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Mos Def
Yasiin Bey ( ; born Dante Terrell Smith; December 11, 1973), formerly known as Mos Def ( ), is an American rapper, singer, and actor. A prominent figure in conscious hip hop, he is recognized for his use of wordplay and commentary on social and political issues, such as police brutality, American exceptionalism, and the status of African Americans in the United States. After embarking on his career in 1994, he joined his siblings in the short-lived rap group Urban Thermo Dynamics (UTD) and guest appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. In 1996, he and fellow Brooklyn-based rapper Talib Kweli formed the duo Black Star, whose debut album ''Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star'' (1998) spawned the singles "Definition" and "Respiration" (featuring Common). His debut solo album, '' Black on Both Sides'' (1999) was met with critical acclaim, along with his fourth album ''The Ecstatic'' (2009). Bey's 2000 single, " Oh No" (with Pharoahe Monch featuring Nate Dogg) remain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ilosaarirock
The Ilosaarirock Festival is an annual rock festival held on the second weekend of July in Joensuu, Eastern Finland. Founded in 1971, Ilosaarirock is the second-oldest rock festival in Finland still active, and one of the oldest in Europe. In 2007 the event had 21,000 daily visitors. The festival sold out in advance every year from 1998 to 2011. Ilosaarirock is an entity of events that in its entirety, with clubs and side-events, spans Friday to Sunday. The actual festival takes place on Saturday and Sunday. The festival site, called Laulurinne, stages performances on five separate stages with over 50 artists. Including all events, Ilosaarirock weekend hosts over 100 artists. Ilosaarirock is organized mainly by volunteers and is put together by over 1,500 volunteer workers. The Ilosaarirock festival’s graphic look is chosen through an open design contest every year. The Ilosaarirock festival is organised by Joensuu Pop Musicians' Association, which is a non-profit organisatio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dec 99th
Dec. 99th is an alternative hip hop group consisting of Mos Def and Ferrari Sheppard. The duo also collaborates on visual art and fashion projects. History In 2013, Mos Def and Sheppard met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and began collaborating on visual art and web projects. Sheppard, a photographer and journalist at the time, quietly began making music to relax. The two soon began releasing music as Dec. 99th. On August 1, 2016, Dec 99th released their fourth song on Tidal titled "Hymn", following the previously released "N.A.W", which was followed up by "Tall Sleeves" and later "Local Time". The track was accompanied by a statement from the pair, "Condolences to the families of the slain. Never stop pursuing freedom," likely a reference to police killings in the United States. The group released their fifth track, "Seaside Panic Room" two days after releasing "Hymn", causing many music writers to anticipate a full-length ''Dec 99th'' album. The album was released December 21 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Respiration (song)
"Respiration" is a song by American rappers Mos Def and Talib Kweli, collectively known as Black Star. It was released as the second single from the duo’s eponymously titled 1998 album (see 1998 in music). It features a guest verse from fellow American rapper Common and guitar playing by DeChown Jenkins. The song’s production was handled by Hi-Tek, who sampled "The Fox" as performed by Don Randi. In addition, the song's introduction samples a monologue from the hip hop documentary ''Style Wars''. It is found on '' Best of Decade I: 1995-2005'', a compilation of Rawkus Records' best songs. It can also be found on Howie B's compilation album '' Another Late Night: Howie B''. The single reached #54 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Two remixes were made for "Respiration": 'Flying High Mix' contains production by Pete Rock and a verse by Black Thought of The Roots. Another remix found on the ''Hip Hop Classics Vol. 1'' compilation album also features Pete Rock produc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Definition (song)
"Definition" is the first single from Black Star's eponymously titled 1998 album (see 1998 in music). It is produced by Hi-Tek, who samples "The P Is Free" by Boogie Down Productions for the track's beat. In addition, the song's chorus interpolates "Stop the Violence" by Boogie Down Productions. The chorus and the song's lyrics in general deal with the necessity to stop violence in hip hop. An underground hit, the song still reached #60 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. It is featured on multiples compilations such as '' Best of Decade I: 1995–2005'', Rawkus Records' greatest hits album. AllMusic writer Jason Kaufman considers it to be a "flawless" track. A reprise of "Definition" titled "RE: DEFinition" can be found on the ''Black Star'' album. It also appears on MTV Classic MTV Classic may refer to: *MTV Classic (American TV channel) MTV Classic (formerly VH1 Smooth, VH1 Classic Rock, and VH1 Classic) is an American pay television network owned by Paramount Medi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star
''Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star'' (often referred to as ''Black Star'') is the debut studio album by American hip hop duo Black Star, composed of rappers Talib Kweli and Yasiin Bey (formerly known as Mos Def). The album was released on September 29, 1998, to critical acclaim. The title is a reference to the Black Star Line, a shipping line founded by Pan-Africanist Marcus Garvey. The album deals with modern-day issues, philosophical ideas, and life in Brooklyn, New York City as the two artists know it. Background The album came to fruition from the chemistry between the two emcees. Both planned to release their solo albums around the same time, but they postponed their individual projects and decided instead to collaborate on a full-length LP. The album's cover was designed by artist Brent Rollins. Music and lyrics The late jazz musician Weldon Irvine played the keys on the album's opening song, "Astronomy," which interprets the word "black" in a positive way, and c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Talib Kweli
Talib Kweli Greene (; born October 3, 1975) is an American rapper. He first earned recognition through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper Mos Def (now known as Yasiin Bey) in 1997, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's musical career continued with solo success including collaborations with producers and rappers Kanye West, Just Blaze, and Pharrell Williams. In 2011, Kweli founded his own record label, Javotti Media. Early life Born in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, Kweli grew up in a household in Brooklyn's Park Slope. His mother, Brenda Greene, is an English professor at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York, and his father is an administrator at Adelphi University. His younger brother, Jamal Greene, is a professor of constitutional law at Columbia Law School and a graduate of Harvard University and Yale Law School, and former clerk to Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court. As a youth, Kweli was drawn to Afrocen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
De La Soul
De La Soul ( ) is an American hip hop music, hip hop group formed in the village of Amityville on Long Island, New York (state), New York in 1988. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, eccentric lyrics, and contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres. Kelvin Mercer, Kelvin "Posdnuos" Mercer, David Jolicoeur, David "Trugoy the Dove" Jolicoeur, and Vincent Mason, Vincent "Maseo" Mason formed the group in high school and caught the attention of producer Prince Paul (producer), Prince Paul with a demo tape of the song "Plug Tunin'". With its playful wordplay, innovative sampling, and witty skits, the group's debut album, ''3 Feet High and Rising'' (1989), has been called "a hip hop masterpiece". It remains their biggest commercial success, though subsequent albums have continued to receive acclaim. De La Soul is the second-longest-standing Native Tongues group, after the Jungle Brothers. In 2006, the group won a Grammy Award, Grammy for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Da Bush Babees
Da Bush Babees is an American hip-hop trio loosely affiliated with the Native Tongues. The members of the group originally performed under the stage names Babe-B-Face Kaos (later Lee Majors), Mister Man (later King Khaliyl) and Y-Tee (later Light). The three grew up in Jamaica and Trinidad, where reggae strongly influenced their style. It was in 1992 in Brooklyn, New York, United States, where Mister Man first saw Kaos perform, that the group was formed. The two began collaborating, and after Mister Man suggested adding a reggae toaster, Y-Tee joined the group. After their early concert dates attracted major-label interest, the trio performed live office auditions and signed with Reprise three months after launching the group. Their first album, '' Ambushed'' (1994), featured production from Jay Matias, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Salaam Gibbs (later known as Salaam Remi) and the group itself, among others. Later releases included "Remember We" in 1995 and their 1996 second album ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rap Group
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music Music genre, genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African Americans, African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip-hop includes rapping often enough that the terms can be used synonymously. However, "hip-hop" more properly denotes an entire hip-hop culture, subculture. Other key markers of the genre are the disc jockey, turntablism, scratching, beatboxing, and hip hop production, instrumental tracks. Cultural interchange has always been central to the hip-hop genre. It simultaneously borrows from its social environment while commenting on it. The hip-hop genre and culture emerged from block parties in ethnic minority neighborhoods of New York City, particularly The Bronx, Bronx. DJs began expanding the instrumental Break (music), breaks of popular records when they noticed how excited it would make the crowds. The extend ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
African Americans
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. African Americans constitute the second largest ethno-racial group in the U.S. after White Americans. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of Africans enslaved in the United States. In 2023, an estimated 48.3 million people self-identified as Black, making up 14.4% of the country’s population. This marks a 33% increase since 2000, when there were 36.2 million Black people living in the U.S. African-American history began in the 16th century, with Africans being sold to European slave traders and transported across the Atlantic to the Western Hemisphere. They were sold as slaves to European colonists and put to work on plantations, particularly in the southern colonies. A few were able to achieve freedom th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Exceptionalism
American exceptionalism is the belief that the United States is either distinctive, unique, or exemplary compared to other nations. Proponents argue that the Culture of the United States, values, Politics of the United States, political system, and History of the United States, historical development of the U.S. are unique in human history, often with the implication that it is both destined and entitled to play a distinct and positive role on the world stage. It originates in the observations and writings of French political scientist and historian Alexis de Tocqueville, most notably in his comparison of the United States with Great Britain and his native France. Tocqueville was the first writer to describe the country as "exceptional" following his travels there in 1831. The earliest documented use of the specific term "American exceptionalism" is by American communists in intra-communist disputes in the late 1920s. Seymour Martin Lipset, a prominent political science, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Police Brutality In The United States
Police brutality is the use of excessive or unwarranted force by law enforcement, resulting in physical or psychological harm to a person. It includes beatings, killing, intimidation tactics, racist abuse, and/or torture. Police brutality, racial discrimination, and violence against minorities are intertwined and rooted throughout US history. Historical evidence of public harming of Black bodies by police dates back at least to the era of slavery, when police disciplined Blacks and recaptured those who escaped enslavement. In the 2000s, the federal government attempted tracking the number of people Police use of deadly force in the United States, killed in interactions with US police, but the program was defunded. In 2006, a law was passed to require reporting of homicides at the hands of the police, but many police departments do not obey it. Some journalists and activists have provided estimates, limited to the data available to them. In 2019, 1,004 people were shot and kille ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
