir (also known as Soup); the men banded together to form Jurassic 5. In 2006, Cut Chemist elected to split from the group to pursue a solo career, and the Jurassic 5 group split up altogether in 2007. He is a founding member of the activist

salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (Mexican cuisine), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: A ...

funk band Ozomatli; although no longer an official member (having been replaced as resident MC by Jabu of 4th Avenue Jones), he continues to collaborate with them on occasion and maintains his friendships with them. Along with salsa, his music and theirs have been influenced by

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

and

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became ...

; he is also a fan of house music.

Music career

Jurassic 5

He is a founding member of Jurassic 5, which boasted in the song "Improvise" that the four MCs sounded like one.

Solo album

''Fish Market'', an official mix tape, was compiled and released October 25, 2004. Chali 2na

"Don't Stop", the would-be first single from '' Fish Outta Water'', appeared in January 2006. It showcased 2na's familiar rapid-fire flow; in its lyrics, 2na professed his dedication to hip hop culture, insulting rappers who neglect to pay proper respect to pioneers like

Kool Herc Clive Campbell (born April 16, 1955), better known by his stage name DJ Kool Herc, is a Jamaican-American DJ who is credited with contributing to the development of hip hop music in the Bronx, New York City, in the 1970s through his "Back t ...

and Afrika Bambaataa. He also spoke deferentially of Tupac Shakur. "Don't Stop"'s chorus was sung by neo-soul artist Anthony Hamilton. It was featured in the soundtrack of the video game '' NBA Live 06''. A second Chali 2na solo song, "The Anchor Man", was featured on the

Dan The Automator Daniel M. Nakamura better known by his stage name Dan the Automator, is an American record producer from San Francisco, California. He is the founder of the publishing company Sharkman Music and the record label 75 Ark. Early life Nakamura was bo ...

-curated soundtrack to the latest installment in the game series, ''

NBA 2K7 ''NBA 2K7'' is a 2006 basketball simulation video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It is the eighth installment in the ''NBA 2K'' franchise and the successor to '' NBA 2K6''. It was released in 2006 for PlayStation 2 ...

''. Another song, "Something Different", was also featured on the ''

All-Pro Football 2K8 ''All-Pro Football 2K8'' is an American football game for seventh generation consoles. ''All-Pro Football 2K8'' is the first football game to be published by 2K Sports since EA Sports purchased exclusive licenses to the intellectual properties of ...

'' soundtrack. Five years after ''Fish Market'', a solo album, titled '' Fish Outta Water'', was released. The album received generally positive reviews, holding a score of 70 on

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

. 2na delves into some of the formative experiences in his life, including a tragic incident in which his cousin, Be-Be, was killed in the

2003 E2 nightclub stampede The E2 nightclub stampede occurred on February 17, 2003, at the E2 nightclub above the Epitome restaurant at 2347 South Michigan Avenue in the South Loop neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, in which 21 people died and more than 50 were injured wh ...

. Collaborators on the album include

Beenie Man Anthony Moses Davis (born 22 August 1973), better known by his stage name Beenie Man, is a Jamaican Dancehall deejay. Biography Davis was born in the Waterhouse district of Kingston in 1973.Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Mu ...

(with whom he recorded "International"), Raphael Saadiq, his longtime friend Rakaa Iriscience, Talib Kweli, Anthony Hamilton, Damian Marley and Ming Xia (on the final track 4 Be Be). Another mixtape was released in 2010, ''Fish Market Part 2''. Much like the first ''Fish Market'' album, this is mainly filled with collaborations 2na has completed throughout his career with famous artists such as Linkin Park. In an interview with Mr. Wavvy, 2na revealed that he has a series of 5 EPs prepped for the near future. Chali 2na's song "Step Yo Game Up" was featured in a popular video game in 2012 called '' Sleeping Dogs''.

Collaborations

Chali 2na collaborated several times with fellow MCs. Many, but not all of his featured guest appearances are cataloged on the ''Fish Market'' albums, mixtapes he released to give his collaborations to "people homight not have wanted to buy that album just to hear that song or whatever." He is a good friend of and frequent collaborator with British hip hop star Roots Manuva, having worked with him on a number of songs (including "Revolution 5", which appears on ''Fish Market'' and '' Dub Come Save Me'', and "Join The Dots", which appears on Roots Manuva's second proper album, '' Run Come Save Me''). He has also referenced his friend in the lyrics. He has worked with Linkin Park on the song " Frgt/10" and the

skit Skit may refer to: * * A short segment in a performance, such as: ** Sketch comedy ** Hip hop skit ** Puppet skit ** Promo (professional wrestling) Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. ...

"Chali" from the 2002 album '' Reanimation''. The song was also featured on ''Fish Market.'' He worked with Ozomatli on their first album and toured with New Orleans funk band Galactic. He is also featured on Galactic's 2007 release ''From the Corner to the Block'' on the cut "Think Back". He collaborated with Blackalicious on their 2002 album ''

Blazing Arrow ''Blazing Arrow'' is the second studio album by American hip hop duo Blackalicious. It was released on MCA Records on April 30, 2002. It peaked at number 49 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. Critical reception Steve Huey of AllMusic gave the alb ...

'' on the track "4000 Miles," alongside Lateef the Truthspeaker. 2na appears alongside fellow Jurassic 5 MC, Akil, on the track "We know something you don't know" on the 2003 album '' Music for the Mature B-Boy'' by UK artist

DJ Format Matt Ford, better known as DJ Format (a near-inversion of his birth name), is a hip hop DJ born in Southampton, England who lives in Brighton. He collaborates frequently with Abdominal on the album '' Music For the Mature B-Boy'' and with Abd ...

. 2na's work in Jurassic 5's "Red Hot" features alongside "International," in the 2005 video game '' SSX on Tour''. Fatlip's 2005 "Today's Your Day (Whachagonedu)" from the acclaimed album '' The Loneliest Punk'' includes a verse from 2na. Chali 2na was also featured on Lyrics Born's '' Everywhere at Once'' album, performing on "Hott 2 Deff". Lyrics Born was also the MC for The Deadliest Catch Tour 2009. This hip-hop tour featured Chali 2na, Gift of Gab and Mr. Lif. On

K'naan Keinan Abdi Warsame (born 1 February 1978) ( so, Keynaan Cabdi Warsame, ar, كَينَان عَبدِ وَرسَمَ ''Kaynān ʿAbdi Warsama''), better known by his stage name K'naan (), is a Somali-Canadian musician. He rose to prominenc ...

's 2009 album, ''

Troubadour A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a '' trobair ...

'', Chali was featured on "America" together with Mos Def. Chali 2na appears on the song The People Tree, which is track 2 on

N.A.S.A. (musical group) N.A.S.A. is an American hip hop music group that formed in Los Angeles, California. Consisting of Sam Spiegel and Zé Gonzales. N.A.S.A. stands for North America/South America and its members have collaborated with dozens of other artists fro ...

's 2009 album

The Spirit of Apollo ''The Spirit of Apollo'' is the debut album by N.A.S.A., a hip hop duo consisting of Squeak E. Clean and DJ Zegon. It was released on ANTI- in 2009. The track, "N.A.S.A. Anthem", was featured on the official NASA Glenn Research Center website ...

. On Long Beach Dub Allstars 2001 album '' Wonders of the World'' Chali was featured on "Life Goes On" also featuring Half-Pint, Ives (of

Delinquent Habits Delinquent Habits is an American hip hop group, formed in Norwalk in 1991. They are known for their Latin-tinged rap, which is both melodic and hardcore. Their first album was executive produced by Cypress Hill member Sen Dog and featured gues ...

), and Tippa Irie. In 2008 Chali 2Na recorded with Ditch for Ditch's CD ''Public Intoxication'' on the song "All Comes Down To Money" which he co-wrote with Ditch. Furthermore, Chali 2Na recorded a track together with Dutch rap artist Jerome XL in 2008. The track "King Sh#t" was released on JXL's solo debut album ''The Last Day'' in the first quarter of 2010. In June 2010, British dubstep star Rusko released a collaboration with Chali 2na entitled "Gadget GoGo". The track was released as a bonus track to accompany the release of Rusko's debut solo record '' OMG''. The track was also featured on ''Fish Market, Part 2''. Most recently, Chali 2na appeared on the track "Break in the Glass" from the album ''Ways of the World'', the 2019 release from the alternative-reggae band, The Movement. Chali 2na appeared on the track "

Speaking in Tongues Speaking in tongues, also known as glossolalia, is a practice in which people utter words or speech-like sounds, often thought by believers to be languages unknown to the speaker. One definition used by linguists is the fluid vocalizing of sp ...

" from the album '' Drinking From the Sun'', the 2012 release from Australian hip-hop artists Hilltop Hoods. Chali 2na featured on the song "Get Original" on the Black Eyed Peas album '' Bridging the Gap'' released in 2000. In 2012, he featured on the remix of "Dreamers" by British hip-hop duo Rizzle Kicks. In 2012, he featured in Slightly Stoopid's track "Just Thinking" on their album, '' Top of the World''. In 2014, he guest starred in Epic Rap Battles of History, portraying famous scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson. In 2015, he was featured on the song "Love Is Killing Me" by Savoy, which was released on Monstercat. In 2016, he collaborated with Canadian electro-funk band The Funk Hunters for a 5-song EP titled ILLectric, released through Westwood and also with Australian beatbox/ loop station specialist dub FX on two tracks: "in another life" - which is a reworking of his track love's gonna getcha, and "the sky" which is with dub princess as well as dub FX. 2017 saw a partnership with Krafty Kuts, the English DJ and this has seen the release of two tracks "It Ain't My Fault" ft Dynamite MC and "Hands High". An album is due for released March 2018 according to Chali himself on Lauren Laverne's BBC 6 Music show

Film

Chali 2na is featured prominently in the award-winning documentary '' This Is the Life'', chronicling the music movement that was birthed at The Good Life Cafe in South Central Los Angeles. The Good Life is the open-mic workshop where he first performed with Unity Committee in the early 1990s and founded Jurassic 5. Chali 2na is also featured in the documentary '' Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme'', and in the movie Never Been Kissed as part of Ozomatli, performing in a club. Chali 2na is interviewed in

RASH A rash is a change of the human skin which affects its color, appearance, or texture. A rash may be localized in one part of the body, or affect all the skin. Rashes may cause the skin to change color, itch, become warm, bumpy, chapped, dry, c ...

– a 2005 documentary film about Melbourne street art and graffiti – on his passion for graffiti as he paints his signature Tuna fish in murals with Australian artists including Phibs. The session involved painting murals on Smith St and Brunswick St in Melbourne. Chali was taking a short breather while on the band's 2005 Australian tour. Chali 2na has also starred in the Epic Rap Battles of History video, Sir Isaac Newton versus

Bill Nye William Sanford Nye (born November 27, 1955), popularly known as Bill Nye the Science Guy, is an American mechanical engineer, science communicator, and television presenter. He is best known as the host of the science television show '' Bil ...

as astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Street art

Chali2na is an accomplished graffiti artist - and has painted extensively across Australia - including

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

and has been a regular painter at the Bondi Beach Graffiti Wall.

Discography

Albums

Chali 2na *'' real as it gets'' (2003) *'' Fish Outta Water'' (2009) *''Adventures of a Reluctant Superhero'' with

Krafty Kuts Krafty Kuts (real name Martin Reeves) is an English producer and DJ of electronic music and breakbeat. His first album, ''Freakshow'', was released in 2006 on his Against The Grain label and contains guest artists Tim Deluxe and Ashley Slat ...

(2019) Jurassic 5 *'' Jurassic 5'' (1998) *'' Quality Control'' (2000) *'' Power in Numbers'' (2002) *'' Feedback'' (2006) Other collaborations *'' Ozomatli'' (1998) (with Ozomatli) *''The Dino 5'' (2008) (with

Ladybug Mecca Digable Planets () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987. The trio is composed of rappers Ishmael "Butterfly" Butler, Mariana "Ladybug Mecca" Vieira, and Craig "Doodlebug" Irving. The group is notable for their contributions to the subgenr ...

, Prince Paul, Scratch & Wordsworth, as The Dino 5) *''R.I.D.S.'' (2012) (with Roc 'C', as Ron Artiste)

Mixtapes and EPs

Mixtapes *''Fish Market'' (2004) *''Fish Market Part 2'' (2010) EPs *'' Jurassic 5'' (1997) ( Jurassic 5) *''Against the Current EP 1'' (2012) *''Against the Current EP 2 : Manphibian Music'' (2014) *''Against the Current EP 3 : Bloodshot Fisheye'' (2015) *''ILLectric EP'' (2016) (with The Funk Hunters)

Guest appearances

* Black Eyed Peas - " Get Original" on '' Bridging the Gap'' (2000) * Swollen Members - "Full Contact" on '' Bad Dreams'' (2001) * Roots Manuva - "Join the Dots" on '' Run Come Save Me'' (2001) * Long Beach Dub Allstars - "Life Goes On" on '' Wonders of the World'' (2001) * Blackalicious - "4000 Miles" on ''

'' (2002) *Roots Manuva - "Revolution 5" on '' Dub Come Save Me'' (2002) * Linkin Park - "Frgt/10 (feat. Chali 2NA)" on '' Reanimation'' (2002) * Slimkid3 - "Follow I'll Lead" on ''Liberation'' (2002) *

Soulive Soulive is a funk/jazz trio that originated in Woodstock, New York, and is known for its solos and catchy, upbeat songs. The band consists of Eric Krasno (guitar), Alan Evans (drums) and Neal Evans (Hammond B3 organ, bass keys, clavinet). Althoug ...

- "Doin' Something" on '' Turn It Out Remixed'' (2003) *

- "We Know Something You Don't Know" on '' Music for the Mature B-Boy'' (2003) * Ozomatli - "Who's to Blame" on ''

Street Signs Traffic signs or road signs are signs erected at the side of or above roads to give instructions or provide information to road users. The earliest signs were simple wooden or stone milestones. Later, signs with directional arms were introduce ...

'' (2004) *

Supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

- "It Ain't a Game" on ''S.P.I.T.'' (2005) *DJ Nu-Mark feat. Chali 2na - "Comin' Thru" on '' Mushroom Jazz Vol. 5'' (2005) *DJ Format - "The Place" on '' If You Can't Join 'Em... Beat 'Em'' (2005) * Fatlip - "Today's Your Day (Whachagonedu?)" on '' The Loneliest Punk'' (2005) * Breakestra - "Family Rap" on '' Hit the Floor'' (2005) * Sérgio Mendes - "Yes, Yes Y'All" on ''

Timeless Timeless (or atemporal) or timelessness (or atemporality) may refer to: * Agelessness, the condition of being unaffected by the passage of time * Akal (Sikh term), timelessness in Sikhism * Eternity, timeless existence or infinite duration * Im ...

'' (2006) * Marcelo D2 - "That's What I Got" on ''Meu Samba É Assim'' (2006) *

Dan the Automator Daniel M. Nakamura better known by his stage name Dan the Automator, is an American record producer from San Francisco, California. He is the founder of the publishing company Sharkman Music and the record label 75 Ark. Early life Nakamura was bo ...

- "Anchor Man" on '' Dan the Automator Presents 2K7'' (2006) *

Zion I Zion I was an American hip hop project founded by MC and producer Baba Zumbi (real name Stephen Gaines) in Oakland, California. K-Genius and Amp Live were also project members. Career Originally formed as a group, Zion I released the debut s ...

& The Grouch - "Too Much" on '' Heroes in the City of Dope'' (2006) * X Clan - "Funky 4 You" on ''

Return from Mecca ''Return from Mecca'' is the title of the reunion 3rd album from Hip Hop group X Clan, released on January 30, 2007. This is the group's first studio album in 15 years since 1992's '' Xodus''. A music video was made of the single "Weapon X." ...

'' (2007) * Galactic - "Think Back" on ''

From the Corner to the Block ''From the Corner to the Block'' is the fifth studio album by the New Orleans-based jazz fusion/funk group Galactic. Unlike the group's other albums, ''From the Corner to the Block'' is a collaboration with various alternative hip hop musicians. ...

'' (2007) * Percee P - "No Time for Jokes" on '' Perseverance'' (2007) * Aceyalone - "Eazy" on '' Lightning Strikes'' (2007) *

- "America" on ''

'' (2008) * Lyrics Born - "Hott 2 Deff" on '' Everywhere at Once'' (2008) * The Mighty Underdogs - "Warwalk" on ''

Droppin' Science Fiction ''Droppin' Science Fiction'' is the first studio album by The Mighty Underdogs, an American hip hop group consisting of producer Headnodic and rappers Lateef the Truthspeaker and Gift of Gab. It was released by Definitive Jux on October 14, 2008. ...

'' (2008) *

Solillaquists of Sound Solillaquists of Sound, often shortened to Solilla, is an American hip-hop quartet based in Orlando, Florida. Its line up currently consists of MCs Alexandrah and Swamburger, poet Tonya Combs and producer/composer Divinci. Solillaquists utiliz ...

- "Death of the Muse" on ''No More Heroes'' (2008) * N.A.S.A. - "The People Tree" on ''

'' (2009) *Speech - "Start Spreading the News" on ''The Grown Folks Table'' (2009) * Jerome XL - "King Sh#t" on '' De Laatste Dag '' (2010) * Rakaa - "Mean Streak" on '' Crown of Thorns'' (2010) * Hilltop Hoods - "

" on '' Drinking from the Sun'' (2012) * House Shoes - "So Different / Moody Interlude" on '' Let It Go'' (2012) * Run DMT - "This or That" on ''Union Of Opposites'' (2012) *

Rizzle Kicks Rizzle Kicks are a British hip hop duo from Brighton, England, consisting of Jordan "Rizzle" Stephens (born 25 January 1992) and Harley "Sylvester" Alexander-Sule (born 1991). Their debut album, ''Stereo Typical'', was released in 2011. As o ...

- " Epic Dreamers' Remix" (2012) * Slightly Stoopid - "Just Thinking" on '' Top Of The World'' (2012) *

Oh No Oh No may refer to: * An Interjection, exclamation used to indicate shock or dismay, primarily used in the English language Music * Oh No (musician) (born 1979), American rapper Albums * ''Oh No!'', 2004 album by Crackout (band), Crackout * Oh ...

- "Animals" on ''

Disrupted Ads ''Disrupted Ads'' is the seventh studio album by American hip hop producer and rapper Oh No. It was released on January 29, 2013. The album features guest appearances from Blu, MED, Rapsody, Psalm One, Tristate, Midaz, Chali 2na, Roc C, Gangre ...

'' (2013) * Morcheeba - "Face of Danger" on '' Head Up High'' (2013) * Savoy - "Love Is Killing Me" on ''1000 Years'' (2015) *

- "Hands High" on Hands High (EP) * Cut Chemist - "Work My Mind" on ''Die Cut'' (EP) (2018) * Slightly Stoopid - "Higher Now" on '' Everyday Life, Everyday People'' (2018) * Ozomatli - "Libertad" on ''Libertad (EP)'' (2019) * - "Break in the Glass" on ''Ways of the World'' (2019)

References

External links

Chali2na Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chali 2na Rappers from Chicago African-American male rappers Living people African-American Muslims Hip hop activists 1971 births Midwest hip hop musicians Underground rappers Jurassic 5 members 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people Dino 5 members