Dante Terrell Smith (born December 11, 1973)
is an American
actor and
MC 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. With
Talib Kweli, he formed the duo
Black Star, who released the 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 the albums
Black on Both Sides in 1999,
The New Danger in 2004,
True Magic in 2006, and
The Ecstatic in 2009.
Initially recognized for his musical output, Mos Def's screen work since the early 2000s has established him as one of only a handful of rappers who have garnered critical approval for their acting work. Mos Def has also been active on several social and political issues and was particularly vocal in the wake of
Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Early life
Mos Def was born
Dante Terrell Smith in the
Roosevelt Houses of
Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn,
New York City,
the son of Darrell Toler. He has two younger brothers, Abdul Rahman (a.k.a. "Gold Medal Man," who is Mos's full-time
DJ) and
Anwar Superstar. He also has a younger sister, Ces (Casey) Smith, and another younger brother Jermone Victor Moulton who resides in Brooklyn and shares the same mother Umi Smith. Mos Def and his brothers are all converts to
Islam.
Mos Def was first exposed to Islam at age 13 by his father. He became a Muslim at age 19 after getting to know Muslim rappers including
Ali Shaheed Muhammad and
Q-Tip of the group
A Tribe Called Quest.
Mos Def grew up during the
golden age of hip-hop and has been rapping and acting since he was six years old. He attended
Philippa Schuyler Middle School in Bushwick, Brooklyn.
Music career
Mos Def began his music career in 1994 in the short-lived group Urban Thermo Dynamics with his younger brother D.c.Q and younger sister Ces. Despite their contract with Payday Records, the group only released two
singles, and their debut album
Manifest Destiny was not released until 2004, when it was distributed by Illson Media. In 1996, he emerged as a solo artist and worked with
De La Soul and
Da Bush Babees, before he released his own first single, "Universal Magnetic", which was a huge underground hit.
Mos Def signed with
Rawkus Records and formed the group
Black Star with
Talib Kweli. They released an album,
Mos Def & Talib Kweli are Black Star, in 1998. Mostly
produced by
Hi-Tek, the album featured the hit singles, "
Respiration" and "
Definition", which would go on to be featured in
VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip-Hop. Mos Def released his solo debut album
Black on Both Sides in 1999, also through Rawkus. Around this time he also contributed to the
Scritti Politti album
Anomie & Bonhomie and Rawkus compilations
Lyricist Lounge and
Soundbombing.
After the collapse of Rawkus, he signed to
Interscope/
Geffen Records, which released his second solo album
The New Danger in 2004.
The New Danger contained a mix of several musical genres, including
soul,
blues, and
rock and roll, performed with his rock band Black Jack Johnson, which contained members of the bands
Bad Brains and
Living Colour. The singles included "
Sex, Love & Money" and the
B-side "Ghetto Rock"; the latter went on to receive several
Grammy Award nominations in 2004.
Mos Def has drawn some criticism from his fan base about "
keeping it real" after he appeared in a commercial that endorsed the
GMC Denali sport utility vehicle.
Mos Def's final solo album for
Geffen Records,
True Magic, was quietly released on December 29, 2006.
True Magic features production from
The Neptunes,
Rich Harrison and Minnesota, among others. The album was released in a clear-case with no cover art. Neither Geffen nor Mos Def himself promoted the album at all, which is the main reason the album was received under the radar.
The song "Crime & Medicine" is essentially a cover of
GZA's 1995 single "
Liquid Swords", though it contains different verses. Also, the track "Undeniable" samples a version of the
Barrett Strong/
Norman Whitfield composition "Message from a Black Man". The song "Dollar Day" uses the same beat as
Juvenile's "
Nolia Clap."
MTV reported that this album isn't a full version, but a teaser/promotional debut. A new version of the album would be released spring 2007, with updated songs and cover art. However, on October 17, 2007, Okayplayer reported, through discussions with Mos Def's management, that these rumors were unsubstantiated. The CD was intended to be released without promotion or cover art, as per Mos Def's request. There would be no future re-release.
On November 7, 2007, Mos Def performed live in
San Francisco at a venue called The Mezzanine. This performance was recorded for an upcoming "Live in Concert" DVD. During this performance Mos Def announced that he would be releasing a new album to be called
The Ecstatic. He sang a number of new tracks; in later shows, Def previewed tracks produced by
Madlib and was rumored to be going to
Kanye West for new material. Producer and fellow
Def Poet Al Be Back stated that he would be producing as well. The album was released on June 9, 2009; upon its release, only Madlib's production had made the cut, along with tracks by Preservation,
The Neptunes, Mr. Flash, Madlib's brother Oh No, a song by
J. Dilla, and
Georgia Anne Muldrow.
Mos Def is also set to do a duo album with
Jay Electronica titled
Simpatico. It will contain nine songs.
Mos Def appears alongside
Kanye West on the track "Two Words" from
The College Dropout album, the track "Drunk And Hot Girls" and the bonus track "Good Night" off West's third major album,
Graduation. In 2002, he released the 12" single Fine, which was featured in the
Brown Sugar Motion Picture Soundtrack.
Mos Def also appears on the debut album from fellow New Yorkers Apollo Heights on a track titled, "Concern." In October, he signed a deal with
Downtown Records and appeared on a remix to the song "D.A.N.C.E." by Justice. Mos Def appeared on
Stephen Marley's album
Mind Control on the song "Hey Baby." In 2009, Mos Def worked together with Somali rapper
K'naan to produce the track "America" for K'naan's album
Troubadour.
In April 2008 he appeared on the title track for a new album by
The Roots entitled
Rising Down. The new single,
Life In Marvelous Times, was made officially available through
iTunes on November 4, 2008, and is available for
stream on the Roots' website Okayplayer.
April 2009 saw him travelling to South Africa for the first time where he performed accompanied by The Robert Clasper Experiment at the renowned Cape Town International Jazz Festival. He enticed his bemused African following with an encore introduced by his own rendition of John Coltrane's "Love Supreme" followed by a sneak preview of the track "M.D. (Doctor)", much to the delight of the fans.
Mos Def also designed two pairs of limited edition
Converse shoes. The shoes were released to
Foot Locker stores on August 1, 2009 in very limited amounts.
In late 2009, Mos Def created a brand of clothing line with UNDRCRWN called the "Mos Def Cut & Sew Collection." All clothing items will be sold in select stores located around the U.S. and almost exclusively on the UNDRCRWN website.
Acting career
Mos Def studied
experimental theatre at
New York University. He began his professional acting career at the age of fourteen, appearing in the TV movie
God Bless the Child, starring
Mare Winningham. He then played the oldest child in the short-lived family sitcom,
You Take the Kids, starring
Nell Carter and
Roger E. Mosley. His most notable acting role before his music career was that of
Bill Cosby's sidekick on the short-lived detective show,
The Cosby Mysteries. He also starred in a 1996
Visa check card commercial featuring
Deion Sanders. In 1997 he had a small role alongside
Michael Jackson in his short film and music video "
Ghosts".
After brief appearances in
Bamboozled and
Monster's Ball, Mos re-invigorated his acting career with his performance as a talented rapper who is reluctant to sign to a major label in
Brown Sugar. He was nominated for an
Image Award and a
Teen Choice Award.
In 2002, he played the role of Booth in
Suzan-Lori Parks'
Topdog/Underdog, a
Tony-nominated and
Pulitzer-winning
Broadway play. He and co-star Jeffrey Wright won a Special Award from the Outer Critics Circle Award for their joint performance. He also received positive notices as the quirky Left Ear in the blockbuster hit,
The Italian Job in 2003.
In television, Mos Def has appeared on
Comedy Central's
Chappelle's Show, and has hosted the award-winning
HBO spoken word show,
Def Poetry since its inception. The show's sixth season aired in 2007. He also appeared on the sitcom
My Wife And Kids as the old school friend of Michael Kyle's (
Damon Wayans).
Mos Def won Best Actor, Independent Movie at the 2005
Black Reel Awards for his portrayal of Detective Sgt. Lucas in
The Woodsman. For his portrayal of
Vivien Thomas in
HBO's film
Something the Lord Made, he was nominated for an
Emmy Award, a
Golden Globe, and won the
Image Award. He also played a bandleader in HBO's
Lackawanna Blues. He then landed the role of
Ford Prefect in the 2005 movie adaptation of
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
In 2006, Mos Def appeared in
Dave Chappelle's Block Party alongside fellow
Black Star companion
Talib Kweli, while also contributing to the film's soundtrack. Also, Mos Def was featured as the black
banjo player in the infamous "Pixie Sketch" from
Chappelle's Show: The Lost Episodes. He was later edited out of it on the DVD. Additionally, Mos Def starred in the action film
16 Blocks alongside
Bruce Willis and
David Morse. He has a recurring guest role on
Boondocks, starring as "Gangstalicious". He is also set to be in
Toussaint, a film about
Haitian revolutionary
Toussaint Louverture, opposite
Don Cheadle and
Wesley Snipes. He made a cameo appearance — playing himself — in the movie
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.
In 2008, Mos Def starred in the
Michel Gondry movie
Be Kind Rewind, playing a video rental store employee whose best friend is played by co-star
Jack Black. . He also portrayed
Chuck Berry in the film
Cadillac Records, for which he was nominated for a
Black Reel Award and an
Image Award.
Most recently, he appeared in the season five episode of
House entitled "
Locked In." His performance has been well-received, with
E! saying that Mos Def "delivers an
Emmy-worthy performance." He was also in the 2009 film,
Next Day Air.
Social and political views
By the early 1990s, a brand of socially conscious hip hop that had been popularized by
A Tribe Called Quest,
KRS-One, and many others had been eclipsed in popularity by
gangsta rap. Mos Def, as well as
Talib Kweli,
Common,
Little Brother,
Quannum Projects and others helped
socially aware rap music experience something of a comeback in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Mos Def's collaboration with Talib Kweli,
Black Star, was released during the aftermath of the deaths of
2Pac and
The Notorious B.I.G. and focused on violence and deceit in hip-hop, in collaboration with other acts that did the same. His music has also made reference to his
Islamic faith, and his contention that black artists receive little credit for their role in the birth of
rock and roll.
On Mos Def's 2004 album
The New Danger, he took his penchant for experimentation to a new level. Most of the songs were more hip-hop flavored stylings of
blues and
rock, with fewer raps thrown in. This threw off fans who were expecting another full-blown rap album.
The New Danger also featured the
controversial song, "The Rape Over," a
parody of
Jay-Z's
The Blueprint hit "
Takeover". His label made him take the song off releases of the album, citing clearance issues with Jay-Z and
The Doors, a band which the song
samples. The song has garnered controversy over its veiled reference to
Israeli-American record executive
Lyor Cohen (the "tall Israeli" who then was head of the
The Island Def Jam Music Group).
Mos Def and
Immortal Technique released a similarly controversial song, "
Bin Laden" in 2004, which blamed the
Reagan Doctrine and President
George W. Bush for the
September 11, 2001 attacks. A club
remix song, featuring
Eminem, was released the following year, in 2005.
In September 2005, Mos Def released the single "Katrina Clap," renamed "Dollar Day" for
True Magic, (utilizing the instrumental for
New Orleans rappers UTP's "
Nolia Clap"). The song is a
criticism of the
Bush administration's response to
Hurricane Katrina. On the night of the
MTV Video Music Awards, Mos Def pulled up in front of
Radio City Music Hall on a flatbed truck and began performing the "Katrina Clap" single in front of a crowd that quickly gathered around him. He was subsequently arrested despite having a public performance permit in his possession.
On September 7, 2007, Mos Def appeared on
Real Time with Bill Maher where he spoke about
racism against
African Americans, citing the
government response to Hurricane Katrina, the
Jena Six and the murder conviction of
Mumia Abu-Jamal. Mos Def also displayed his deep skepticism, mentioning that
Al-Qaeda was not responsible for 9/11, and that
Al-Qaeda is not responsible for as much
terrorism as they are portrayed to be. He appeared on
Real Time again on March 27, 2009, and spoke about the risk of
nuclear weapons. Mos Def said that he did not listen to any of
Osama Bin Laden's messages because he did not trust the translations.
Personal life
In 1996, he married Maria Yepes. After having two girls, Chandani and Jauhara Smith, he filed for divorce in 2005. The divorce became final in January 2008. In connection with his divorce from Yepes, law firm
Blank Rome filed suit seeking more than $60,000 in unpaid legal bills. Mos Def is expected to return to court for non-compliance of his divorce and for not paying child support.
Mos Def also has six other children with three other women.
In October, 2006 Mos Def appeared on
4Real, a documentary television series. Appearing in the episode "City of God," he and the 4Real crew traveled to
City of God, a slum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to meet Brazilian MC
MV Bill and discover the crime and social problems of the community.
He has recently taken up skateboarding which he learned from his son Elijah Cole and said he's looking to host a skateboarding event in the
United Arab Emirates.
Nominations
- *2003, Best Actor- Independent: Civil Brand (nominated)
- *2004, Best Actor in a Television Movie or Mini-Series: Something the Lord Made (nominated)
- *2005, Best Actor in a Television Movie or Mini-Series: Something the Lord Made (nominated)
- *2005, Best Urban/Alternative Performance: "Sex, Love & Money" (nominated)
- *2006, Best Urban/Alternative Performance: "Ghetto Rock" (nominated)
- *2007, Best Rap Solo Performance: "Undeniable" (nominated)
- *2009, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture: Cadillac Records (nominated)
- *2003, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture: Brown Sugar (nominated)
- *2005, Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie or Mini-Series: Something the Lord Made (nominated)
Discography
Filmography
