Amil

Last updated

Amil
Amil.jpg
Amil in 2014
Background information
Birth nameAmil Kahala Whitehead
Born (1973-09-19) September 19, 1973 (age 51)
New York City, U.S.
Genres Hip hop, gangsta rap, hardcore hip hop
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • singer
  • songwriter
Years active1994–2014
Labels

Amil Kahala Whitehead (born September 19, 1973) is an American former rapper and singer. [1] Based in New York City, she signed with Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records, in a joint venture with Columbia Records in 1997. The following year, she appeared alongside Ja Rule on his single "Can I Get A..." for the Rush Hour film soundtrack.

Contents

Amil's debut studio album, All Money Is Legal (2000), peaked at number 45 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart and spawned the singles "I Got That" (featuring Beyoncé) and "4 da Fam" (featuring Jay-Z, Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel). The album was met with mixed critical reception and she parted ways with the labels shortly after.

Early life

Amil was born on September 19, 1973, in New York City, to a white mother and a black father. Amil's parents abandoned her at an early age, and she was then adopted and raised by her aunt. As a teenager, Amil gave birth to a son, with her then boyfriend Kendall Morgan. Amil's aunt and adoptive mother died in 1994. A year later, Morgan was killed in a stabbing incident and Amil started dealing drugs to financially support herself. [1] During this time, she used music as an emotional outlet.

Career

In 1997, Amil was a member of Major Coins, an all-female group. The group met Jay-Z, who was looking for a woman to provide vocals on his third album, Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life . Jay-Z asked Amil to freestyle and liked it, and selected her for the role. [2]

When Major Coins broke up, Amil decided to follow a solo career with Jay-Z's label, Roc-A-Fella Records, and joined the 1999 Hard Knock Life Tour. After the tour, she appeared on songs with Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Jermaine Dupri, AZ, DJ Kay Slay, LL Cool J, and Funkmaster Flex. [3] [4]

She has appeared on Jay-Z songs such as "Nigga What, Nigga Who", "Can I Get A...", "Do It Again (Put Ya Hands Up)", "S Carter", "You, Me, Him and Her", and "Pop 4 Roc". [5] In August 2000, Amil released her debut solo album, All Money Is Legal . The album featured the single "I Got That", a duet with Beyoncé, [6] and All-Star Roc-A-Fella single "4 Da Fam". The album also featured Jay-Z, Memphis Bleek, Carl Thomas, Eve, and Beanie Sigel.

Album sales were disappointing, and the singles did not sell well either. Following that album, her last Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam single, "Hey Papi", a song from the soundtrack to the feature film Nutty Professor II: The Klumps , was released. In 2002, Amil had a small role in State Property . [7]

In 2005, Amil temporarily re-formed "Major Coinz" and released songs on the mixtape circuit including the single "Glamorous Life" which was featured on MTV's Mixtape Monday. [8]

In 2008, Amil released mixtapes titled Az Iz and Amil Returns: The Lost Classics Edition, delivering lyrically with songs such as the emotional "Tears of a Teenage Mother" and the Caribbean vibed "Don't Worry". [9] [10]

Amil released the song "Stop" in July 2012. The song was intended to promote the rapper's unreleased mixtape, A Time to Kill. [11] [12] Amil released the song "Remember" in 2014. It was also intended to promote a mixtape titled Another Moment in Life, which remains unreleased. [13]

Discography

Albums

YearAlbumChart positions
U.S. U.S.
R&B
2000 All Money Is Legal
  • Studio album
  • Released: August 29, 2000
  • Format: CD
4512
2008Amil Az Iz

Singles

YearSingleChart positionsAlbum
U.S. U.S.
Rap
U.S.
R&B
UK
1998"Can I Get A..." (Jay-Z featuring Ja Rule and Amil)1922624 Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life / Rush Hour (soundtrack)
1999"Jigga What, Jigga Who" (Jay-Z featuring Amil and Big Jaz)8324619 Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life
"Do It Again (Put Ya Hands Up)" (Jay-Z featuring Amil and Beanie Sigel)65911 Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter
2000"Get None" (Tamar Braxton featuring Jermaine Dupri and Amil)59 Tamar
"Hey Papi" (Jay-Z featuring Amil and Memphis Bleek)761216 Nutty Professor II O.S.T
"I Got That" (featuring Beyoncé)101 A.M.I.L
"4 Da Fam" (featuring Jay-Z, Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel)994829
"That's Right/Get Down" (promo only)

Album appearances

YearSongAlbum
1999"I Still Believe" (Stevie J. Remix) [ Mariah Carey featuring Amil and Mocha] I Still Believe CD
"When Will U See" (Rell featuring Amil)!2"
"First One Hit" (Amil and Solé) Light It Up O.S.T
"S. Carter" (Jay-Z featuring Amil) Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter
"Pop 4 Roc" (Jay-Z featuring Amil, Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel)
"For My Thugs" (Funkmaster Flex featuring Amil and Jay-Z, Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel) The Tunnel
2000"Hello" (LL Cool J featuring Amil) G.O.A.T.
"Road Dawgs" (Da Brat, Eve, Jay-Z and Amil) Backstage: A Hard Knock Life
"You, Me, Him and Her" (Beanie Sigel, Amil, Jay-Z and Memphis Bleek) The Dynasty: Roc La Familia
"PYT" (Memphis Bleek featuring Amil and Jay-Z) The Understanding
2001"How Many Wanna" (AZ featuring Amil) 9 Lives
"What Yall Wanna Hear" (Queen Pen featuring Amil) Conversations with Queen
2003"Seven Deadly Sins" (DJ Kayslay featuring Amil, Angie Martinez, Duchess, Lady May, Remy Ma, Sonja Blade and Vita) The Streetsweeper, Vol. 1
2008"A Game" (AZ featuring Amil) Undeniable
2011"Get Them Stax Daddy" (Ron Lyonz featuring Amil)The Rebirth of Hip Hop

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freeway (rapper)</span> American rapper from Pennsylvania

Leslie Edward Pridgen, better known by his stage name Freeway, is an American rapper. Originally hailing from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he first gained recognition after appearing on Jay-Z's fifth album, The Dynasty: Roc La Familia in 2000. The following year, he became a member of the Philadelphia-based hip hop collective State Property, which were signed to Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings. After releasing their debut album, Pridgen signed to Roc-A-Fella as a solo artist and began work on his debut album, Philadelphia Freeway (2003). Upon release, the album peaked at number five on the Billboard 200 and saw positive critical response. He released a follow-up, Free at Last (2007) to moderate reception before him and fellow State Property cohorts were dropped from the label.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roc-A-Fella Records</span> American hip hop record label

Roc-A-Fella Records was an American hip hop record label and music management company founded by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke in 1994. Carter issued his debut album, Reasonable Doubt (1996) as the label's first release, in a joint venture with Priority Records. The label signed and released albums for acts including Kanye West, Cam'ron, Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek, Juelz Santana, Freeway, Jadakiss, Teairra Marí, State Property, and The Diplomats before its dissolution in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Memphis Bleek</span> American rapper

Malik Deshawn Cox, known by his stage name Memphis Bleek, is an American rapper. He is best known for his affiliation with fellow New York City-based rapper Jay-Z, with Cox often described as his hype man and protégé. Cox signed with his Roc-A-Fella Records label imprint in the late 1990s, through which he has released four major label studio albums: Coming of Age (1999), The Understanding (2000), M.A.D.E. (2003), and 534 (2005). He has since founded his own labels: Get Low Records in 1998, and Warehouse Music Group in 2016—through which he signed rapper Casanova.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beanie Sigel</span> American rapper (born 1974)

Dwight Equan Grant, better known by his stage name Beanie Sigel, is an American rapper from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is best known for his association with Jay-Z and his label Roc-A-Fella Records, to which Grant signed in 1998 and became a flagship artist. His debut studio album, The Truth (2000) was met with critical and commercial success, peaking at number five on the Billboard 200. Along with his solo career, Grant was the de facto leader of the Philadelphia-based hip hop collective State Property, which he formed with Roc-A-Fella labelmates, and who debuted in 2002 with a namesake film in which Grant starred. The group released two well-received studio albums.

Young Gunz is an American hip hop duo from Philadelphia, composed of rappers Young Chris and Neef Buck. The group is part of Beanie Sigel's State Property collective and were signed to Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records. Young Gunz' 2003 debut single, "Can't Stop, Won't Stop", reached the top 15 on the Billboard Hot 100.

<i>The Dynasty: Roc La Familia</i> 2000 studio album by Jay-Z

The Dynasty: Roc-La-Familia is the fifth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, featuring prominent appearances from signees of Roc-A-Fella Records. It was released on October 31, 2000, by Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. Its lead single, "I Just Wanna Love U ", produced by the Neptunes, became one of Jay-Z's most successful singles peaking at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200, with 557,789 copies sold in its first week. The album is certified double platinum by the RIAA. The album received positive reviews from critics, and became the 20th highest-selling R&B/Hip-Hop album of the 2000–2010 decade according to Billboard.

<i>The B. Coming</i> 2005 studio album by Beanie Sigel

The B. Coming is the third studio album by American rapper Beanie Sigel. Originally scheduled for an October 2004 release, the album was ultimately released on March 29, 2005 through Dame Dash Music Group and Def Jam Recordings.


Roosevelt Harrell III, known professionally as Bink, is an American hip hop producer from Norfolk, Virginia, who is noted for his work with Roc-A-Fella Records artists. His most high-profile work has been Jay-Z's critically acclaimed album The Blueprint, for which he produced three tracks. He is sometimes credited as Bink! or Bink Dog. In 2011, Bink and American-reggae artist Atiba finished a collaborative album titled Foreigner. A release date for the project has yet to be announced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Money, Cash, Hoes</span> 1998 single by Jay-Z featuring DMX

"Money, Cash, Hoes" is a song by American rapper Jay-Z as the third single from his third album Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life (1998). It was released on December 18, 1998. While the album version features a guest verse from rapper DMX, the remix features fellow rappers and Roc-A-Fella Records artists Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel with production by Swizz Beatz. Its beat features a sample of "Theme of Thief" from the 1989 Sega game Golden Axe. Producer Swizz Beatz stated that the glissando sounds were made by him sliding his hand across a keyboard, originally as a joke. The remix version is featured on the soundtrack to the movie The Corruptor. The music video for the remix version of the track is intertwined with clips from The Corruptor as well. In the end of the track, Pain in Da Ass talks, recreating dialogue from the film Goodfellas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Got That</span> 2000 single by Amil featuring Beyoncé

"I Got That" is a hip-hop song by American rapper Amil from her album, All Money Is Legal (2000). She co-wrote the track with its producers Poke & Tone and L.E.S. as well as with Jay-Z, Makeda Davis, and Tamy Lestor Smith. It uses a sample from the 1985 Gwen Guthrie song "Seventh Heaven". Beyoncé performs the chorus and backing vocals, using the feature as a way to assess her viability as a solo artist outside of her girl group Destiny's Child. In the lyrics, Amil encourages women to seek out emotional, financial, and romantic independence.

<i>All Money Is Legal</i> 2000 studio album by Amil

All Money Is Legal, also known as A.M.I.L.: , is the only studio album by American rapper Amil. It was released on August 29, 2000, through Roc-A-Fella, Columbia, and Sony Music. Jay-Z, Damon Dash, and Amil served as executive producer with a team of producers that included Just Blaze. Before the album's release, Amil was best known for her feature on Jay-Z's 1998 single "Can I Get A...". She was one of several up-and-coming artists signed to Roc-A-Fella, alongside Memphis Bleek and Beanie Sigel, who released an album in 2000. Although it was her only album on Roc-A-Fella, Amil had been closely associated with the label and its co-founder Jay-Z, earning the moniker "First Lady of Roc-A-Fella".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">4 da Fam</span> 2000 single by Amil

"4 da Fam" is a song by American rapper Amil, featuring verses from American rappers Jay-Z, Memphis Bleek, and Beanie Sigel. Ty Fyffe produced the song. It was released on Roc-A-Fella as the second single from her debut album All Money Is Legal. In the song's lyrics, Amil boasts about being the best female rapper, and Jay-Z discusses his fears of becoming a father, which his verse suggests he believed was about to occur at the time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young Chris</span> American rapper

Christopher Francis Ries, known professionally as Young Chris, is an American rapper. He rose to fame as one-half of the Philadelphia-based hip hop duo Young Gunz, which he formed with rapper Neef Buck in 2001. That same year, the duo joined the larger Philadelphia-based hip hop group State Property; both acts were signed to Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records by the same time.

The following list is a discography of production by Just Blaze, an American hip hop record producer from Paterson, New Jersey. It includes a list of songs produced, co-produced and remixed by year, artist, album and title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roc Boys (And the Winner Is)...</span> 2007 single by Jay-Z

"Roc Boys ..." is the second single from Jay-Z's tenth studio album, American Gangster. The song is produced by Skyz Muzik, Diddy and two of his producers known as LV and Sean C from his production team, The Hitmen. It features additional vocals by Beyoncé, Kanye West and Cassie. The song samples "Make the Road by Walking" by The Menahan Street Band. On December 11, 2007, Rolling Stone named it the best song of 2007.

The discography of American rapper Memphis Bleek consists of four studio albums, twelve mixtapes, seventeen singles and fifteen music videos. An early signing to rapper Jay-Z's record label Roc-A-Fella Records, Bleek appeared on several of Jay-Z's early songs, and collaborated with him on the single "It's Alright" from the soundtrack to the film Streets Is Watching, which peaked at number 61 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Bleek went on to release his debut album, Coming of Age, in 1999, which contained the singles "Memphis Bleek Is...", "My Hood to Your Hood" and "What You Think of That".

Gerrell Gaddis, better known by his stage name Rell, is an American R&B singer and songwriter from Bowman, South Carolina. He was the first male R&B singer to sign to New York City-based label Roc-A-Fella Records, where he recorded with artists such as Kanye West, Jay-Z, Consequence, and Young Gunz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">My Mind Right</span> 2000 single Memphis Bleek

"My Mind Right" is a song by American rapper Memphis Bleek, released by Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings on March 5, 2000 as the lead single from his second studio album, The Understanding (2000). It also served as lead single for Roc-A-Fella Records' soundtrack album, Backstage: A Hard Knock Life.

This is the discography of rapper Freeway.

References

  1. 1 2 Vibe Media (December 2000). Vibe. Vibe Media. p.  158 . Retrieved February 26, 2016.
  2. Langhorne, Cyrus (August 19, 2011). "Amil Still Loves The Jigga Man, "I Wish I Could Talk To Jay-Z Because That Would Bring Closure"". Sohh.Com. Archived from the original on September 20, 2011. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  3. Potts, Diana (September 27, 2000). "Amil". AllMusic. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  4. "Amil Discography at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  5. "All Money Is Legal: Amil: Music". Amazon. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  6. "Amil – I Got That ft. Beyoncé Knowles – Video Dailymotion". Dailymotion.com. April 24, 2011. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  7. "State Property (2002) : Full Cast & Crew". IMDb.com. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
  8. "Mixtape Monday: Beanie And 50 May 'Shock The World'; 'All Access' Reaches Rakim". Mtv.com. March 9, 2006. Archived from the original on October 13, 2005. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  9. "Amil – Amil Az Iz (the New Album) Hosted by DJ Tre'i Starzz Mixtape – Stream & Download". Datpiff.com. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
  10. "Amil Returns: The Lost Classics Edition – XXL". Xxlmag.com. September 25, 2008. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
  11. "New Music: Female Rapper Amil – 'Stop'". ThisIs50.com. July 31, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
  12. "Rasha Entertainment Music Industry Blog". Archived from the original on May 24, 2013. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
  13. "Amil Is Back Rapping Over Jay Z Instrumentals and Prepping Her New Mixtape "Another Moment in Life"". Complex.com. March 17, 2014. Retrieved February 26, 2016.