Lupe Fiasco

**Wasalu Muhammad Jaco** (born February 16, 1982 in Chicago, Illinois), better known by his stage name **Lupe Fiasco**, is an American rapper, record producer, and music educator. He became well known in 2006 after releasing his first album, ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor*. His song "The Show Goes On" reached number 9 on the *Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. He is also the lead singer of a rock band called Japanese Cartoon, where he uses his real name.

Fiasco was the CEO of record label 1st and 15th Entertainment and co-founded the nonprofit charity organization M.U.R.A.L. Many people see him as an important part of the conscious hip-hop movement. He has sold 22 million RIAA-certified units in the United States.

## Life and career 
### 1982–99: Early life 
Wasalu Muhammad Jaco was born on February 16, 1982, in Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Shirley Jaco, was a cook. His father, Gregory Jaco, who has died, was a martial arts teacher. He has an older sister named Ayesha Jaco, who appears on some of his albums. Fiasco is Muslim and trained in martial arts. His parents divorced when he was three years old, and he lived with his mother.

When he was in sixth grade, he went to live with his father in Harvey, Illinois. His father lived next to people who sold cocaine, and he taught Fiasco how to use guns to protect himself from drug dealers.

In 2001, Fiasco and his manager Charles "Chilly" Patton started a record label called 1st & 15th Entertainment. The label included both rappers and music producers. This helped them make music without needing other companies' production teams. Fiasco was offered a deal with Jay-Z's company, Roc-A-Fella Records, though turned it down. He signed as a solo artist to Arista Records, where he worked on music but only appeared on songs by other artists, such as "Kiss Me" and "Didn't You Know" by Tha' Rayne.

### 2006–08: ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor* and *The Cool'' 
Fiasco's first album, ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor*, was released on September 19, 2006. The album received positive reviews from music critics and reached number eight on the *Billboard* 200 in the United States. It was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards. Jay-Z was the executive producer and appeared on the song "Pressure". The album also had production from Kanye West, Mike Shinoda, The Neptunes, Prolyfic, and more. The album was praised by critics, appeared on many "best albums of the year" lists, and was nominated for Best Rap Album at the Grammy Awards.

That same year, Fiasco formed a group called Child Rebel Soldier with Kanye West and Pharrell Williams.

### 2009–11: *Lasers* 
Since 2009, Fiasco spoke openly about his problems with his record label, Atlantic Records. He felt his creativity was being stifled, and even had thoughts of suicide. His album *Lasers'' was delayed many times, and he was told to make pop songs. In response, Fiasco's fans started an online petition asking Atlantic to release the album. They also held a protest called Fiasco Friday, where fans went to Atlantic's office in New York City.

*Lasers* was finally released on March 7, 2011, and it reached number one on the *Billboard* 200. This was Fiasco's first album to do so. Even though it sold well, many fans and music critics had mixed feelings about it. Some thought the album was not his best and that it tried too hard to follow pop music trends.

Later in 2011, Fiasco supported the Occupy Wall Street movement. He gave tents to protesters, shared a poem called "Moneyman", and talked about the protest during his concerts. He also released a free mixtape called *Friend of the People: I Fight Evil* on Thanksgiving Day.

### 2012–13: *Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album* 
Fiasco's fourth album, *Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album*, was released on September 25, 2012. It was first planned as a two-disc album, but his record label did not agree with the idea. Because of this, Fiasco decided to release it in parts instead. The album was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 55th Grammy Awards. On January 17, 2013, Fiasco said that the second part of the album would not be released.

### 2013–15: *Tetsuo & Youth* 
In October 2013, Fiasco announced the Tetsuo & Youth Preview Tour, which took place between November 2 to December 15, 2013. His fifth album, *Tetsuo & Youth*, was planned to come out in early 2014, but it was delayed until 2015. The album was finally released by Atlantic Records on January 20, 2015. Later that year, on August 29, 2015, Fiasco released the surprise mixtape *Pharaoh Height*.

### 2016–18: *Drogas Light* and *Wave* 
In April 2016, Fiasco said he planned to release three final albums called *Drogas*, *Skulls*, and *Roy*. Later, the titles were changed to *Drogas*, *Drogas Light*, and *Skulls*. The first of these, *Drogas Light*, was released on February 10, 2017. It was his first album not released under Atlantic Records. The album mostly had trap-style songs, but it received mixed to negative reviews from critics and fans. Many people found the change in style confusing.

He released *Drogas Wave* on September 21, 2018. It was his longest album, with 24 songs. The album talks about the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, water, and the African diaspora. Fiasco has said he wants to turn the story of the album into a screenplay called *Wave*.

### 2019–present: *Drill Music in Zion* and *Samurai* 
Fiasco's next album, *Drill Music in Zion*, was released on June 24, 2022, through 1st & 15th Too and Thirty Tigers. He recorded the whole album in just three days, using GarageBand and a USB microphone in his living room.

Fiasco released his ninth album, *Samurai*, on June 28, 2024. It is a concept album inspired by Amy Winehouse. In the album, he tells a story about Amy becoming a battle rapper.

## Discography 
* ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor* (2006)
* *Lupe Fiasco's The Cool* (2007)
* *Lasers* (2011)
* *Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1* (2012)
* *Tetsuo & Youth* (2015)
* *Drogas Light* (2017)
* *Drogas Wave* (2018)
* *Drill Music in Zion* (2022)
* *Samurai'' (2024)

## Filmography 
### Films 
### Television 
## Awards and nominations 
 in May 2007.]]
This is a comprehensive list of awards and nominations won by Lupe Fiasco. His work as earned him 12 Grammy Award nominations, 13 Bet Hip Hop Awards, and four NAACP Image Awards. He has also won the USA's 2009 Character Approved Award. In total, he has been nominated for thirty-three awards.

### AOL Music Award 
|-
| 2006 
| Himself 
| Breaker Artist 
| 

### BET Hip-Hop Awards 
|-
| rowspan="4" | 2006
| ''Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor*
| Hip-Hop CD of the Year
| 
|-
| rowspan="2" | "Kick, Push"
| Hip-Hop Video of the Year
| 
|-
| "Superstar"(with Matthew Santos)
| Alltel Wireless People’s Champ
| 
|-
|rowspan="2"| 2008
| *Lupe Fiasco's The Cool*
| CD of the Year
| 

### Grammy Awards 
|-
|rowspan="3" | 2007
|rowspan="2" | "Kick, Push"
| Best Rap Solo Performance
| 
|-
| Best Rap Song
| 
|-
|rowspan="4" | 2009
| "Paris, Tokyo"
| Best Rap Solo Performance
| 
|-
| *Lupe Fiasco's The Cool''
| Best Rap Album
| 
|-
| Best Rap Performance
| 

### MOBO Awards 
|-
| 2008
| Himself
| Best Hip-Hop Act
| 
|}
 
### MTV Video Music Awards 
|-
| 2008
| "Superstar"
| Best Hip-Hop Video
| 
|-
| 2011
| "The Show Goes On"
| Best Hip-Hop Video
| 

### Soul Train Music Awards 
|-
| 2007
| "I Gotcha"
| Best New R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist
| 

### Teen Choice Awards 
|-
|rowspan="2"| 2008
| "Superstar"(with Matthew Santos)
| Best Hip-Hop song
| 
|-
| Himself
| Rap Artist
| 

### USA's Character Approved Awards 
|-
| 2009
| Himself
| Character Approved Award for Musician
|

## References 
## Other websites 
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