Album: Mistah F.A.B. – Son of a Pimp 2
The Crown Prince of Bay Area Hip-Hop Returns with a Deeply Personal Album And Cadre of A-list Guest Stars
05.27.2016
Critical Praise for Mistah F.A.B.
“Mistah F.A.B. is a versatile Oakland MC with a wide-ranging capacity for tone and emotion—traits that have also made him a sharp songwriter for the likes of Too $hort, Snoop Dogg, B.o.B., and Tyga.” – Pitchfork
The Album:
When rappers, ballplayers and other visiting dignitaries come to the Bay Area, Mistah F.A.B. is the first person they call. Ten years after his breakthrough original Son of a Pimp album, the Oakland rapper returns to the national forefront with the release of Son of a Pimp 2 (via Faeva Afta Music/EMPIRE), his latest studio album and his first since 2007’s Da Baydestrian, which attracted major label attention. As the Bay Area’s Ambassador, Mistah F.A.B. has friendships with dozens of rappers in every region and scene in hip-hop, reflected in the album’s absurdly strong cast of all-star guests including Kendrick Lamar, Boosie Badazz, IAMSU, E-40, G-Eazy, Too $hort, Snoop Dogg, 2 Chainz, Jadakiss, Raekwon, Schoolboy Q, Keak Da Sneak, Bun B, Slim Thug, Z-Ro, Paul Wall, Lupe Fiasco, Tech N9ne, B.o.B, Keyshia Cole, Curren$y, Devin the Dude, and a posthumous appearance from Bay Area legend and good friend The Jacka. The album features production from some of the best in the game, such as Pete Rock, IAMSU, P-Lo, Jake One, The Mekanix, Tha Bizness, and Erk Tha Jerk. As impressive as the guestlist is, Mistah F.A.B. did not make the album stunt his massive Rolodex. Keeping true to his legacy as a sociopolitical griot, F.A.B.’s album documents social justice issues such as mass incarceration, intersections of race and class, local activism, and more. As a noted storyteller, F.A.B. also included vivid songs about love, loss, and survival. Son of a Pimp 2 is an inspirational reflection on how the rapper overcame a tumultuous upbringing to become an upstanding citizen in his community.
The rise and fall of the Hyphy movement in the mid ’00s left him a casualty of his contract with Atlantic, but Mistah F.A.B. has kept busy. He has released several free mixtapes, including The Grind is a Terrible Thing to Waste series in 2009 and 2011, 2010’s I Lost My Backpack, 2011’s I Found My Backpack and 2012’s Da Yellow Bus Rydah. F.A.B. is also an accomplished songwriter, penning B.o.B’s 3x platinum hit “Headbandz” and co-writing Chris Brown’s 2014 smash hit “Loyal.” Throughout his career, Mistah F.A.B. has balanced his music with his role as a pillar in the Oakland community, sponsoring and organizing numerous charitable works, including backpack giveaways, toy drives, turkey drives, Easter Egg hunts, scholarship funding, fundraising for group homes, creating programs for musicians and building local recording studios. In 2014, the city of Oakland officially made February 8th Mistah F.A.B. Day, in honor of his work in his community. Inspired by the death of his mother and the birth of his daughter, Mistah F.A.B. calls Son of a Pimp 2 his best work to date.
Mistah F.A.B.’s deep connections with his community and relationships with rappers from all regions and subgenres resulted in the versatile Son of a Pimp 2–influenced by the world, but rooted in his home. Among the highlights from Son of a Pimp 2 is the Rolling Stone–premiered “Survive,” featuring Kendrick Lamar, Crooked I and Kobe Honeycutt and poignant, guitar-led production from Tha Bizness. “Survive” boasts impressive lyricism by the three emcees, who convey strife against everyday struggles in poesy eloquence on the track. Last month, Billboard premiered “What Yo Hood Like,” a true East-meets-West collab, featuring an appearance from Jadakiss with Pete Rock behind the boards. “What Yo Hood Like” is a horn-driven boom-bap track, with F.A.B. rhyming about overcoming his upbringing and representing his neighborhood: “Oakland be the city where I’m livin’ at/where killers goin’ tit-for-tat/they get you and you get them back.” More recently, F.A.B. released “All Around the World,” featuring a verse from Silk-E and a gorgeous chorus from Keyshia Cole, F.A.B. laments the state of global affairs over shimmering production from Bay Area sound architects, The Mekanix, touching on police brutality, terrorism, warfare and mass incarceration. Other highlights include the hyphy-as-fuck Mac Dre tribute “Still Feelin’ It,” stoner’s anthem “The Chill,” featuring Curren$y and Schoolboy Q, and the gorgeous “Black Hollywood,” with a chorus from Bobby V and verses from Too $hort and Snoop Dogg in full loverman mode. Son of a Pimp 2 is available to stream on Spotify and buy on iTunes.
Stream Son of a Pimp 2 on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/7rkEFjm5tuORcwq3GIyuSJ
Buy Son of a Pimp 2 on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/son-of-a-pimp-pt.-2/id1106027496
Watch Mistah F.A.B.’s Golden State Warriors-themed 5 Fingers of Death freestyle on Sway in the Morning: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBkd9G4FX38
Please contact Michelle or Rory if interested in talking with Mistah F.A.B.
Background:
Mistah F.A.B.
Mistah F.A.B.’s breakout album, 2005’s Son of a Pimp, established the North Oakland emcee as a rising star, and a major factor in a resurgent Bay Area rap scene which would demand national attention from hip-hop’s cultural gatekeepers. A decade later—older, wiser, and more resilient—FAB returns with Son of A Pimp 2, a no-holds-barred, 21-track extravaganza he considers the truest representation of his artistic talent to date. The list of features is sure to raise eyebrows, as is the fact that FAB more than holds his own against some of the rap world’s most celebrated artists from practically every region in the United States. Just as impressive as the tracks themselves is the fact that FAB assembled his all-star roster of talent from his friends list, leveraging the networking he’s been doing for years as a go-to guy for out of town artists visiting the Bay, as well as his solid rep within Oakland.
Faeva Afta Music
FAM (Faeva Afta Music) is an American record label founded by rapper Mistah F.A.B. in 2008. The label is based in Oakland, CA. FAM consists of Mistah F.A.B. and in-house producers Bizness Boi, Ekzakt long with LT Beats. The label’s releases are currently distributed by EMPIRE.
EMPIRE Background
EMPIRE was founded in 2010 as an artist-friendly, progressive digital distribution company. After early success, and identifying future icons such as Kendrick Lamar, Sage The Gemini, and Rich Homie Quan, EMPIRE was quickly regarded as a tastemaker in the industry and throughout the past five years evolved into a full-fledged record label, distributor and publisher for independent musicians. With the company and roster growing at a breakneck pace, EMPIRE has effectively disrupted a stale business model by bringing its energy, expertise, and acumen to its artists and labels.
Links:
facebook | twitter | instagram | soundcloud | wikipedia
Son of a Pimp 2: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/son-of-a-pimp-pt.-2/id1106027496
“Survive” ft. Kendrick Lamar, Crooked I & Honeycutt (Prod. by Tha Bizness): https://soundcloud.com/mistahfab/survive-feat-kendrick-lamar-crooked-i-kobe-honeycutt
“All Around The World”: https://soundcloud.com/mistahfab/all-around-the-world-feat-keyshia-cole-silk-e
“What Yo Hood Like”: https://soundcloud.com/empire/mistah-fab-what-yo-hood-like-feat-jadakiss/
Pre-order Son of a Pimp 2 on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/son-of-a-pimp-pt.-2/id1106027496&app=itunes
E-40 ft. Mistah F.A.B. – “Outta Control”: https://soundcloud.com/e-40-official/outta-control-ft-dem-hoodstarz
“New Oakland”: https://soundcloud.com/allybo510/mistah-fab-new-oakland
“Ungrateful”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt-K_9hI10Y