Lupe Fiasco | Artist
Wasalu Muhammad Jaco aka Lupe Fiasco is an American rapper and record producer born 1982 in Chicago. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his debut album, Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor. He also performs as the frontman of rock band Japanese Cartoon, under his real name. One of the most cerebral and enigmatic artists of his generation, Lupe is also among the more prominent artists in hip-hop, as proven by Grammy recognition and several gold and platinum certifications. Fiasco is of West African descent, one of nine children of Shirley, a chef, and Gregory, an engineer. His father, a member of the Black Panther Party, was a prolific African drummer, karate teacher, operating plant engineer, and owner of karate schools and army surplus stores. Fiasco was raised Muslim on the West Side of Chicago on Madison Terrace housing project, he remains committed to Islam but doesn't wanted to be regarded as a "poster child" for his faith. He developed an interest in hip hop after initially disliking the genre for its use of vulgarity and misogyny. After adopting the name Lupe Fiasco and recording songs in his father's basement, 19-year-old Fiasco joined a group called Da Pak. The group disbanded shortly after its inception, and Fiasco soon met rapper Jay-Z, who helped him sign a record deal with Atlantic Records. It took Fiasco a few years to gain traction, but his name has been well-known since his featured appearance on Kanye West's "Touch the Sky" (2005), a hit single that set him up for success with the Top Ten album Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor in 2006. Although Lupe specializes in complex narratives and creative metaphorical verses, he hasn't shied away from making singles with pop appeal, including the Top Ten hits "Superstar" and "The Show Goes On." To-date the artist has released nine studio albums, standouts include Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor (2006), Lupe Fiasco's The Cool (2007), Tetsuo & Youth (2015), Drill Music in Zion (2022), and Samurai (2024). Outside of music, Lupe Fiasco is an avid gamer and likes to play the Street Fighter series of fighting games. He surprisingly won an exhibition match of Street Fighter V against professional player Daigo Umehara in 2016, defeating him 3–2 using Ken. During a 2008 interview with methodshop, Lupe Fiasco revealed that he has "a black belt in karate, two black belts in the styles of samurai sword fighting, kendo and aido" as well as "the equivalent of a black belt in Chinese wushu." Fiasco is such a fan of martial arts, he named one of his companies "Righteous Kung-Fu," a brand that does fashion design, sneakers, toys, video games, comic books and more. As an entrepreneur, Fiasco was the chief executive officer of 1st and 15th Entertainment.
Artist Website: lupefiasco.com
Featured Albums: Lupe Fiasco
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