Yasiin Bey

Yasiin Bey jæ?si?n ?be? born Dante Terrell Smith December 11 1973 formerly known as Mos Def is an American retired rapper singersongwriter and actor Regarded as one of hip hops most introspective and insightful artists Mos Def has shaped a career that transcends music genres and artistic medium With the release of Universal Magnetic 1996 he became an underground favorite in the hiphop world leading to his legendary collaboration with Talib Kweli The two formed Black Star whose debut album Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star would become one of the most critically acclaimed hiphop albums He followed with his 1999 solo debut Black On Both Sides which was certified gold and credited by critics as bringing hip hop back to its soapbox roots He was a former child actor in television films sitcoms and theater and continued acting as an adult after launching his rap career He appeared in Spike Lees Bamboozled MTVs Carmen A Hip Hopera 2002s critically acclaimed Monsters Ball Showtime and the 2002 romantic comedy Brown Sugar for which he received an NAACP Image Award nomination He hosted Def Poetry Jam from 2002 to 2007 He completed his Broadway debut in 2002 in the Tonynominated Pulitzer Prizewinning TopdogUnderdog He then reteamed with Topdog playwright Suzan Lori Parks and director George Wolfe for the offBroadway play Fucking A for which he earned an Obie Award In 2003 he starred in The Italian Job alongside Ed Norton Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron In 2004 he starred opposite Alan Rickman in the critically acclaimed HBO movie Something the Lord Made for which he received a 2004 Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie He was also nominated for both a Golden Globe Award Best Performance by an Actor in a MiniSeries or Motion Picture and Golden Satellite Award Best Actor in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television for the same role He continued his music career by releasing his highly anticipated and critically acclaimed sophomore solo release The New Danger 2004 The first single Sex Love and Money earned him a 2005 Grammy nomination for Best AlternativeUrban Performance and the album has been certified gold by the RIAA The following year he appeared alongside Bruce Willis in the crime thriller 16 Blocks 2006 in Dave Chappelles Block Party and had a cameo appearance in Talladega Nights The Ballad of Ricky Bobby Also in 2006 he released his third solo album True Magic The next year he appeared in the 2007 PBS historical documentary Prince Among Slaves and in 2008 he played the role of Chuck Berry in Cadillac Records In 2009 he released the album The Ecstatic which proved to be his second highestcharting album to date He then appeared in the urban comedy Next Day Air and as himself in the 2010 mockumentary film Im Still Here starring Joaquin Phoenix Mos Def announced in September of 2011 that he changed his name to Yasiin Bey and would go by it henceforth In the first month of 2016 Bey declared his retirement from both the film and music industries In 2014 Aboutcom listed him 14th on its 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time