One Be Lo

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One Be Lo (real name Nahshid Sulaiman) is an alternative hip hop artist from Pontiac, Michigan. He is well respected for being one half of the former rap duo Binary Star, and has released a number of well received solo albums. He is also a member of the World Champion B-boy crew, Massive Monkees.

Biography

Early life and Binary Star

Main article: Binary Star (band)

Having grown up listening to the likes of KRS-One and Ice Cube, One Be Lo gained an interest in hip hop from an early age. As a result, he, along with Senim Silla, created Binary Star, although after only releasing one album the group disbanded. One Be Lo cited "creative differences" as the main reason for their split.

Having become disillusioned with both the group and the record label (they were never paid by the distributor, despite selling over 20,000 albums), he started focusing more on his solo work. Around this time he converted to Islam, and as a result changed his name to Nahshid Sulaiman. He also changed his stage name to One Be Lo, having been known as OneManArmy for his work with Binary Star. The name change was due to changes within himself and a potential legal dispute between a punk group with the same name.

Solo career

In January of 2000, he established his own independent label called Subterraneous Records. This enabled him to release his own albums more easily, while also promoting a number of Michigan’s most promising producers and emcees. A year later, Subterraneous Records released WaterWorld Too, a compilation featuring a number of artists from the label's roster. In the meantime, he continued to work on his solo material with producer Decompoze. In late 2002, One Be Lo decided to press limited copies of Project F.E.T.U.S. (For Everybody That Under Stands), a collection of songs that were not initially intended for release. This release was aimed to be a segue into One Be Lo’s official solo material, and has since proven to be a successful debut, appearing on the About.com top 10 rap albums of February 2007.

His first official solo album was released on Fat Beats in 2005. This was entitled S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M. (Sounds Of Nahshid Originate Good Rhymes And Music) and featured a number of fellow Michigan rappers such as Abdus Salaam and singer Ka Di. This was generally received well by critics, and many praised One Be Lo for his conscious and intelligent lyrics. This was followed by S.T.I.L.L.B.O.R.N. (Something To Interest Lo Listeners Beyond Original Recorded Networkings and Subterraneous/Trackezoids Invest Lost Lyrics Bringing Old Rhymes New), a mix CD of previously unreleased songs and remixes. His most recent project is R.E.B.I.R.T.H., receiving critical acclaim by many hip hop publications.

All of his solo albums have been leading up to his magnum opus, entitled L.I.F.E. (Lo Is For Everybody). He is also working with MaGestiK LeGenD on a project entitled SECURITY. A release date for either album has yet to be announced. Additionally, after reuniting for a few shows, One Be Lo and Senim Silla have confirmed that a new Binary Star album is in the works and may be released as early as February 2008. One Be Lo has appeared on the Warped Tour as well as toured with artists such as KRS-One and Zion I.

He also did a candid interview with The Breakdown TV on Onloq.com where he discussed his life as an independent MC

Rap style

One Be Lo has crafted himself into what he describes as "the MC's MC". He is often praised for his clear delivery, precise rapping style and conscious lyrics, especially from fans of alternative hip hop. This was noted by Allmusic in their review of S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M., saying:

One Be Lo is a deep thinker; the details and complex wordplay within his rhymes often take several plays to fully comprehend and appreciate. Similar in effect to X-Clan's Brother J, his words can be righteous, but they're always delivered with casual assurance, like he's talking to an acquaintance at a bus stop. He observes with the wisdom of a father who's been through prison, raises a lot of issues, has almost as many solutions, and never sounds overbearing or preachy.

Discography

Main article: One Be Lo discography

Binary Star

Waterworld - 1999
Masters of the Universe - 2000

Solo

WaterWorld Too - 2001
- "Subterraneous"

Project: F.E.T.U.S. - 2002
- For Everybody That UnderStands
- "OneBeLo" (later "OneBeLo aka OneManArmy")

S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M. - 2005
- Sounds Of Nahshid Originate Good Rhymes And Music
- "One.Be.Lo also known as OneManArmy of Binary Star"

S.T.I.L.L.B.O.R.N. - 2005
- Something To Interest Lo Listeners Beyond Original Recorded Networkings; or
- Subterraneous/Trackezoids Invest Lost Lyrics Bringing Old Rhymes New
- "One Be Lo & DJ Scene"

Project F.E.T.U.S. (2CD Re-Issue) - 2007
- For Everybody That UnderStands
- "OneManArmy"

The R.E.B.I.R.T.H. - 2007
- Real Emcees Bring Intelligent Rhymes To Hip-Hop
- "One Be Lo aka One Man Army"

B.A.B.Y. - TBA (no official date has been set for this release)

References

"S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M : The AV Club". The Onion. February 8, 2005.
"IGN: S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M". IGN. April 26, 2005.
SoundSlam.com 2008 One.Be.Lo: R.E.B.I.R.T.H. Retrieved Jan. 22 2008
^ William Ketchum III. "AllHipHop.com: Features: One Be Lo: Travelin' Man". AllHipHop.
^ Todd E Jones (March 10, 2005). "One.Be.Lo (aka OneManArmy of Binary Star) - "The Birth Of One.Be.Lo"". HipHop Elements.
^ "AllMusic (((One Be Lo > Overview )))". AllMusic.com.
Henry Adaso. "Top 10 Rap Releases for February 2007". About.com.
Andy Kellman. "AllMusic ((( S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M > Overview)))". AllMusic.

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