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Wasalu Muhammad Jaco (born February 16, 1982 in Chicago, Illinois) better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco, is an American rapper. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his debut album, Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor, which received three Grammy nominations. Prominent hip hop mogul Jay-Z describes him as a "breath of fresh air" in a new hip-hop world characterized by mainstream pop and glamour, a sharp contrast with the widespread lyricism-focused rap of the 1990s, and hip hop critic Henry Adaso called him the "hip-hop Generation Next vanguard."

Biography

Early life

Raised on the westside of Chicago, Lupe Fiasco is the fifth child of nine brothers and sisters. His father (died February 27, 2007) was an engineer, a prolific African drummer, karate teacher and owner of karate schools and army surplus stores. His mother was a gourmet chef. Fiasco went to high school at Thornton Township High School in Harvey, Illinois. Fiasco started rapping when he was in the eighth grade, but was initially put off by the vulgarity and violent imagery of his father's Public Enemy and N.W.A. records. It wasn't until he heard Nas' 1996 album, It Was Written, at the age of 17 that he began to pursue hip hop music.

Growing up, Fiasco was given the nickname "Lu", the last part of his first name, by his mother. "Lupe" is an extension of this nickname, which he borrowed from a friend named Lupe from high school. "Fiasco", he says, "came from the Firm album. They had the song, 'Firm Fiasco'. I just liked the way it looked on paper".

Early career

By 19, Fiasco was in a group called Da Pak. They signed to Epic Records and released one single before splitting up. Fiasco later signed a solo deal with Arista Records, but was dropped when president and CEO L. A. Reid was fired. During this time, he had guest appearances on singles on Tha' Rayne's "Kiss Me" and "Didn't You Know" and also K Fox's 2004 "This Life". He also released the song "Coulda Been" on a 10/03 compilation of MTV's Advance Warning. He began releasing many mixtapes, glorifying himself as a hero of the nerd and middle class. Over time he began getting a huge fan base via the internet.

In 2004, Arista went out of business and Lupe was signed with Atlantic Records. In early 2006, Brian 'Busy' Dackowski of Atlantic Records approached Lupe and his friend/hypeman Dusean "Bishop G" Dunbar to start FNF Radio, a show on the college radio station WIIT located at the Illinois Institute of Technology. The show was reported to have, on average, close to 6,000 listeners a night. The music featured on the show was mostly hip-hop and many of the songs played are either his own, or the artists on his label, 1st and 15th, as well as personal favorites or gag records. In between playing music, discussions were held on issues ranging from politics, music, sports, and entertainment. Also, 45 minutes into the show, a contest called the "freshen up package" is held where three questions are made up and the first person to call in with the correct answers, won a prize.

Rise to fame

Rapper Jay-Z heard Lupe and offered to sign him to his label Roc-A-Fella but Lupe declined, having already started 1st and 15th Entertainment. Jay-Z decided to assist him in the production of his debut album Food & Liquor.

Lupe had gained a large underground following with the release of his three critically acclaimed mixtapes, Fahrenheit 1/15 Part I: The Truth Is Among Us, Fahrenheit 1/15 Part II: Revenge of the Nerds, and Fahrenheit 1/15 Part III: A Rhyming Ape, all leading up to his debut.

In 2005, Lupe was featured on Linkin Park rapper Mike Shinoda's solo mixtape titled Fort Minor:We Major. He was featured on two tracks including Spray Paint and Ink Pens(Feat. Ghost Face Killah) & Be Somebody(Feat. Holly Brook) thus expanding his demographic to a whole new group of fans.

In 2006, he released his hit single "Kick, Push", a song heavily referencing skateboarding, which established himself as the antithesis of many mainstream rappers. As his popularity slowly increased, so did anticipation for his upcoming album Food & Liquor. The album was officially released on September 19 2006 and became one of the most critically acclaimed rap albums of the year. Singles from the album were "Kick, Push", "I Gotcha" and "Daydreamin" featuring Jill Scott. In the same year, he was voted by GQ as the "Breakout Man of the Year". Food & Liquor was later nominated for three Grammys including "Best Rap Album". In addition Lupe made an appearance on the CW's hit TV show One Tree Hill in 2006, in which he performed some of his hit songs.

Since going mainstream, Lupe has had requests from many other rappers to do guest appearances with him, including producer rapper Kanye West, East-Coast rap artist Fabolous and West-Coast rapper The Game.

There is a "top secret" project in the works with "another superstar rapper and someone who is a rapper/producer," but Lupe declined to reveal details, including whether the pairing was for a full album or just a handful of songs. A track featured on Kanye West's "Can't Tell Me Nothing" mixtape, called "Us Placers", features Lupe Fiasco, Kanye West, and Pharrell Williams, collectively known as CRS (Child Rebel Soldier). This has been confirmed as the secret project by sources close to the CRS camp. He can be seen in Nickelback's "Rockstar" music video.

Ventures

Fiasco is known for his involvement in the "streetwear" culture. He frequently shows support for brands such as Maharishi, Dr. Romanelli, FALSE, Alife, CLOT, Dekoi and Artful Dodger. In January 2006, Lupe signed with major footwear and apparel corporation Reebok. Fiasco has become a part of the "O.G" marketing campaign, where rap artists such as Lil' Wayne and Mike Jones designed their own personal colorway of the Reebok "O.G" model. He designed a white/grey model of the shoe.

Fiasco is also the co-founder and vice-president of 1st & 15th Entertainment, a record label under Atlantic.

Personal life

Religion

Lupe has been open about his Islamic faith. He showcased it in his underground remix of friend and collaborator Kanye West's "Jesus Walks", entitled "Muhammad Walks". He has noted the importance of religion in his life, stating: Well, I was born Muslim, so Islam plays a part in my life and everything I do, to a certain extent. I'm not like the poster boy for Islam... I still got my flaws and stuff like that, so I don't really wear that on my sleeve... I don't go to clubs, I don't drink, I don't smoke, you know like my whole - the whole groupie situation is shut down.

The font of Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor album cover is stylized to look like that of Persian calligraphy, designed by New York artist Rostarr. Along with this, Lupe begins Food & Liquor by reciting an Islamic prayer: A'uzu billahi min ash shaitani r rajimi Bismi 'llahi 'r-rahmani 'r-rahim, which translates to "I seek refuge from Satan the accursed... (And I Begin) In the name of God, the most gracious, the most merciful."

Influences

Lupe is highly influenced by Crucial Conflict and Nas among others. Lupe regards It Was Written as his favorite album and cites it as his primary source of inspiration. For instance, when asked of his influences in an interview with AllHipHop.com, Lupe stated the following: "You know I really tried to go back and recreate It Was Written, you know what I'm saying like that? It Was Written and then I would play my album, and it was like, `Do we got record, do we got that record?'"

In a following interview with Nobody Smiling:

NobodySmiling.com : Now you've said many times that your album is modeled after `It Was Written,' and a lot of people wouldn't admit that because a lot people would be like He's biting or whatever. So why do you feel so comfortable admitting that?

Lupe Fiasco : Cause it's a classic. Like, people study-you study the masters, you know what I'm saying? Everybody that's rapping studied someone to learn how to rap. They had a rapper who was they favorite rapper that they wanted to be like and wanted to rap like, know what I'm saying? For me, I just look at it like I studied a masterpiece. I modeled my album after a masterpiece; and not song for song; not line for line; not beat for beat. It was more-for me it was like mood for mood. The way he set the mood on that album to me was just like incredible. And at the time in my life-like, I fell in love with 'It Was Written' when I was seventeen/eighteen—a very impressionable time—so I was like I love that album. That's my favorite Hip Hop album, so it's like why not base your album on 'It Was Written?'

Along with It Was Written, Lupe claims to have enjoyed music by 2Pac, Too $hort and Jay-Z in "Hurt Me Soul." He has also cited DANGERDOOM and The Teriyaki Boyz as his current favorites.

Discography

• 2006: Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor
• 2007: Lupe Fiasco's The Cool
• 2007: Untitled (with Kanye West and Pharrell as CRS (Child Rebel Soldier)

Awards and nominations

• BET Awards
  • 2007, Best New Artist (Nominated)

• BET Hip Hop Awards
  • 2007, Hip-Hop CD of the Year: Food & Liquor (Nominated)
  • 2007, Hip-Hop Video of the Year: "Kick Push" (Nominated)
  • 2007, Rookie of the Year: "Kick Push" (Nominated)
  • 2007, Element Award- Lyricist of the Year: (Nominated)

• Grammy Awards
  • 2007, Best Rap Solo Performance: "Kick Push" (Nominated)
  • 2007, Best Rap Song: "Kick Push" (Nominated)
  • 2007, Best Rap Album: Food & Liquor (Nominated)

• Image Awards
  • 2007, Outstanding New Artist (Nominated)

• Soul Train Awards
  • 2007, Best New R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist: "I Gotcha" (Nominated)

References

1. Adaso, Henry. "Lupe Fiasco - "Kick, Push"". About.com. Retrieved 2006-07-13.
2. ^ Creekmur, Chuck (2006-02-10). "Lupe Fiasco: Revenge of the Hip-Hop Nerd". Allhiphop.com. Retrieved 2007-09-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
3. ^ Blackman, Guy (2007-01-08). "Lupe Fiasco - a sheep in wolf's clothing". The Age. Retrieved 2007-09-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
4. ^ Adaso, Henry. "Lupe Fiasco". About.com. Retrieved 2007-04-08.
5. ^ Fruchter, Alexander (2006-05-11). "Hip To Be Square". Soundslam.com. Retrieved 2007-09-02. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
6. ^ Kellman, Andy. "Lupe Fiasco: Biography". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2007-09-02.
7. MP3.com, 2006-09-26. Lupe Fiasco. MP3.com
8. Lupe Fiasco - Almost Famous. Nobody Smiling
9. Lupe Fiasco Declared GQ's Breakout Man Of The Year
10. Lupe Fiasco Forecasts 'Cool' for October. Billboard
11. ^ "Lupe and Kanye teamed with Radiohead". MTV UK. 2007-05-30. Retrieved 2007-06-01.
12. Gudmundson, Darryl (2007-05-29). "Kanye, Lupe & Pharrell Form Supergroup???". HipHopDX.com. Retrieved 2007-06-01.
13. Simona Siad (2007-01-03). "Would you like music with your Reebok?: DJ Mick Boogie mixes tunes for kicks, and for fun". Excalibur. Retrieved 2007-04-08. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
14. Ivey, Michael (2005). "Lupe Fiasco - As We Proceed". NobodySmiling.com. Retrieved 2007-04-08. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)

External links

Official sites sponsored by Lupe Fiasco

• Official Website
• Lupe Fiasco's Hypebeast.com blog
• Template:MySpace
• Official CRS Website
• FNF Radio Podcasts

More information about Lupe Fiasco

• Lupe Fiasco speaks at panel discussion in New Orleans
• Lupe Fiasco And Islam
• Lupe Fiasco discography at MusicBrainz
• Lupe-Fiasco.net
• The Lupe Fiasco Show Blog

Interviews

• HipHopGame.com
• NobodySmiling.com
• Prefixmag.com
• About.com

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• Misplaced Pages articles needing copy edit from May 2007
• 1981 births
• African American musicians
• American Muslims
• American rappers
• Chicago musicians
• Living people
• Lupe Fiasco