Joseph Cartagena
, (born August 19, 1970) better known by his stage name Fat Joe
, is an American rapper signed to Imperial Records, CEO of Terror Squad Entertainment, and member of musical groups D.I.T.C. and Terror Squad.
Fat Joe's first album was Represent
, released in 1993, followed by Jealous One's Envy
in 1995. From 1998 to 2006, he was signed to Atlantic Records, releasing four albums under the label, Don Cartagena
in 1998, Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.)
in 2001, Loyalty
in 2002, and All or Nothing
in 2005. [1] Around the release of All or Nothing
, Fat Joe became involved in a highly publicized feud with another New York City-based rapper 50 Cent, who attacked Fat Joe in his song "Piggy Bank". His most popular song in which he performed was his Remy Ma duet "Lean Back" with Terror Squad. The song was a number-one hit in the summer of 2004.
Starting in 2006, when his album Me, Myself, & I
was released, Fat Joe was signed to Imperial Records, which distributes through Terror Squad Entertainment. His follow up album wasThe Elephant in the Room
, which was released in 2008; Jealous Ones Still Envy 2 (J.O.S.E. 2)
, the sequel to Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.)
, is to be released in late 2009.
|
FAT JOE TICKETS
|
Music career
1991-1995: Early years
Under stage name Fat Joe da Gangsta and part of the Diggin' in the Crates (D.I.T.C.) crew, Cartagena was signed to Relativity Records in the early 1990s, recording material and working with many artists who he would later sign to his own label. In 1993, his debut album Represent was released, featuring production from The Beatnuts, Diamond D, Lord Finess, and others. Its lead single Flow Joe peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart; other minor singles from the album included "Watch the Sound" and "This Shit is Real".
In 1995, Fat Joe released his second studio album, Jealous One's Envy, which peaked at #71 on The Billboard 200 and at #7 on Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums. The album featured a guest appearance from KRS-One and production from Diamond D. The lead single was Success, which did not chart, but his second single, "Envy" peaked at #8 on the Hot Rap Tracks chart. The success of this album led Fat Joe to be featured on the remix of LL Cool J's single I Shot Ya along with Foxy Brown, Keith Murray and Prodigy of Mobb Deep.
1998-2005: Signing to Atlantic Records, Terror Squad, feud with 50 Cent
Released in 1998,
Don Cartagena
was Joe's third album and his first for Atlantic Records. It peaked on The Billboard 200 at #7 and #2 on Top R&B/Hip Hop albums, eventually being certified gold by the RIAA.
[2]
The album featured two hit singles "Bet Ya Man Can't Triz", and "Don Cartagena". Guest appearances included Nas, Diddy, Big Pun, Raekwon, Jadakiss, and Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. Within the album, Fat Joe debuted his own group Terror Squad that consisted of the late Big Pun, as well as Cuban Link, Triple Seis, Prospect, Armageddon and later Remy Ma.
[3] Joe himself acknowledged, in an interview with HipHopGame.com, that he has received criticism for releasing only one solo album by a former Terror Squad member, Remy Ma, as well as barely featuring original members Prospect and Armageddon on "True Story." Terror Squad singer Tony Sunshine has had possible album release dates pushed back over three years, and Joe had stated that artists Prospect and Armageddon have not released solo albums yet as the result of them being "really lazy".
[4] Former Terror Squad member Triple Seis also went on record when asked who had written Fat Joe's lyrics, stating that he and Pun were Joe's ghostwriters, and asserts that Joe continues to hire ghostwriters.
[5] In 1999, he appeared on
Jennifer Lopez's single "
Feelin' So Good" from her
On the 6
album with late rapper Big Pun.
Fat Joe released his fourth album
Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.)
in 2001, featuring production from the then-popular Irv Gotti. The album featured a star-studded line up from the likes of Ashanti ,
Ja Rule, N.O.R.E., Busta Rhymes, Petey Pablo, M.O.P., Ludacris, R. Kelly, Buju Banton, and artists from his Terror Squad label. The lead single "We Thuggin'" featuring R. Kelly was a big hit in late 2001, but would not reach the level of the Irv Gotti-produced "What's Luv?" which was a massive hit in early 2002 and featured The Inc. superstars Ja Rule and Ashanti. The album was Fat Joe's biggest hit as it was successful from its January release all the way into May, being certified platinum.
However, Fat Joe's fifth album
Loyalty
, out in 2002 and featuring production from Irv Gotti, was not as successful.
In 2003, Fat Joe was featured in the pop single "
I Want You" by Mexican singer
Thalía. The same year, he and Tony Sunshine performed the single "Crush Tonight" from
Loyalty
on the Comedy Central program
Chappelle's Show
, hosted by comedian Dave Chappelle.
[6]
Despite the setback, Fat Joe scored a number-one hit in 2004 with his group Terror Squad, collaborating with Remy Ma on the Scott Storch production "Lean Back" from the album
True Story
.
The song was criticized twice by conservative columnist L. Brent Bozell III for its extensive use of obscenity.
[7] [8] However, Jason Birchmeier of Allmusic called the song "a perfect club-ready duet between Joe and Remy Ma that boasts a trademark Scott Storch beat and a memorable singalong hook and dance-along step".
[9]
Three years later, in 2005, Fat Joe released his sixth album
All or Nothing
, noted for featuring the popular diss track "My Fofo", aimed at fellow New York rapper
50 Cent, who had dissed Joe for
recording with Ja Rule.
[10] All or Nothing
spawned the singles "So Much More" and "Get It Poppin" featuring Nelly, also with guest appearances from Eminem, Mase, Remy Ma, Mashonda, and R. Kelly. Responding to "My Fofo", 50 Cent attacked Fat Joe in his song "Piggy Bank" from his 2005 album
The Massacre
.
[11] [12] [13] Fat Joe subsequently attacked 50's street credibility and called him a "coward" on a phone interview with Kay Slay of New York City hip-hop radio station WQHT.
[14] The conflict carried on at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards, while Fat Joe introduced the reggaeton act featuring Daddy Yankee, Joe remarked, "I feel safe with all the police protection—courtesy of G-Unit."
[15] Shortly after, when MTV switched to a commercial break, 50 Cent directed an obscenity at Joe, and 50 Cent jumped on stage as Fat Joe was leaving.
[16]
2006-2008: Me, Myself & I, The Elephant in the Room, the 50 Cent feud continued, and more
Me, Myself & I
, released in 2006, is Fat Joe's seventh album. It was his first album released on his new deal with Virgin Records. It featured the hit single "Make It Rain" with southern rapper Lil Wayne, followed by "No Drama (Clap and Revolve)". Fat Joe did a question-and-answer segment for
VH1's "Freestyle 59" competition in October 2006 prior to the VH1 Hip Hop Honors featuring New Jersey emcee Neuse.
[17]
In June 2007, the Reverend Michael Pfleger targeted Fat Joe as among several rappers he believed promoted misogyny in his billboard campaign "Stop Listening to Trash", which was launched June 18, 2007 throughout Chicago, Illinois, where Pfleger preaches.
[18] Also that month, Fat Joe was featured in the DJ Khaled singles "We Takin' Over" alongside
Akon,
T.I.,
Rick Ross,
Birdman, and
Lil Wayne and the remix to Khaled's "I'm So Hood" with Lil Wayne,
Young Jeezy, Rick Ross,
Busta Rhymes,
Big Boi, Ludacris, and Birdman. Verbal disputes between Fat Joe and 50 Cent continued during this time period: in September 2007, on the BET program
Rap City
, 50 Cent accused Fat Joe of being cowardly for not willing to confront him, but Fat Joe dismissed this claim as nonsense.
[19] Later in January, 50 Cent released another Fat Joe diss, called "Southside Nigga (I'm Leaving)". At the end of January 2008, Fat Joe and his longtime accountant Brian Dittrich both denied rumors spreading on the Internet that Fat Joe owed the IRS in taxes.
[20]
Fat Joe's eighth solo studio album
The Elephant in the Room
was distributed by Imperial Records, a division of Capitol Records and Terror Squad Entertainment,
[21] [22] and released on March 11, 2008; its lead single was "I Won't Tell" featuring singer J. Holiday.
[23]
The album debuted at the sixth position on the Billboard Hot 100.
[24] "Ain't Sayin' Nuthin'" followed and featured
Plies.
On March 20, 2008, shortly after record sales were released for Fat Joe's new album The Elephant in the Room, 50 Cent released a video via online, which features the "funeral" of Fat Joe, which shows 50 Cent crying in the fake footage. 50 Cent then talks about Fat Joe's record sales, and states that he ended Fat Joe's career (like he says he did to Ja Rule's) and that his mixtape blew out Fat Joe's album.
[25]
2009-Present: Jealous Ones Still Envy 2
Fat Joe's ninth solo studio album is to be titled
J.O.S.E. 2
and released towards the end of June 2009.
[26] The project reprises the title of Joe’s 2002 RIAA-Certified Platinum release,
Jealous Ones Still Envy
, and will mark Joe’s third release since bringing his
Terror Squad imprint to the
EMI family in
2006. For this album, Joe has reached out to many artists, landing assists from
Ron Browz,
Fabolous,
Lil' Kim,
T-Pain,
Lil Wayne, and
Akon. Producers include
Jim Jonsin,
The Inkredibles, and frequent collaborator
StreetRunner.
[27] "
One", featuring
Akon, was the first single. Fat Joe said on his Twitter on July 27th that JOSE 2 will be released on October 6, 2009.
[28]
Personal life
Fat Joe is of
Puerto Rican descent.
[29] Born in
The Bronx,
he grew up in a family that was on welfare. By 1996, he weighed 300 pounds.
[30] In 2005,
Stuff
magazine
[31] and
ContactMusic.com
[32] profiled Fat Joe's weight loss efforts. He has a wife, Lorena, and two children.
On September 8, 1998, Fat Joe and Big Pun were arrested on assault charges for hitting a man with a baseball bat and stealing the man's gold chain on June 14 that year.
[33] Joe was arrested again on May 12, 2002 for allegedly fighting with another man at B.B. King's Blues Club in
Times Square, but the charges were dropped on January 10, 2003.
[34]
Discography
- Represent
(1993, as Fat Joe da Gangsta)
- Jealous One's Envy
(1995)
- Don Cartagena
(1998)
- Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.)
(2001)
- Loyalty
(2002)
- All or Nothing
(2005)
- Me, Myself & I
(2006)
- The Elephant in the Room
(2008)
- Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E. 2)
(2009)
Filmography
- Thicker Than Water
(1999) - Lonzo Medina
- Prison Song
(2001)
- Empire
(2002)
- Scary Movie 3
(2003)
- Happy Feet
(2006) - voice of Seymour
See also
- List of famous Puerto Ricans
- Latin hip hop
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
References
- Fat Joe - Biography
- Fat Joe RIAA certification listings
- Birchmeier, Jason. Terror Squad biography at Allmusic
- HipHopGame.com - Fat Joe Interview
- Nobody's Smiling: Triple Seis – Third Times a Charm
- Comedy Central: Shows - Chappelle's Show - Episode Guide - Season 1 - 105
- Summer's Pop Music Meltdown
- Toned Down Awards Shows
- "True Story" - Overview
- "All or Nothing" - Overview
- "The Massacre" - Overview
- 50 Cent Album Pushed Up
- Jadakiss, Fat Joe Slicing Their 50 Cent Beef Different Ways
- Fat Joe Calls 50 Cent 'A King'
- Notorious C.O.P.: The Inside Story of the Tupac, Biggie, and Jam Master Jay From the NYPD's First "Hip-Hop Cop"
- Fat Joe Thought VMA Dis Might Lead To Fight With 50 Cent
- "VH1 Hip Hop Honors" Red Carpet Pre-Show to Air Exclusively on VH1's Broadband Channel with Hosts Salt, Pepa, and Spinderella
- Petipas, Jolene. "Stop Listening To Trash", Church Calls Out Rappers In New Campaign. SOHH.com: June 20, 2007
- Fat Joe Says Beefing With 50 Cent Made Him More Rich
- Fat Joe & Accountant Deny IRS Troubles
- Fat Joe Teams With Imperial, Virgin For New Album
- EMI Music's Imperial Records and Terror Squad Entertainment Re-Up Distribution Deal To Release Fat Joe's Eight Album, The Elephant in the Room
- Fat Joe Goes Gangster On 'Elephant'
- Rick Ross Scores a Second No. 1
- 50 Cent's Fat Joe Funeral | 50 Cent | News
- 60 RAPPERS IN 60 DAYS: Fat Joe
- Title Unavailable
- http://twitter.com/JOEYCRACKTS/status/2873136605
- Puerto Rican Parade May Ban Some Rap
- Fat Joe: Hip-Hop Celebrity Faithful to Old Neighborhood
- Fat City
- Fat Joe Sheds 80 Pounds
- Fat Joe Faces a Different Music
- Assault Charges Against Fat Joe Dismissed