He subsequently formed the duo Black Star , alongside fellow Brooklyn -based rapper Talib Kweli , and they released their eponymous debut album in He was featured on the roster of Rawkus Records and in released his solo debut, Black on Both Sides. Prior to his career in music, Mos Def entered public life as a child actor with roles in television films , sitcoms , and theater.
Mos Def has been vocal on several social and political causes, including police brutality , the idea of American exceptionalism and the status of African Americans. Mos Def was not exposed to Islam until the age of At 19, he took his shahada , the Muslim declaration of faith. Denard Smith get hit by a car.
The album features a compilation of previously unreleased and re-released tracks recorded during the original UTD run. Fat Booty" charted, [14] while the album reached 25 on the Billboard During the event, he announced that he would be releasing a new album to be called The Ecstatic. Flash , Madlib's brother Oh No, a song by J. Dilla , and Georgia Anne Muldrow.
In October, he signed a deal with Downtown Records and appeared on a remix to the song "D. The new single, "Life In Marvelous Times", was made officially available through iTunes on November 4, , and is available for stream on the Roots' website Okayplayer. He treated the South African audience with an encore introduced by his own rendition of John Coltrane 's " A Love Supreme ", followed by a sneak preview of the track "M.
Doctor ". Mos Def has designed two pairs of limited edition Converse shoes. The shoes were released through Foot Locker stores on August 1, in limited amounts. The items were released in select U. Don't miss a thing. He also appears on the track titled "Sweepstakes". In September , after appearing on Kanye West's G. In September , Mos Def announced that he legally changed his name to Yasiin Bey, and would continue to go by that name.
On January 19, , Mos Def announced his retirement from both the music and film industries on Kanye West's website: "I'm retiring from the music recording industry as it is currently assembled today, and also Hollywood , effective immediately. I'm releasing my final album this year, and that's that. In October , a planned concert in London was cancelled due to travel restrictions imposed on the artist, [43] while other European dates suffered the same fate.
With the 17th anniversary of Black on Both Sides being released, I am grateful to have had the career that I have been able to enjoy. He said he would perform one show in Harlem and three in Washington D. He announced that Dec 99th, his final album, would be released on December 9.
He released three singles from it "Local Time," "N. He also has yet to release or announce a release date for the last two albums of his career. The album will be produced by Madlib. No specific release date was made available. He has no plans of releasing the album digitally or physically. Prior to his career in music, Mos Def entered public life as a child actor, having played roles in television movies , sitcoms and theater , some of which were under the name Dante Beze. In he also starred in a Visa check card commercial featuring Deion Sanders.
In he had a small role alongside Michael Jackson in his short film and music video Ghosts After brief appearances in Bamboozled and Monster's Ball , Mos Def played a rapper who is reluctant to sign to a major label in Brown Sugar.
Miller, a crooked cop. Lucas in The Woodsman. He has a recurring guest role on Boondocks , starring as Gangstalicious. In , he appeared in the House episode entitled " Locked In " as a patient suffering from locked-in syndrome.
His performance was well received, with E! In , he appeared on the children's show Yo Gabba Gabba! In , he began a multi-episode appearance on the sixth season of Showtime television series Dexter. He played Brother Sam, an ex-convict who has supposedly found religion despite finding himself in violent situations. In January , Mos Def announced his retirement from both the music and the film industry on Kanye West's website. In March , it was announced that he had been attached to star in "his last live-action film", The Disconnected , a science fiction thriller dealing with policing, identity, and the intersection of technology and humanity.
The project was created in response to the police shooting of Amadu Diallo , and sought to accumulate 41 artists to the roster, one to match each of the 41 gunshots fired on Diallo.
Mos Def is well known for his left-wing political views. The song is a criticism of the Bush administration 's response to Hurricane Katrina. He was subsequently arrested despite having a public performance permit in his possession. In October , Mos Def appeared on 4Real , a documentary television series. He appeared on Real Time again on March 27, , and spoke about the risk of nuclear weapons.
He stated "the earth was given as a trust to mankind, so we have a responsibility to look after it, take care of it, treat it with respect 'cause it's a gift from the creator to us We're so dependent on the natural world. The natural world's also dependent on us If we don't treat it good, it's not gonna treat us very good either. In July , Mos Def, under the new name Yasiin Bey, appeared in a short film released by the human rights organization Reprieve , depicting the forced-feeding methods used at the Guantanamo Bay detention camps.
This transpired after a document containing the military instructions for the procedure was leaked. In September , Bey and advertising executive Free Richardson opened an art exhibition to the public in an art gallery in the South Bronx, called the Compound, centered around hip-hop and fine art. The goal of this gallery was to help bridge the gap between the two fields, by showcasing artists from marginalized backgrounds who normally would not be represented in art galleries.
Art forms with negative connotations, such as graffiti, as presented in a more optimal context. Richardson said. Mos Def married Maria Yepes in He filed for divorce from Yepes in His mother Sheron Smith, who goes by her nickname "Umi", has played an active role managing portions of her son's career.
In January , Mos Def was ordered to leave South Africa and not return for five years, having stayed in the country illegally on an expired tourist visa granted in May From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. For the American-Venezuelan basketball player, see Donta Smith.
American rapper, actor, and activist from New York. Bey performing at the Ilosaarirock festival. Rapper singer songwriter record producer actor activist.
Vocals keyboards bass guitar sampler drums. See also: Black Star rap duo. This section is in list format, but may read better as prose. You can help by converting this section , if appropriate. Editing help is available. July See also: Black Star discography. Retrieved August 9, June 25, Retrieved April 2, Retrieved March 11, SpinMedia Group.
Retrieved June 16, Samy March 10, Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 13, Retrieved June 17, Retrieved June 14, Retrieved October 20, Mos Def 'Universal Magnetic' ". Complex UK. The Early Registration. Chicago Tribune. The Lost Tapes. October 4, Village Voice.