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Doctors by Last Name (A): Ali - Ali-Fehmi vitals.com | Brother Giorgio's Kangaroo kurzweilcyberart.com | Ali Shilatifard - Stowers Institute for Medical Research stowers.org |
Ali Newman (born Jason Newman in 1977), better known by the stage name Brother Ali, is an American Hip Hop artist.
[edit] Personal lifeBrother Ali was born in Madison, WI, and spent his early childhood moving from city to city in the midwest (mostly in Michigan). Ali’s family settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1992. He attended Cooper High School in New Hope, MN. It was in Minneapolis that Ali converted to Islam and was given the name Ali (he was born Jason Newman). He has a son, Faheem, from his first marriage, and remarried in 2008. On the song "Real As Can Be" off his [EP] "Truth is Here" he says he also has a daughter on the way. According to the song "Fresh Air" on his September 2009 album "Us," he bought a house and lives there with his wife and son. [edit] Albinism and RaceBrother Ali was born with a rare genetic condition of Albinism, and his body cannot produce normal levels of pigmentation. While Brother Ali’s family is white, he has often described a childhood marked by cruelty and exclusion by his white classmates as a result of his obesity. He’s often explained that, from an early age, he felt most at home amongst black people. When Ali’s career began to blossom, he began to field questions about his race. Due to his stage name (a common reference among religious communities, particularly Muslims i.e. “Brother Jabbar”, “Sister Ayesha”), many writers assumed Ali was black. When questioned on the subject, Ali declined to comment. In hindsight Ali regards this early decision as a mistake. It was wrongly reported that Ali was black. “Hip Hop and MCing was my life growing up. I always had dreams of making music and performing for a living. When Slug (of Atmosphere) gave me an opportunity to tour with him, I was introduced to the underground, independent Hip Hop scene. I was really surprised to find a scene where many of the artists and fans were white. I wasn’t sure how to feel about it at first. I eventually decided to just make music that was real to me and let the chips fall where they may. The thing that fucked with me were magazines and music reporters who never cared about or covered rap before this new wave of white artists. That was so incredibly wack to me. So when they got me in an interview and asked me what race I was, I didn’t know what to say. You can look at me and tell I’m not Black so, what is the question really? What are you implying? I didn’t answer them and they decided I must be white.” –Brother Ali, March 20, 2007 Ali released a song on his album The Undisputed Truth called “Daylight”. The song deals with misconceptions about him and in the third verse he states: “They ask me if I’m white or black, I’m neither [edit] Albums And CareerAli’s first release was a cassette only demo tape called "Rites of Passage . Ali handled all of the production, recording and arranging of the project himself. That tape is what cemented his relationship with local label Rhymesayers Entertainment. "Rites of Passage" was released in 2000 and was sold almost exclusively at shows. In 2003 Brother Ali released his first studio project titled “Shadows On The Sun”. This time he was joined by Atmosphere producer Ant, who provided all of the instrumentals. Although the album had no major national distribution, “Shadows” was heavily praised by independent Hip Hop fans and publications. Ali used the album to explain his childhood and identity. The Champion EP was Ali’s next CD. Released just a year after “Shadows”, it was presented as an extension of the full length. Leading with a reggae inspired remix of Shadows’ “Champion”, the 9 song EP offered up highlights such as “Rain Water”, a song about Ali losing his mother and grandfather to cancer and suicide. In spring of 2007 Rhymesayers released “The Undisputed Truth”, Ali and Ant’s full length follow up to “Shadows On The Sun”. “Truth” tells the story of Ali’s divorce from his first wife, his struggle to gain custody of their young son, Faheem and the homelessness he faced as a single father. The first of his releases to be distributed by Warner Brothers Music, Truth debuted at #69 on Billboard’s Top 100. Brother Ali released an EP and DVD package titled “The Truth Is Here” in March 2009. The album is made up of 9 tracks including a collaboration with Rhymesayers label-mate Slug of Atmosphere. In September of 2009, Brother Ali released his follow-up to 2007's "Undisputed Truth". The album was originally titled "Street Preacher" but later changed to "Us". It debuted at #56 on Billboard's Top 100. Ali, his DJ BK-One, and fellow Rhymesayers crew members Toki Wright and Evidence recently finished their Fresh Air Tour this fall. [edit] ProductionBrother Ali produced the tracks "The Feeling" and "Little Girl" on Rhymesayers artist Toki Wright's debut album, "A Different Mirror". [edit] PressBrother Ali has twice been featured in the hip-hop magazine The Source, first in August 2007, when the "Hip Hop Quotable" was from a verse in "Uncle Sam Goddamn", and second in October 2007, when he was interviewed. In May 2007, he was featured in Rolling Stone as a "New Artist to Watch". [edit] TV AppearancesOn August 13, 2007, Brother Ali appeared on The Late Late Show and performed his single "Uncle Sam Goddamn" from The Undisputed Truth. On October 19, 2007, Ali appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and performed "Take Me Home" from The Undisputed Truth.[1] On December16, 2009 Ali appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and was featured with late night band, The Roots. [edit] InspirationsBrother Ali has said many times in interviews that he finds much of his inspiration in the early 1980s rapper Jon Heimdal and the golden age of hip hop, especially KRS-One and Rakim.[2].[3] In an interview in early 2007, Ali responded to a question about the response to his and his label's music, and the current music industry:
[edit] "Uncle Sam Goddamn" ControversyMain article: Uncle Sam Goddamn Brother Ali has been under pressure from the recording industry due to lyrics from his recent song "Uncle Sam Goddamn", claiming creative interference from "somebody I don't wanna name, but some of you probably has they cell phones." The unnamed corporation ultimately withdrew its sponsorship of Ali, causing him to truncate parts of his current tour.[4][5] Furthermore, on the song "Second Time Around" with Benzi and Wale, Ali makes references to being kicked off a tour followed by the line "Verizon dissed me too, cuz I was too political." The song is notably critical of the United States government, with accusations that the political system is addicted to war. [edit] Discography[edit] Studio albums
[edit] Singles
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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