T-Pain
Faheem Rashad Najm (born September 30, 1984),[1] better known by his stage name T-Pain, is an American singer, rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for popularizing creative use of the Auto-Tune pitch correction effect, often used with extreme parameter settings to create electronic-styled vocal performances. Blending this with contemporary R&B and hip hop sensibilities, his music became characterized by this distinction, with other music industry artists such as Lil Wayne, Kanye West, Future, and Travis Scott utilizing it to a similar effect.
T-Pain began his recording career as part of the short-lived hip hop group Nappy Headz. He released debut solo mixtape, Back @ It independently in 2004, and signed with Senegalese-American singer Akon through his label Konvict Muzik, in a joint venture with Jive Records the following year. His 2005 debut single, "I'm Sprung" was quickly met with commercial success, peaking at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and receiving platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Its follow up, "I'm 'n Luv (Wit a Stripper)" (featuring Mike Jones) saw further commercial success at number six on the chart; both served as lead singles for his debut studio album, Rappa Ternt Sanga (2005). The album was moderately successful, while his second album, Epiphany (2007) peaked atop the US Billboard 200 and spawned the Billboard Hot 100-number one single "Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin')" (featuring Yung Joc), as well as the top-40 single "Bartender" (featuring Akon). His third album, Three Ringz (2008) was preceded by the single "Can't Believe It" (featuring Lil Wayne), and his fourth album, Revolver (2011) was preceded by "5 O'Clock" (featuring Wiz Khalifa and Lily Allen). His fifth album, Oblivion (2017) sustained long-term delays and was met with critical and commercial failure, serving as his final major label release.
Meanwhile, T-Pain saw continued success as a guest performer on nine Billboard Hot 100-top ten singles—"Shawty" by Plies, "Cyclone" by Baby Bash, "Good Life" by Kanye West, "Shawty Get Loose" by Lil Mama, "Got Money" by Lil Wayne, "Blame It" by Jamie Foxx, and "Hey Baby (Drop It to the Floor)" by Pitbull—which includes two singles that peaked the chart: "Kiss Kiss" by Chris Brown and "Low" by Flo Rida. The latter was named third in the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Decade and received diamond (10× platinum) certification by the RIAA. "Good Life" and "Blame It" both received Grammy Awards for Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Performance respectively, from T-Pain's total of 12 nominations for the award. Outside of music, T-Pain founded the record label Nappy Boy Entertainment—adapted from the namesake group in which he began recording—in 2005, and has signed rapper Travie McCoy to brief commercial success. Furthermore, he has produced and written material for other artists and voice acted in film and television such as Tom & Jerry, Freaknik: The Musical, The Cleveland Show, Squidbillies and We Bare Bears.
Early life[edit]
Najm was born and raised in Tallahassee, Florida, to parents Aliyah, a Bahamian chef,[4] and Shasheem, who founded the Homeboyz to Men program.[3][5] His stage name is short for "Tallahassee Pain", and was chosen because of the hardships he experienced while living there. Najm was brought up in a Muslim household, but he has expressed his lack of interest in the concept of religion.[6][7] At three years old, he got his first taste of the music business when a friend of the family, gospel jazz artist/producer Ben Tankard, allowed him to spend time and "twist the knobs" at his recording studio. At age ten, Najm turned his bedroom into a music studio, using a keyboard, a beat machine and a four-track recorder.[8][9]
Career[edit]
1999–2006: Early career and Rappa Ternt Sanga[edit]
T-Pain joined the rap group Nappy Headz in 1999. Through a mutual connection with music promoter TJ Chapman, he was discovered by Rocco Did It Again! and Mike Blumstein—founders of the independent record label Chase Entertainment—to whom he signed.[10] He released his debut mixtape, Back @ It in 2004, and later released the song "I'm Fucked Up", a slightly-altered cover version of Akon's then-popular 2004 single, "Locked Up". Akon himself came across the song and immediately offered him a deal to his label, Konvict Muzik.[11][12] While T-Pain was offered other record deals, with the highest-bidding being US$900,000, Akon promised the young artist a personal mentorship in the industry. Meanwhile, Blumstein and Rocco remained involved in T-Pain's careers as joint co-managers.[13] Afterward, T-Pain began singing instead of rapping, and used this inspiration to begin recording for his debut studio album, Rappa Ternt Sanga. Released on December 6, 2005, through a joint venture with Jive Records,[3] the album reached number 33 on the Billboard 200, and has since received gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
The album was preceded by the lead single, "I'm Sprung", which was released in August 2005 and peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and number nine on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The second single, "I'm N Luv (Wit a Stripper)", featuring Mike Jones, was released in December 2005 and peaked at number five on the former chart,[14] and number ten on the latter. The third and final single from the album, "Studio Luv", was released in October 2006 and failed to chart.
Other ventures[edit]
Film and television[edit]
In May 2009, T-Pain made an appearance on a live-action episode of Aqua Teen Hunger Force as Frylock, where he made his debut as an actor.[72] In late 2009, T-Pain developed a concept to create an animated television special, Freaknik: The Musical, which he submitted to Adult Swim. It premiered on March 7, 2010, and features many guest celebrities such as Lil Wayne, Young Ca$h, Snoop Dogg, Sophia Fresh, Rick Ross, Andy Samberg and Charlie Murphy.
T-Pain made his cinema acting debut in the comedy film Lottery Ticket as a liquor store clerk.[73]
In November 2016, T-Pain also appeared in an episode of the YouTube series Epic Rap Battles of History as American singer Stevie Wonder.[74]
T-Pain was the champion of the first season of the Fox reality music competition The Masked Singer as "Monster".[75] He returned as a guest panelist in the sixth episode of season three.
Since 2018, T-Pain has been the host of T-Pain's School of Business, a documentary series airing on Fuse in which T-Pain travels around the United States meeting with different entrepreneurs. The show has aired for two seasons so far: the first in 2018, which had six episodes, and the second in 2019, which had eight episodes.[76]
Video games[edit]
T-Pain has confirmed his involvement in the development of the upcoming video game Grand Theft Auto VI, although his role has not been specified.[77]
Personal life[edit]
T-Pain has been married to Amber Najm (née Wyatt) since 2003. They have three children: one daughter, Lyriq, and two sons Muziq and Kaydnz Kodah (born May 2009).[89][90]
On March 27, 2009, T-Pain was involved in a golf cart accident, the same day he was due for a music video shoot for Lil' Kim's "Download" song. He suffered cuts, bruises, and four missing teeth and had emergency dental work done. He returned to performing two days later.[91]
On April 1, 2013, T-Pain revealed that he had cut off his iconic dreadlocks, stating "We must all learn to adjust with our surroundings. Those who get stuck doing the same things for too long are bound to get left behind the strong who press on & reinvent themselves. Also good news hair grows back."[92]
On August 30, 2016, T-Pain's niece, Javona Glover, was stabbed to death in a local Walgreens store in his hometown, Tallahassee, Florida.[93] In 2017, a suspect in the case was found dead in an apparent suicide.[94]
He is an avid gamer who regularly streams on Twitch.[95] He has many tattoos, some of which are internet memes or otherwise Internet-related.[96][97]
Legal issues[edit]
On April 28, 2007, T-Pain refused to shorten his performance at Radio One's Spring Fest Concert in Miami, which caused police presence to escalate backstage. He became agitated after concert officials stopped his performance of "Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin')". Police chased him and his entourage out of the premises and detained them.[98]
In June 2007, a warrant was issued for T-Pain's arrest for driving with a suspended license. He subsequently turned himself in to the Leon County Jail on November 2, 2007. He was held without bail, but was released three hours later.[99]
Studio albums