Mos Def

Mos Def
Mos Def
	Def performing at the 2012 Ilosaarirock festival
Background information
Birth name	Dante Terrell Smith
Also known as	Yasiin Bey; Black Dante; Dante Beze; Flaco; El-Bey the Moor;
Born	December 11, 1973 (age 48); New York City, U.S.
Genres	Alternative hip hop; conscious hip hop; progressive rap;
Occupation(s)	Rapper; singer; songwriter; record producer; actor; activist;
Instruments	Vocals; keyboards; bass guitar; sampler; drums;
Years active	1994–present
Labels	Downtown; GOOD; Geffen; Rawkus; Priority;
Member of	Black Star
Formerly of	Crooklyn Dodgers; Dec 99th; Soulquarians;

Dante Terrell Smith (born December 11, 1973)^[4] is an Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated American actor and a Grammy-nominated rapper known by the stage name Mos Def. Mos Def started his hip hop career in a group called Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. He formed the duo Black Star with Talib Kweli and they released the well-received album Black Star in 1998. He was a major force in the late 1990s underground hip hop explosion spearheaded by Rawkus Records. As a solo artist he has released three albums Black on Both Sides (1999) The New Danger (2004), and True Magic (2006).^[4]

Filmography[change | change source]

Year	Movie	Role	Notes
1991	The Hard Way	Dead Romeos Gang Member
1997	Ghosts	Townsperson
1998	Where's Marlowe?	Wilt Crawley
2000	Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme	Himself
	Bamboozled	Big Blak Afrika	Also recorded a song for the movie's soundtrack with other members of the Mau Maus
	Island of the Dead	Robbie J
2001	Carmen: A Hip Hopera	Lieutenant Miller
2001	Monster's Ball	Ryrus Cooper
2002	Showtime	Lazy Boy
	Civil Brand	Michael Meadows
	Brown Sugar	Chris Anton Vichon
	My Wife and Kids	Tommy	1 episode: Chair Man of the Board
2003	The Italian Job	Left Ear
2004	The Woodsman	Detective Lucas
2004	Something the Lord Made	Vivien Thomas	Nominated - Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie Nominated - Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television Nominated - Image Awards for Outstanding Actor in a Mini-Series or Television Movie
2005	Lackawanna Blues	The Bandleader
	The Boondocks (2005-2008)	Voice Of Gangstalicious
	The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy	Ford Prefect
2006	Dave Chappelle's Block Party	Himself
	16 Blocks	Eddie Bunker
	Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby	Himself	Cameo
	Journey to the End of the Night	Wemba
2007	Prince Among Slaves	Narrator
2008	Be Kind Rewind	Mike
2008	Cadillac Records	Chuck Berry
2009	Next Day Air	Eric
2009	House	Lee	Season 5, Episode 19, Locked In
2010	I'm Still Here	Himself
	Bouncing Cats	Himself
	Yo Gabba Gabba!	Super Mr. Superhero	Season 3, Episode 44, Superhero
2011	Dexter	Brother Sam	Season 6, recurring, (credited as "Mos" in 2 episodes, "yasiin bey" in 3 episodes)
2014	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles	Baxter Stockman
2014	Life of Crime	Ordell Robbie

References[change | change source]

↑ Reese, Eric (2018). "Rise of Hip-Hop in the 2000's". The History of Hip Hop: Volume 1. Barnes & Noble Press. ISBN 9781538076798.
↑ Johnson, Josh (May 27, 2014). "Steal This Track from Courier GT". The Denver Post. Archived from the original on July 15, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
↑ O'Connor, Christopher (March 29, 2000). "Common Moves Toward a Progressive Hip-Hop". MTV News. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
↑ ^4.0 ^4.1 allmusic Biography

Other websites[change | change source]

Mos Def's Official Website.
Mos Def / Dante Smith discographies at Discogs.
Mos Def Archived 2008-05-17 at the Wayback Machine at Geffen Records.
Mos Def on IMDb

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[1] Reese, Eric (2018). "Rise of Hip-Hop in the 2000's". The History of Hip Hop: Volume 1. Barnes & Noble Press. ISBN 9781538076798.

[2] Johnson, Josh (May 27, 2014). "Steal This Track from Courier GT". The Denver Post. Archived from the original on July 15, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2021.

[3] O'Connor, Christopher (March 29, 2000). "Common Moves Toward a Progressive Hip-Hop". MTV News. Retrieved July 15, 2021.

[ALLMUSIC-4] 4.0 ^4.1 allmusic Biography

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