Yak Ballz, born Yashar Zadeh, is an American independenthip hop artist who was brought up in Flushing, Queens, New York. He is one of the original members of The Weathermen. He is also a member of Cardboard City. Since 2019 he has worked for Warner Bros. Records as Vice President of their Media & Strategic Development team.[1]
Yak turned to writing as an outlet for expression and a form of therapy due to his mother being overprotective about their neighborhood in Queens at the time. At the age of 16 he entered the Braggin' Rites MC battle as the youngest competitor where he won second place.[citation needed] Yak would go on to achieve first runner-up honors two more times after that, but more importantly, the aspiring MC grabbed the attention of several interested people in attendance, including Armando "Mondee" Torres and Brett Scott, who approached Vaz about getting Yak to appear on their new mixtape.[2]
Bobbito Garcia put Yak's demo, "Flossin'," on his CM Famalam show on 89.9 FM WKCR in New York. He later invited Yak to appear on the show in 1998. After a few impressive appearances on WKCR, and "Flossin'" gaining regular rotation, Bobbito approached Yak about some new original music. Yak's lyrics caught the attention of Cage, who was impressed enough to reach out to him; making him an original member of The Weathermen.
Soon after, Yak released his first 12-inch, Homepiss in 2000, courtesy of Bobbito and his Fondle'em label. His 4-song EP was released featuring "Flossin'," "The Plague," "Nasty or Nice," and "Homepiss."[4]
The Freakshow
In 2001, Yak followed up the EP with a three-song vinyl 12-inch, The Freakshow,[5] which was one of the first ever 12-inch releases by the indie hip hop label Definitive Jux. Vinyl specialty stores and Web sites quickly sold out of the three-song 12-inch that featured cover art by TCK brother Ewok One 5MH.[citation needed]El-P even included The Freak Show on 2002's Definitive Jux Presents 2 compilation album.
While You Were Sleeping
In 2003, he released While You Were Sleeping b/w The Drill 12-inch with Traffic Entertainment. Once Eastern Conference Records, then home to fellow Weathermen; Cage and Tame One, heard of this single they moved to sign Yak to an album deal. After working on The Weathermen's Conspiracy mixtape (2003)[6] Yak Ballz released his first album, My Claim[7] in 2004 with guest appearances from both Cage and Tame One. He worked with producer Mondee for production and engineer Joe Raia. His lyrical content on My Claim was fueled by his Queens life and college experiences. After leaving Eastern Conference, Yak put out a mixtape in 2005, The Missing Cassettes consisting of rare and unreleased material.
Scifentology
In 2006 he released Scifentology, a mixtape put out by Yak himself and Scifen clothing company which features cover art by Ewok One 5MH.[8] Yak's lyrics became more introspective and the beats changed on Scifentology by relying more on rock and synthesized instrumentation.[citation needed] The mixtape started as an innocent idea and promotional tool to help cross-market Yak with the Scifen clothing brand, but it quickly became one of the most talked-about mixtapes of the year within the indie hip hop world in '06.[citation needed]
Scifentology II
January 2008, Yak released his sophomore effort, Scifentology II on FloSpot Records in conjunction with Scifen Clothing.[9]Scifentology II features production from the likes of Aesop Rock, the late Camu Tao, Mondee, Chapter 7, Adept, and Chris Maestro TCK. It also has guest appearances from Cage and Tame One. "Dirt Empire," a song produced by Aesop Rock, won the MTVu Best Freshman Video with over 40,000 views.[10]
In 2011, Yak released an extended play called Gas Galaxy, which was self-released in the fall.[11] Yak has performed the title song in support of Cage's Depart From Me tour.
Definitive Jux was a record label based in New York City. It was co-founded in 1999 by El-P and Amaechi Uzoigwe.
Theodore Arrington II, better known by his stage name Vast Aire, is an American rapper from New York City. He is one half of the New York hip hop duo Cannibal Ox, which consists of him and fellow rapper Vordul Mega. He is also a member of the rap group Atoms Family and Scienceninjateam. He was born in Mount Vernon, New York, then lived in Jamaica, Queens before moving to Harlem, and became acquainted with the underground rap scene, performing in many clubs while still a teenager. He was once a part of the underground hip hop group The Weathermen.and then recorded with Al Babblez and Scienceninjateam records.
Christian Palko, better known by his stage name Cage, is an American rapper from Middletown, New York. With a majority of his career being spent with record labels Definitive Jux and Eastern Conference, he has released six solo albums, in addition to two compilation albums and two EPs.
Fondle 'Em Records was a hip hop record label founded and owned by Bobbito Garcia from 1995 to 2001, based in New York City. Garcia formed the label after realizing that the many unsigned rappers making guest appearances on The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show, a program Bobbito co-hosted with DJ Stretch Armstrong on Columbia University radio station WKCR 89.9 FM, did not have a proper outlet for their talents.
Hell's Winter is the second solo studio album by American rapper Cage. It was released by Definitive Jux on September 20, 2005. It peaked at number 26 on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart, as well as number 36 on the Independent Albums chart.
The Resident Patient is the third studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member Inspectah Deck. Originally put out as a mixtape, its status as an official release is somewhat contested, and it is now generally considered a "street album"—an informal album released somewhat under the radar. It was also meant to be a prelude to his album The Rebellion; however, since its release, Deck has announced that The Resident Patient 2 will be coming ahead of The Rebellion, which will be his final album.
Definitive Jux Presents II is a 2002 compilation album released by American hip hop record label Definitive Jux. It peaked at number 37 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.
The Artifacts was an East Coast hip hop group consisting of El Da Sensei, Tame One and later, DJ Kaos. They hail from Newark, New Jersey, and made underground music that paid homage to the four elements of hip hop. The Artifacts' most popular song about Graffiti is single "Wrong Side of Da Tracks" Other Artifacts' popular hits include "Easter", "C'Mon wit da Git Down" and "The Ultimate ".
The Weathermen was an American hip hop production group, formed in 1998 in Middletown, New York, composed of East Coast rappers and producers Cage Kennylz and Masai Bey, until further expanded into a rap group, and included; Aesop Rock, Tame One, Yak Ballz, El-P, Jakki Tha Motamouth, Camu Tao, Copywrite, Vast Aire, and Breeze Brewin. The group took its name from the revolutionary organization Weather Underground, and its debut album was to be called The New Left.
Eastern Conference Records is an independent record label based in New York City. It is owned and operated by DJ Mighty Mi, the DJ/producer for the High & Mighty.
Rahem Ross Brown, better known by his stage name Tame One, was an American hip hop recording artist and graffiti artist from New Jersey. He was a member of Artifacts, Leak Bros, and the hip-hop supergroup The Weathermen.
Godfather Don is an American rapper and record producer from New York City. He has been "a creative force within New York City's underground hip-hop scene" since he made his debut in 1991.
Leak Bros was an American hip hop duo consisting of New York rapper Cage and New Jersey rapper Tame One.
Scifentology II is the second full-length studio album by American rapper Yak Ballz. It was released on January 29, 2008 via FloSpot Records. Recording sessions took place at S.T.F.U. Studios in Hoboken, The Crib Piece Studios, and Gotham Studios in New York City. Production was handled by Chapter 7, Mondee, Camu Tao, Adept, Aesop Rock, Chris Maestro and Govone. It features guest appearances from Cage, Peter Toh, Slow Suicide Stimulus, Tame One and Thomas Phenomas.
The discography of Cage, an American hip hop recording artist from New York City, consists of five studio albums, two mixtapes, three extended plays, and three singles.
I Never Knew You is the second extended play by American rapper Cage. Released by Adult Swim and Definitive Jux, the EP was released to promote Cage's album Depart from Me and the first music video from that album, "I Never Knew You", and contained four exclusive tracks. The title track, "I Never Knew You", appeared on the album Depart from Me.
Alec Reinstein, better known by his stage name Despot, is an American hip hop artist from Queens, New York City. He was signed to rapper El-P's label Definitive Jux in 2004. Despot has been a part of the New York underground rap scene for over a decade. Despot is associated with the Smart Crew collective and was a co-owner of Santos Party House.
Waterworld, is the only studio album by American hip hop duo Leak Bros, which consisted of Cage and Tame One. It was released on July 13, 2004 under Eastern Conference Records.
The Conspiracy is a studio mixtape by the New York hip hop supergroup the Weathermen. It was released July 3, 2003 on Eastern Conference Records.
Corey Lawrence Banks, is an American rapper and songwriter, currently performing under the name Corey Drumz. When he emerged from the late 1980s Hollis, Queens Hip hop scene, Banks was known professionally as CeStyle. In 1991 he co-founded the group Total Pack with Kamal B Wize.
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