Freestyle Fellowship
American hip hop band
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Freestyle Fellowship is an American hip-hop group from Los Angeles, California. It consists of Aceyalone, Myka 9, and Self Jupiter.[1] The group was a prominent part of the Good Life Cafe collective and are part of the Project Blowed collective.[2]
- 1991–1993
- 1998–present
- Project Blowed
- Decon
- 4th & B'way
- Island
- Sun Music
- Beats & Rhymes
- Ground Control
- Whig Music
Freestyle Fellowship | |
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| Origin | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Hip-hop |
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History
While in high school in the late 1980s, Aceyalone, Myka 9, and Self Jupiter formed the short-lived MC Aces, a precursor to Freestyle Fellowship, at the Good Life Cafe in Los Angeles, California.[3] Subsequently, former high school friend P.E.A.C.E. was added to form Freestyle Fellowship.[3]
Freestyle Fellowship released the debut studio album, To Whom It May Concern..., in 1991.[4] In 1993, the group released the second studio album, Innercity Griots.[5]
Freestyle Fellowship went on hiatus due to the incarceration of Self Jupiter.[6] In 1998, the group reunited to record the Shockadoom EP, which would be released in 2002.[7] The group released Temptations in 2001,[8] and The Promise in 2011.[9]
Style and influences
According to Los Angeles Times, Freestyle Fellowship incorporates "jazz rhythms into its raps, which have the improvisational ebb and flow and the random explosiveness of a jazz solo."[10] In a 1993 interview with Los Angeles Times, the group's member Myka 9 said, "What we are is liberators, liberating rap from its R&B/funk structures—that 4
4 (time) prison."[10]
The group has been described by LA Weekly as "the astral jazz-cracked geniuses of sherm-strafed South Central, rapping with caged bird cadences about sleeping on park benches, biblical books, and gangsta rap carpetbaggers."[11]
Discography
Studio albums
- To Whom It May Concern... (1991)
- Innercity Griots (1993)
- Temptations (2001)
- The Promise (2011)
Remix albums
- Version 2.0: To Whom It May Concern... Remixed by J. Sumbi (2001)
Mixtapes
- Power Plant (2011)
EPs
- Shockadoom (2002)
Singles
- "Bullies of the Block" (1992)
- "Hot Potato" (1993)
- "Can You Find the Level of Difficulty in This?" (1999)
- "Sex in the City" (2001)
- "Temptations" b/w "Ghetto Youth" (2002)
Guest appearances
- Nobody - "Planets Ain't Aligned" from Soulmates (2000)
- Abstract Rude & Tribe Unique - "Heavyweights Round 4" from P.A.I.N.T. (2001)
Compilation appearances
- "Hot" from Project Blowed (1994)
- "Can You Find the Level of Difficulty in This? (Hive Remix)" from Defcon 4 (2000)
- "Ummm" from We Came from Beyond (2001)
- "Crazy" from Constant Elevation (2002)
