Chief Keef
Vorlage:Pp-semi-blp Vorlage:Infobox musical artist
Keith Cozart (born August 15, 1995),[1] better known by his stage name Chief Keef, is an American rapper from Chicago, Illinois. He has signed a major record deal with Interscope Records, along with 1017 Brick Squad, and is the CEO of his own record label Glory Boyz Entertainment.[2] His debut album Finally Rich was released on December 18, 2012.[3]
Biography
Early life
Keith Cozart was born in Chicago, Illinois and grew up in the Englewood area.[4] He attended school in the South Side of the city.
Music career
While under house arrest for a previous weapons charge, Cozart posted several videos to his YouTube account. The attention he received increased during the short time between the release of several mixtapes and music videos, including "Bang", "3Hunna" and "I Don't Like".[5] After two locally successful mixtapes, "I Don't Like" became a local hit in Chicago. It also caught fellow Chicago rapper Kanye West's attention, and West created a remix of the song with rappers Pusha T, Jadakiss and Big Sean.[6]
In the summer of 2012 Keef was in the middle of a bidding war with many labels to sign him including Young Jeezy's CTE World. He would end up signing with Interscope Records due to them giving him his own label to run in Glory Boyz Entertainment.[7] The deal is worth six million dollars over a three album deal. According to the deal Interscope has the right to pull out of the contract if he doesn't sell 250,000 copies of his debut LP by December 2013.[8] Chief Keef's debut studio album Finally Rich, was released on December 18, 2012. Featured guests on the album included rappers 50 Cent, Wiz Khalifa, Young Jeezy, Rick Ross and his fellow Glory Boyz member Lil Reese.[9]
In December 2012, Chief Keef announced that his hit single Love Sosa will be included in the soundtrack to Grand Theft Auto 5.[10] On March 26, 2013 it was announced that Keef would be a part of XXL Magazine's 2013 Freshman Class.[11] On May 8, 2013 Gucci Mane announced via Twitter that Chief Keef was the newest member of 1017 Brick Squad.[12]
Other ventures
Glory Boyz Entertainment
- Current artists
- Chief Keef (GBE/1017 Brick Squad/Interscope)
- Lil Reese (300 Ent./GBE/Def Jam)
- Fredo Santana (300 Ent./GBE)
- SD (300 Ent./GBE)
- Trey Savage[13]
- Ballout[13]
- Capo[13]
- Gino Marley[13]
- Tadoe[13]
- Blood Money[13]
- Managed producers
- Young Chop
- 12 Hunna
- DJ Kenn
Legal issues
On January 27, 2011, Cozart was apprehended on charges of heroin manufacture and distribution. He was found delinquent and served time on house arrest.[14]
In December 2011, Cozart left his grandmother's home holding a coat over his hands in front of his waistband. A policeman stopped to question the rapper, who dropped the coat, flashed a handgun and ran away. Officers chased then 16-year-old Cozart, who turned around several times and pointed the gun at them. The policemen "discharged their weapons," but missed. They caught him a half-block later and recovered the pistol, which was loaded. Cozart was charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a firearm on a police officer and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. He was also given a misdemeanor charge for resisting arrest. He was held in the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center until a judge sentenced him to home confinement at his grandmother’s house.[15]
On September 5, 2012, Chicago Police disclosed to the Sun Times that Cozart is being investigated for a possible connection in the shooting death of fellow rapper and Englewood resident, Joseph 'Lil JoJo' Coleman.[16] This came after Keef had mocked his death on Twitter,[17] which he later claimed was the result of his account being hacked.[18] Coleman's mother has openly claimed that Chief Keef paid to have her son killed.[19]
On October 17, 2012, Cook County prosecutors asked a judge to remand Cozart to juvenile detention for alleged parole violations stemming from a video interview he held at a shooting range which included him discharging a firearm. A hearing was set for November 20 which was subsequently moved to January 28, 2013 and again moved to January 15.[20][21] The website that posted it, Pitchfork Media, was ordered by the court to provide the interview's footage after they removed it three months prior.[22] On December 31, 2012, Cozart was issued a judicial summons for a new and unrelated alleged parole violation. Prosecutors claimed that he failed to notify his juvenile parole officer about a change of address. A hearing was set for January 2, 2013. [23] Cozart scored a victory in court, when the judge allowed him to remain free over prosecutors request that he be jailed.[24]
On January 15, 2013, Cozart was taken into custody after a juvenile court judge ruled that the aforementioned gun range interview video constituted a probation violation. Two days later, Cozart was sentenced to two months in a juvenile detention facility and was additionally made a ward of the state.[25] On March 14, 2013, Keef was released from a juvenile detention center after serving the 60 days for violating his probation.[26]
On January 17, 2013 Keef was sued by Washington, D.C.-based promotion company Team Major for $75,000 for a missed show. According to the firm, Keef was supposed to perform at the Indigo 02 Arena in London this past December 29, 2012 but never showed. Neither Keef nor his label has given any kind of response as to why he missed the date.[27]
Controversy
Rhymefest
In June 2012, Chicago rapper Rhymefest authored a blog post critical of Chief Keef's image and message, describing Cozart as a "bomb" and a "spokesman for the Prison Industrial Complex". The post was also critical of rappers Waka Flocka Flame and Rick Ross, citing similar reasons.[28] Rhymefest reiterated these views in a subsequent interview with Salon.[29]
Lupe Fiasco
In an August 2012 interview with Baltimore radio station 92Q Jams, Lupe Fiasco stated that Chief Keef "scares" him and went on to describe the other rapper as a "hoodlum" and representative of Chicago's "skyrocketing" murder rate.[30] Keef responded on September 5 with a tweet threatening Lupe Fiasco,[31] but then claimed that his account had been hacked and that the previous tweet was inauthentic.[32] On September 13, 2012, Fiasco released a video interview in which he made amends to Keef.[33]
On September 15, 2012, Cozart uploaded a photograph of himself receiving oral sex to the image sharing application Instagram. As a result, his account was subsequently banned for violating Instagram's terms of service.[34]
Personal life
Cozart was born when his mother was 16, and is named after his deceased uncle.[35] At the age of 16, Cozart had his first child - a daughter, called Kay Kay.[1] He had been put on child support.[36] Two of his cousins, Fredo Santana and Tadoe, are on his label Glory Boys Entertainment.[37] According to his lawyer, he is estranged from his biological father. Cozart's stepbrother was shot dead on January 2, 2013.[38]
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B | US Rap | |||
| Finally Rich[39] |
|
29 | 5 | 2 | |
Mixtapes
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| The Glory Road [40] |
|
| Bang [41] |
|
| Back from the Dead [42] |
|
| For Greater Glory Vol. 1 (with GBE)[43] |
|
| For Greater Glory Vol. 2 (with GBE)[44] |
|
| For Greater Glory Vol. 2.5 (with GBE)[45] |
|
| Bang Pt. 2 |
|
| Almighty So [47] |
|
Singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [48] |
US R&B [49] |
US Rap [50] | ||||||||||||
| "I Don't Like" (featuring Lil Reese) |
2012 | 73 | 20 | 15 | Finally Rich | |||||||||
| "Love Sosa" | 56 | 16 | 15 | |||||||||||
| "Hate Bein' Sober"[51] (featuring 50 Cent and Wiz Khalifa) |
109 | 37 | — | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart. | ||||||||||||||
As featured performer
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B |
US Rap | |||
| "Traffic" (Lil Reese featuring Chief Keef) |
2012 | — | — | — | TBA |
Guest appearances
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Ion Fuck Around Like Dat" | 2012 | Smileyface, Cap1 | Vorlage:N/a |
| "Global Now" | SD | Life Of A Savage | |
| "Murda" | Waka Flocka Flame, Bo Deal | Salute Me or Shoot Me 4 (Banned from America) | |
| "Rap Shit" | Lil Reese | I Don't Like | |
| "Tote Guns" | Bo Deal, Alley Boy, Joe Moses | The Chicago Code 3 | |
| "Traffic" | Lil Reese | I Don't Like | |
| "Russian Roulette" | Fat Trel | For Greater Glory Vol. 1 | |
| "Been The Same" | Leekeleek | Vorlage:N/a | |
| "My Lil Niggaz" | Fredo Santana, Lil Reese | It's A Scary Site | |
| "Gucci (Remix)" | Edai | Forgotten | |
| "Cash" | Dew Baby, Lightshow | Dew Jack City | |
| "Ugly" | Soulja Boy, D. Flores | Juice II | |
| "Fuck It Up" | Bloody Jay, Rocko | Blatlanta (Bigger Than Rap) | |
| "Foreign Cars" | Soulja Boy | Young & Flexin | |
| "Gun Clap" | Bo Deal, Uncle Murda | Welcome To Klanville | |
| "She Borin'" | SD | Life Of A Savage 2 | |
| "Gucci Everything"[52] | Red Café, Game, French Montana, Fabolous | American Psycho | |
| "On It" | Mike WiLL Made It, Young Scooter | Est. In 1989 2.5 | |
| "Ratchet"[53] | 2013 | Rich Kidz, Future | rowspan="4" Vorlage:N/a |
| "I Got Bag" | Ballout, Gino Marley | ||
| "Bring Them Things"[54] | Gucci Mane, Young Dolph, Yung Fresh | ||
| "Backseat" | Gucci Mane, Waka Flocka Flame | ||
| "Dead Broke" | Fredo Santana, SD, Future | Fredo Kruger | |
| "Round Em Up" | Fredo Santana | ||
| "Darker"[55] | Gucci Mane | Trap House III |
References
- ↑ a b From The Mag: Chief Keef At Home - XXL. Xxlmag.com, 6. Mai 2013, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ Drake, David: Chicago Rap Blazes Up From the Streets. In: Spin. Buzz Media, 25. Juni 2012, abgerufen am 4. August 2012.
- ↑ Steven Horowitz: Chief Keef "Finally Rich" Tracklist & Cover Art In: HipHopDX, 12 November 2012
- ↑ Gale, Alex: On the Verge: Rapper Chief Keef. In: BET. Abgerufen am 3. August 2012.
- ↑ Kramer, Kyle: RedEye Interview with Chicago rapper Chief Keef. In: Chicago Tribune. 28. April 2012.
- ↑ Lipshutz, Jason: Listen: Kanye West & Friends Remix Chief Keef's 'I Don't Like'. In: Billboard. Prometheus Global Media, 1. Mai 2012, abgerufen am 3. August 2012.
- ↑ Dante Miles: Chief Keef Speaks On 50 Cent Not Being His Mentor, Signing With Interscope Over CTE. HipHop DX, 19. Januar 2013, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ Steven J. Horowitz: Chief Keef's Deal With Interscope Records Revealed To Be Worth $6 Million. HipHop DX, 23. Januar 2013, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ Jarrett B.: Chief Keef "Finally Rich" Artwork. In: HipHopWired. 7. Juli 2012, abgerufen am 3. August 2012.
- ↑ Vibe Staff: Chief Keef Breaks News On Grand Theft Auto 5! In: Vibe. 11. Dezember 2012, abgerufen am 3. Januar 2013.
- ↑ XXL Freshman Class 2013 Cover Revealed - Page 2 of 2 - XXL. Xxlmag.com, 27. März 2013, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ Chief Keef Joins Gucci Mane's 1017 Bricksquad - XXL. Xxlmag.com, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ a b c d e f Interview: Fredo Santana. Complex, 9. Februar 2013, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ Konkol, Mark: Police Shot at Chief Keef After Rapper Pointed Gun at Them, Cops Say. In: DNAinfo Chicago. 14. Januar 2013, abgerufen am 15. Januar 2013.
- ↑ Police Shot At Chief Keef Prior To 2011 Arrest
- ↑ [1] (Seite nicht mehr abrufbar, festgestellt im Mai 2013.)
- ↑ Chief Keef Laughs At Death Of Fellow Rapper
- ↑ Chief Keef Denies Involvement In Murder Of Chicago Rapper Lil Jojo, Claims Twitter Account Was Hacked
- ↑ 5. Chief Keef Laughs at Lil Jojo's Death — The 25 Biggest Hip-Hop Fails of 2012 | Complex
- ↑ Chief Keef's Probation Hearing Pushed Back To January
- ↑ Chief Keef's Probation Hearing Moved Up Two Weeks
- ↑ Pitchfork Media Ordered To Turn Over Video Of Chief Keef At Gun Range. Abgerufen am 6. Dezember 2012.
- ↑ Frank Main: Sources: Rapper Chief Keef moves to Northbrook but doesn’t tell probation officer. In: Chicago Sun-Times. 31. Dezember 2012, abgerufen am 31. Dezember 2012.
- ↑ Jason Meisner: Judge: No 'credible evidence' Chief Keef moved to Northbrook. In: Chicago Tribune. 2. Januar 2013, abgerufen am 3. Januar 2013.
- ↑ A tearful Chief Keef gets 60 days in juvenile detention for violating probation - Chicago Sun-Times
- ↑ Steven J. Horowitz: Chief Keef Released From Juvenile Detention Center. HipHop DX, 14. März 2013, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ Sean Ryon: Chief Keef Hit With $75,000 Lawsuit Over Missed Show. HipHop DX, 17. Januar 2013, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ Ryon, Sean: Rhymefest Blasts Chief Keef, Interscope Over Promoting Violent Music. In: hiphopdx.com. 27. Juni 2012, abgerufen am 29. September 2012.
- ↑ Guarino, Mark: Rap’s killer new rhymes. In: Salon.com. 18. Dezember 2012, abgerufen am 7. Januar 2013.
- ↑ Chandler, D.L.: Lupe Fiasco Says Fellow Chicago Rapper Chief Keef "Scares Me". In: hiphopwired.com. 30. August 2012, abgerufen am 29. September 2012.
- ↑ Twitter / ChiefKeef: Lupe fiasco a hoe ass nigga
- ↑ Twitter / ChiefKeef: my twitter has been hacked
- ↑ Muhammad, Latifah: Lupe Fiasco Makes Peace With Chief Keef, Says "I Love My Brother". In: hiphopwired.com. 13. September 2012, abgerufen am 29. September 2012.
- ↑ Rogulewski, Charley: Instagram Cancels Chief Keef's Account Over Sex Photo. In: Vibe. 16. September 2012.
- ↑ interview: Start at 2:32. In: JrCeleb. 11. Januar 2012, abgerufen am 14. Dezember 2012.
- ↑ Bossip Staff: Chief Keef Gets Served With Child Support. In: bossip.com. 5. Dezember 2012, abgerufen am 7. Dezember 2012.
- ↑ JR Staff: Keef Cousins. In: Jrandmusic. 14. Dezember 2012, abgerufen am 2. Dezember 2012.
- ↑ Konkol, Mark: Chief Keef's Stepbrother Shot Dead on South Side. In: DNAinfo.com Chicago. 7. Januar 2013, abgerufen am 7. Januar 2013.
- ↑ MissInfo.tv » Chief Keef ‘Finally Rich’ Album Cover
- ↑ DJ Kenn & AON – Glory Road Hosted By Chief Keef by Dj kenn. In: DatPiff. Idle Media, 9. Juli 2011, abgerufen am 3. August 2012.
- ↑ CHIEF KEEF – Bang Mixtape Hosted by DJ HUSTLENOMICS. In: DatPiff. Idle Media, 11. Oktober 2011, abgerufen am 3. August 2012.
- ↑ Back from the Dead by Chief Keef. In: iTunes Store. Apple, abgerufen am 1. August 2012.
- ↑ G.B.E. - For Greater Glory Vol 1 Hosted by Trap-A-Holics // Free Mixtape @ DatPiff.com
- ↑ GBE - For Greater Glory 2 Hosted by Trap-A-Holics, DJ Hustlenomics, DJ Cash Crook // Free Mixtape @ DatPiff.com
- ↑ GBE: For Greater Glory 2.5 - Trap-A-Holics, DJ Cash Crook
- ↑ Chief Keef - Bang Pt 2 Hosted by DJ Holiday, Mike Epps & Michael Blackson // Free Mixtape @. Datpiff.com, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ Photo by chieffkeeffsossa • Instagram. Instagram.com, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.
- ↑ [%5B%5B:Vorlage:BillboardURLbyName%5D%5D Chief Keef Album & Song Chart History: Hot 100.] In: Billboard. Prometheus Global Media, abgerufen am 30. August 2012.
- ↑ [%5B%5B:Vorlage:BillboardURLbyName%5D%5D Chief Keef Album & Song Chart History: R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.] In: Billboard. Prometheus Global Media, abgerufen am 30. August 2012.
- ↑ [%5B%5B:Vorlage:BillboardURLbyName%5D%5D Chief Keef Album & Song Chart History: Rap Songs.] In: Billboard. Prometheus Global Media, abgerufen am 30. August 2012.
- ↑ Chart Juice: T.I. and Chief Keef Albums Arrive in Top Five - The Juice | Billboard
- ↑ Roman Cooper: Red Cafe "American Psycho" Mixtape Download & Stream In: HipHopDX, December 12, 2012
- ↑ Rich Kidz f. Chief Keef & Future - Ratchet | New Hip Hop Music & All The New Rap Songs 2011 | HipHop DX
- ↑ Gucci Mane f. Yung Fresh & Chief Keef - Bring Them Things | New Hip Hop Music & All The New Rap Songs 2011 | HipHop DX
- ↑ Gucci Mane f. Chief Keef - Darker. HipHop DX, abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013.