Inga Fung Marchand (born September 6, 1979), better known as Foxy Brown, is an American rapper known for her solo work as well as numerous collaborations with other artists and her brief stint as part of hip-hop music group The Firm. Her albums include Ill Na Na in 1996, followed by Chyna Doll in 1999, Broken Silence in 2001, and Brooklyn's Don Diva in 2008. She performed also in the 1997 self-titled album by the Firm, the only album to be released by that group to date. Throughout her career, Brown has held an extensive arrest record and served some time in jail.

After 2002, she continued recording verses for herself and other artists but did not release any albums; she left the Def Jam label in 2003, thus canceling the release of her Ill Na Na 2 album. However, she returned to the label in January 2005 after Jay-Z signed her back to begin work on her new album Black Roses. In December 2005, she began suffering from hearing loss, which put her career on hiatus until the next summer, a few months after surgery. Her fourth album was released in May 2008 following many delays spawned by a jail sentence that Brown served for assault.

[edit] Music career

[edit] Early career, Ill Na Na, The Firm

While still a teenager, Brown won a talent contest in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. Members of the production team Trackmasters who were working on LL Cool J's Mr. Smith album were in attendance that night and were impressed enough to let Brown rap over "I Shot Ya." ^[2] She followed this debut with appearances on several RIAA platinum and gold singles from other artists, including remixes of songs "You're Makin' Me High" by Toni Braxton.^[2] Brown was also featured on the soundtrack to the 1996 film The Nutty Professor, on the songs "Touch Me Tease Me" by Case and "Ain't No Nigga" by Jay-Z.^[3] The immediate success led to a label bidding war at the beginning of 1996, and in March, Def Jam Records won and added the then 17-year old-rapper to their roster.^[2]

In 1996 Brown released her debut album Ill Na Na to mixed reviews but strong sales. The album sold over 109,000 copies in the first week, and debuted at #7 on the Billboard 200 album charts.^[2] The album was heavily produced by Trackmasters, and featured guest appearances from Jay-Z, Blackstreet, Method Man, and Kid Capri.^[4] The album went on to go platinum selling over 3 million records in the US, six million world wide and launched two hit singles: "Get Me Home" (featuring Blackstreet) and "I'll Be" (featuring Jay-Z).^[5]

Following the release of Ill Na Na, Brown joined fellow New York-based hip hop artists, Nas, AZ and Nature to form the supergroup known as The Firm. The album was released via Aftermath Records and was produced and recorded by the collective team of Dr. Dre, The Trackmasters, and Steve "Comissioner" Stout of Violator Entertainment. An early form of The Firm appeared on "Affirmative Action", from Nas' second album, It Was Written. A remix of the song, and several group freestyles were in the album, Nas, Foxy Brown, AZ, and Nature Present The Firm: The Album.^[6] The album entered the Billboard 200 album chart at #1 and sold over one million records and is RIAA certified platinum.^[7]

In March 1997, she joined the spring break festivities hosted by MTV in Panama City, Florida, among other performers including rapper Snoop Dogg, pop group The Spice Girls, and rock band Stone Temple Pilots.^[8] Later, she joined the Smokin' Grooves tour hosted by the House of Blues with the headlining rap group Cypress Hill, along with other performers like Erykah Badu, The Roots, OutKast, and The Pharcyde, the tour set to begin in Boston, Massachusetts in the summer of 1997.^[9] However, after missing several dates in the tour, and everything being everyone else's fault, she left it, yelling "Fuck this concert"^[10]

[edit] Chyna Doll

Foxy Brown releases her sophomore album Chyna Doll, which debuts at number one on the Billboard 200, the first album by a female rapper to do so...Chyna Doll was released in January 1999, delayed from its original November 1998 release date.^[11] It sold 173,000 copies in its opening week.^[12] However, its sales quickly declined in later weeks.^[13] The album's lead single, "Hot Spot", failed to enter the top 50 of the Billboard pop charts, as did the follow-up single, "I Can't" (featuring Total). Chyna Doll has been certified platinum after surpassing one million copies in shipments.^[14].

[edit] Broken Silence

In 2001, Brown released Broken Silence. Its first single was "BK Anthem" showcased Brown changing to a "street" image and giving a tribute to her hometown, Brooklyn, and famous rappers such as The Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z. The second single from the album was "Oh Yeah", which featured her then-boyfriend, Jamaican dancehall artist Spragga Benz.^[15] The album debuted on the Billboard Charts at #5, selling 130,000 units its first week. Like previous albums, Broken Silence also sold over 500,000 records and is certified gold by the RIAA.

[edit] Ill Na Na 2: The Fever

In 2002, Brown returned to the music scene briefly with her single "Stylin'", whose remix featured rappers Birdman, her brother Gavin, Loon, and N.O.R.E. was to be the first single off of her upcoming album Ill Na Na 2: The Fever.^[16] The next year, she was featured on DJ Kayslay's single "Too Much for Me" from his Street Sweeper's Volume One Mixtape.^[17] She also appeared on Luther Vandross' final studio album Dance with My Father.^[18] That April, Brown appeared on popular New York radio DJ Wendy Williams' radio show, and revealed the details of her relationships with Lyor Cohen, president of Def Jam Recordings at the time, and Sean "P. Diddy" Combs. Brown accused both of illegally trading her recording masters. She also announced that Cohen shelved her long awaited fourth album Ill Na Na 2: The Fever over personal disagreements.^[19] Therefore, "Stylin'" was released on the compilation album The Source Presents: Hip Hop Hits Vol. 6 in December 2002.^[20]

[edit] Black Roses

In 2004, Brown reunited with her old friend and mentor Jay-Z, when he became the president of Def Jam and signed her to its subsidiary, Roc-A-Fella Records. Later that year, Brown joined Jay-Z and several other hip-hop acts on his Jay-Z and Friends tour. Brown began recording her fourth solo album, Black Roses.^[21] Its first single was "Come Fly With Me" featuring Sizzla.^[22]

[edit] Brooklyn's Don Diva

Brown signed to Koch Records in August 2007.^[23] Brooklyn's Don Diva, Brown's fourth album, was released on May 13, 2008 after many delays triggered by her prison sentence. The album peaked at #83 on the Billboard 200 chart, #8 on the Top Independent Albums chart, and #5 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.^[24]

[edit] Lawsuit

On July 24, 2008, publisher Simon & Schuster Inc. sued Brown in state court in New York claiming that it paid her $75,000 under a 2006 contract for an autobiography, tentatively titled Broken Silence, but that Brown never delivered on the contract. In a separate lawsuit, filed the same day, the publisher also sued Lil' Kim with similar allegations. Brown's case is Simon & Schuster v. Inga Marchand, 110125/2008, New York State Supreme Court (Manhattan).^[25]

[edit] Personal life

She is of mixed Afro-Trinidadian and Asian descent.^[26] Around 2001, she was engaged to Spragga Benz.^[15] Brown suffered hearing loss from May 2005 to June 2006. During that time, she opted not to wear a hearing aid, and she had someone tap beats on her shoulder while she recorded music.^[27][28] In June 2008, rumors that Brown was engaged to rapper Rick Ross began to circulate after Brown and Ross were together on a cover photo of Hip Hop Weekly magazine. After the publication of that issue, Ross stated that he was not engaged to anyone.^[29]

[edit] Legal troubles

On January 25, 1997, Brown spat on two hotel workers in Raleigh, North Carolina when they told her they didn't have an iron available. When she missed a court appearance, an arrest warrant was issued and she finally turned herself in on April 30, 1997. She eventually received a 30-day suspended sentence and was ordered to perform 80 hours of community service.^[30]

On July 3, 1999, Brown was escorted off the stage by police at a concert in Trinidad and Tobago for using obscene language, but was neither charged nor arrested.^[31] In 2000, she announced she was suffering from depression and entered rehab at Cornell University Medical College for an addiction to prescription painkillers, in particular, morphine, at one point stating that she couldn't perform or make records unless she was on the drug.^[32] On March 6, 2000, Brown crashed her Range Rover in Flatbush, Brooklyn and thus was arrested for driving without a license.^[33]

Threat of arrest faced her following an altercation at the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica from July 26, 2002; she would be arrested if she ever would return to the country. Nicola White, clerk of the Kingston Criminal Court, told the New York Post that Brown illegally evaded a body search at the airport and punched a policewoman in the stomach. Brown's publicist, Marvette Britto, argued that Brown felt that she was being "detained" at the airport. Originally, a hearing for Brown was scheduled for July 28, 2002, but Brown failed to show up. Thus, on late December 2002, an arrest warrant was set up for Brown skipping the hearing.^[34]

On August 29, 2004, Brown attacked two manicurists in Chelsea, Manhattan during a dispute over a $20 bill that she refused to pay, and she in April 2005 pleaded not guilty to assault charges^[35] and entered three years of probation effective October 2006.^[36] For that incident, she would also take anger management classes.^[37] Female rapper Jacki-O, in April 2005, alleged that she and Brown got into a physical altercation at a recording studio in Miami, Florida, saying that Brown came into the studio during her session and expected her to "bow down" to her.^[38] The next month, Brown denied any such altercation in an interview with the Miami, Florida hip-hop radio station WEDR.^[39] Joseph Tacopina, Brown's attorney, stated on December 6, 2005 that he could no longer communicate with Foxy Brown verbally due to her sudden hearing loss. Judge Melissa Jackson suspended Brown's assault case for two weeks.^[40]

As a result of her legal troubles, Brown entered a confrontation with radio host Egypt on New York City radio station WWPR-FM ("Power 105.1").^[41] Brown pleaded not guilty in March 2007 to assaulting a beauty supply store employee.^[42]. Her other arrests during 2007 included leaving New York state without permission during probation,^[43] hitting a neighbor with a BlackBerry,^[44] and almost running over a stroller with a baby inside.^[45]

On September 7, 2007, New York Criminal Court Judge Melissa Jackson sentenced Foxy Brown to one year in jail for violating her probation that stemmed from the 2004 fight with two manicurists in a New York City nail salon.^[46]. No mention was made during the trial by anyone about Brown expecting a baby. On September 12, 2007, her representatives stated the rapper was not pregnant in response to claims by her lawyer that she was.^[47] On October 23, 2007, Brown was given 76 days in solitary confinement due to a physical altercation that took place on October 3, 2007 with another prisoner. According to the prison authorities, Brown, the next day after the incident, was also verbally abusive toward correction officers and refused to take a random drug test.^[48] Prison authorities reported on November 27 that she was released "from solitary confinement...for good behavior",^[49] and Brown was finally released from prison on April 18, 2008.^[50]

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

[edit] Singles

Other charted songs

^A Album cut; ^B B-side

[edit] As featured performer

^A Did not chart on the Hot 100 or Hot R&B/Hip-Hop charts (Billboard rules at the time prevented album cuts from charting). Chart peak listed here represents Hot 100 Airplay and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay charts data.

[edit] Music videos

[edit] Filmography

[edit] See also

• Creative artists who have served time in prison

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official site
• Foxy Brown on Twitter