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Lorenzo Dechalus (born September 17, 1968), known professionally as Lord Jamar, is an American rapper, DJ, record producer, actor and podcaster. He is a founding member of hip hop group Brand Nubian, which formed in 1989. Jamar is a frequent guest on VladTV, where he has drawn attention for his comments on social issues such as racism, sexism and homophobia.

Early life

Jamar was born in The Bronx, New York City, but was raised in New Rochelle, New York. Jamar has Afro-Guyanese heritage on his father's side, and he is the eldest of three brothers. He was introduced to hip hop music in the 1970s through a friend who lived in his neighborhood, and he would listen to tapes of The Cold Crush Brothers, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five and The Sugarhill Gang. DJ Daryll C of Crash Crew used to take Jamar to hip hop shows in New York City. Jamar sold crack cocaine during his teen years, but stopped after people he knew received sealed indictments. He dropped out of high school after failing ninth grade, and worked a few short-term jobs prior to signing a record deal.

Career

Jamar was introduced as a DJ to Grand Puba, who already had celebrity status in New Rochelle. Jamar and Puba began recording demos after Puba saw Jamar rapping in a park. After Puba left a group he was with, he and Jamar recruited Sadat X and decided to form Brand Nubian. The three began working on demos at Jazzy Jay's studio, despite not having enough money to pay for studio time. The first song Brand Nubian made was titled "I Ain't Goin' Out Like That". The group eventually signed to Elektra Records and received an album deal after the release of their single "Feels So Good".

Brand Nubian's debut studio album, One for All, was released in 1990. It received the coveted "five mic" rating from The Source magazine, and is regarded as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time. Some time during late 1990 and early 1991, Grand Puba left Brand Nubian. Jamar claims that this was partly due to the fact that he and Puba often clashed due to them both having "alpha" personalities. Jamar had picked up on studio techniques during the production of One for All. Due to Puba's departure, Jamar decided to focus more on production due to people attempting to take advantage of Puba's absence and produce for the group. Jamar then built a studio in Sadat X's basement and began producing. Jamar produced the entirety of the group's second studio album, In God We Trust (1993), while Sadat X helped with finding samples.

After Brand Nubian's third studio album, Everything is Everything (1994), Jamar discovered and began working with Florida-based hip hop group Dead Prez, signing them to Loud Records.

As an actor, Jamar is best known for his role of Supreme Allah on the TV series Oz. He has appeared on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Third Watch, and The Sopranos. He has also done production work for artists such as Dead Prez, whom he discovered, Buckshot, Shaka Amazulu the 7th and Tom Browne. He released his debut solo album The 5% Album (an album dedicated to the Nation of Gods and Earths) on June 27, 2006. Like his onscreen character on Oz, Jamar is a member of the Nation of Gods and Earths.

Jamar currently co-hosts a podcast, Yanadameen Godcast, with fellow rapper Rah Digga. He has repeatedly criticized and distanced himself from Black Lives Matter and its activities on his podcast, saying, "It's not our movement," and that "most people looting are white; some riots are staged by paid agitators."

Controversy

Jamar garnered controversy after releasing a diss track towards Kanye West on February 4, 2013 titled "Lift Up Your Skirt," and stated that "gay has no place in hip-hop", which led to him being characterized by some in the media as homophobic. Jamar denied the homophobia accusations by tweeting that he "went to a gay wedding of a good friend not long ago".

In a September 2013 interview on VladTV, Jamar declared that white rappers were "guests in hip hop", compared Eminem to Macklemore, and made further remarks about white rappers and homosexuality. Eminem responded to Jamar with the track "Fall" from his 2018 album Kamikaze. Jamar responded to Eminem on his podcast.

Discography

Studio albums

• The 5% Album (2006)

Guest appearances

Filmography

Television

References

1. "Hip-Hop's Alpha Conservative". The New Yorker. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
2. Jacob Katel (10 March 2014). "Brand Nubian's Lord Jamar on Race: "Pitbull Is Cuban, Cuban Is Black, Macklemore's White"". Crossfade. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
3. Martin, Andrew (2013-02-04). "Listen: Lord Jamar Disses Kanye West on Homophobic New Song". Complex. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
4. Krishnamurthy, Sowmya (2013-02-04). "Lord Jamar Is Mad At Kanye West's Kilt On Diss Track". MTV. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
5. "Lord Jamar Calls White Rappers "Guests," Slanders Hopsin On Twitter [PHOTOS]". Hip-Hop Wired. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
6. HipHopDX. "Lord Jamar Says White Rappers Are Guests In Hip Hop". HipHopDX. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
7. ^ "F.D.S #141 - LORD JAMAR - TALKS EMINEM, BRAND NUBIAN HISTORY, MALCOLM X & MUCH MORE - FULL EPISODE". YouTube. QuietRoom. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
8. "The Source 100 Best Rap Albums". RockList.net. Retrieved 2018-05-14.
9. "Acclaimed Music – One for All". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved 2018-05-14.
10. Lord Jamar: I Don't Support Black Lives Matter, It's Not Our Movement
11. Lord Jamar: Most People Looting Are White, Some Riots Are Staged by Paid Agitators
12. Martin, Andrew (2013-02-04). "Listen: Lord Jamar Disses Kanye West on Homophobic New Song". Complex. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
13. Krishnamurthy, Sowmya (2013-02-04). "Lord Jamar Is Mad At Kanye West's Kilt On Diss Track". MTV. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
14. "Tweet by @lordjamar". Twitter. 2013-02-05. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
15. "Lord Jamar Calls White Rappers "Guests," Slanders Hopsin On Twitter [PHOTOS]". Hip-Hop Wired. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
16. HipHopDX. "Lord Jamar Says White Rappers Are Guests In Hip Hop". HipHopDX. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
17. Mylrea, Hannah. "Ouch. All the people Eminem disses on surprise album 'Kamikaze'". NME. NME. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
18. Zidel, Alex. "Lord Jamar Responds To Eminem's Diss On "Kamikaze" Track "Fall"". HotNewHipHop. HotNewHipHop. Retrieved 2 October 2019.

External links

• Lord Jamar at AllMusic
• Lord Jamar at IMDb

• 1968 births
• African-American male actors
• African-American male rappers
• African-American record producers
• American hip hop record producers
• American people of Guyanese descent
• American male television actors
• Living people
• Five percenters
• Musicians from New Rochelle, New York
• Rappers from New York (state)
• Indie rappers
• 21st-century American rappers
• Record producers from New York (state)
• 21st-century American male musicians