Talib Kweli
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| Talib Kweli | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Talib Kweli Greene |
| Also known as | BK MC, Mr. International, MCEO, Kwe |
| Born | October 3, 1975 |
| Origin |  Brooklyn, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Genre(s) | Hip hop, Alternative hip hop |
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Label(s) | Rawkus Records Geffen Blacksmith Records / Warner Bros. Records (2005-Present) |
| Associated acts | Black Star Reflection Eternal DJ Hi-Tek Kanye West Mos Def Idle Warship |
| Website | TalibKweli.com |
Talib Kweli Greene (born October 3, 1975), better known as Talib Kweli, is an American MC from Brooklyn, New York. He is one of the best-known and critically, if not commercially, successful rappers in alternative hip hop. His first name in Arabic means "student" or "seeker"; his middle name in Swahili means "true". Kweli first gained recognition through Black Star, a collaboration with fellow MC Mos Def. Kweli has two children. Kweli has supported the "Black August Benefit Concert" since its inception, and performs at the show consistently every year.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early Life
Born in Brooklyn, Kweli grew up in a highly educated household. His mother is an English professor and his father a sociology professor. As a youth, he was drawn to Afrocentric rappers, such as De La Soul and other members of the Native Tongues Posse and Gall whom he had met in high school. Talib Kweli was a student at Cheshire Academy, a boarding school in Connecticut. He later studied experimental theater at New York University (NYU). [1]
[edit] Early career (1997-2001)
Kweli made his professional debut in 1997, with an appearance on "Doom," an album by Cincinnati, Ohio group, Mood (Main Flow, Donte, Jahson). In Cincinnati, Kweli also met DJ Hi-Tek and the two collaborated on a few well received underground recordings as Reflection Eternal. Shortly afterwards, upon returning to New York, he reconnected with Mos Def and formed Black Star. Kweli brought along Hi-Tek to produce their first and only album, 1998's Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star. The album, released amidst a late '90s renaissance of conscious, Afrocentric hip hop, was immediately hailed by critics and achieved modest mainstream success. When Kweli and Mos Def parted ways shortly thereafter, Kweli and Hi-Tek continued their Reflection Eternal partnership on the 2000 album Train of Thought, which was likewise met with critical acclaim, but modest sales.
[edit] Start of solo career (2002-2003)
Following Train of Thought, Kweli and Hi-Tek split as well, and Kweli used his first truly solo debut to attempt a move toward a more mainstream sound. 2002's Quality, accomplished this goal to some extent, featuring production by a host of different producers, including DJ Quik and Kanye West. The album was met with wide spread critical acclaim and received some mainstream attention thanks to the West-produced single "Get By."
[edit] Rise in cultural popularity
In 2004, Talib Kweli, along with Bob Moore's Amazing Mongrels, supported the Beastie Boys on their "Challah At Your Boy World Tour," participated in a photo shoot by the amateur photographer Ben Fink Shaprio, and appeared in a few Dilated Peoples songs, including a live remix later featured on the video game NBA Street Vol. 2.
Kweli has used television appearances extensively to increase visibility, notably on MTV's Wild 'N Out, and several performances on Chappelle's Show with long-time collaborator Mos Def; these performances were a product of host Chappelle's friendship with Kweli. Chappelle in turn participated in a number of skits on Kweli's albums "Train of Thought" and "Quality"- impersonating several people including Nelson Mandela. Kweli also had a guest spot on Kanye West's widely successful debut album The College Dropout on the track "Get 'Em High". West has produced some of Kweli's songs, including his biggest commercial hit "Get By". Kweli can be seen in a commercial for the NCAA's Big Ten Conference, rapping about the league's basketball teams.[2] He also provided the voice of the protagonist in the graffiti-themed video game Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure, released in 2006.[3]
Talib and fellow rapper artist Mos Def purchased Nkiru, which is Brooklyn's oldest black-owned bookstore, and converted it into the Nkiru Center for Education and Culture.[4][5]
Kweli's stature continued to grow, particularly fueled by a line from Jay-Z's 2003 record, The Black Album: "If skills sold, truth be told/I'd probably be, lyrically, Talib Kweli."
[edit] Middle career (2004-2006)
In 2004, he released his second solo album and final Rawkus release, The Beautiful Struggle. The album featured much more commercial production, and although Kweli's lyrics retained their socio-political content, he affected a somewhat harder persona. The album failed to cross over into the mainstream and suffered a critical backlash.
In 2005, Kweli released a Mixtape-CD off of his newly formed Blacksmith Records. The project was called Right About Now: The Official Sucka Free Mix CD, a title which is considered likely a response to the criticism of The Beautiful Struggle.
On Right About Now: The Official Sucka Free Mix CD, Talib Kweli sampled Ben Kweller's "In Other Words" for his own song "Ms. Hill". In part 7 of Kweller's video podcast series "One Minute Pop Song," Kweller said he found Kweli's use of the song "a little fucked up" due to the fact that it was sampled without permission. Link to episode
[edit] Recent career (2007-2008)
On December 31, 2006, Kweli released nine songs he recorded with acclaimed underground producer Madlib for free download in conjunction with the web site for Stones Throw Records, the label to which Madlib is signed. The album was entitled Liberation, of which Talib later was quoted by XXL magazine as stating releasing the album was liberating to him; "The idea that I could put out an album like that: record it in my house, put it out for free and get that type of response."[6] The album was in 2007 made for sale as a retail item.
For his newest release, Kweli formed his own record label, Blacksmith Records, and has recently signed acclaimed rapper Jean Grae and the group Strong Arm Steady. He also signed a new distribution deal with Warner Bros. Records for Blacksmith Records. His latest solo album is called Eardrum and was released on Aug 21, 2007. It debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200. The first single was Listen!!!.[6]
Kweli embarked on a national Australian tour in October, 2007. In 2007, a bootleg import CD containing rare and collaborative songs was released entitled Focus. Recently Talib has joined MTV's hit show MADE and filmed an episode in the small town of Arlington, Massachusetts, as well as SMT Studios in New York City. He was the coach of Colin Colt, a young man who wanted to be made into a rap star.
[edit] Future projects (2008 and beyond)
On a New Year's blog Talib Kweli confirmed that he has 3 albums planned for 2008: Prisoner of Conscious, a second Reflection Eternal album, and Party Robot. In the blog, Kweli also confirmed that he will be working on new albums for Strong Arm Steady, Jean Grae, and Dion.
Kweli confirmed in a recent interview with VIBE magazine that the title of his next album will be Prisoner of Conscious, a title derived from Talib's constant labeling as a "conscious rapper".[citation needed]
Talib Kweli and DJ Hi-Tek have both said they are recording a second Reflection Eternal album which will be a follow-up to Train of Thought.[7][8]
In March of 2008, Kweli was featured on the 9th Wonder and Buckshot track "Hold It Down".
Talib is currently recording a collaborative album titled Party Robot with R&B singer Res under the group alias Idle Warship. They have released one song, "Industry Diary" from the upcoming project.
[edit] Discography
- Black Star (1998, as Black Star, with Mos Def)
- Train of Thought (2000, as Reflection Eternal, with Hi-Tek)
- Quality (2002)
- The Beautiful Struggle (2004)
- Right About Now: The Official Sucka Free Mix CD (2005)
- Liberation (2006, with Madlib)
- Eardrum (2007)
- Party Robot (2009, as Idle Warship, with Res)
- Prisoner of Consciousness (TBA)
[edit] References
- ^ Talib Kweli Biography - Discography, Music, Lyrics, Album, CD, Career, Famous Works, and Awards
- ^ Power Rankings: Michigan St. Spartans (11-2). Sports Illustrated (January 6, 2006).
- ^ "Review:Graffiti game fresh and fun", CNN, February 24, 2006.
- ^ Acclaimed Hip-Hop Artist Talib Kweli Named Black History Month Keynote Speaker at Holy Cross. Holy Cross College (February 1, 2005).
- ^ HPD - Homebuyers - New York City Neighborhoods - Prospect heights, Brooklyn. The City of New York: Department of Housing Preservation and Development.
- ^ a b Big Dog Status by Thomas Golianopoulos. XXL Magazine. January 2008. Page 82.
- ^ Talib Kweli Playing It By Ear; Says New Reflection Eternal LP Is In Motion. hiphop-elements.com (September 28, 2007).
- ^ Talib Kweli Confirms Reflection Eternal Reunion Album | Hip Hop News > HipHopDX.com
[edit] External links
- Talib Kweli - Official site (requires Flash)
- Talib Kweli - Official blog
- Talib Kweli Biography
- Synthesis.net interview
- Synthesis.net interview from 2002
- Talib Kweli - Myspace page
- Talib Kweli - Official Message Board
- Talib Kweli - Official Video Channel
- Talib Kweli - Black Planet page
- Talib Kweli - Interview by XXLmag.com
- Talib Kweli interview at britishhiphop.co.uk
- Talib Kweli on AbsolutePunk.net
- Talib Kweli at Rolling Stone
- Talib Kweli - Interview @ Formatmag.com
- Tiny Mix Tapes on Kweli's Ear Drum
- Real Detroit Weekly Interview
- Video Interview from Scion
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