Hopsin
Hopsin | |
|---|---|
| File:Hopsin2.jpg | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Marcus Jamal Hopson |
| Also known as | Hopsin |
| Born | July 18, 1985 |
| Origin | Panorama City, Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Occupation(s) | Rapper, producer, director, actor, singer |
| Years active | 2003–Present |
| Labels | Funk Volume, Ruthless Records |
| Website | www |
Marcus Hopson (born July 18, 1985), better known by his stage name Hopsin, is an American rapper, music video director, hip hop producer, singer and actor from Los Angeles, California. Hopsin has gained high popularity on YouTube, where many of his songs accompanied with music videos are uploaded, most remarkably "Sag My Pants", uploaded in October 2010, and "Ill Mind of Hopsin 4", uploaded in July 2011, both have just under 18 million views (as of October 2012). On July 18, 2012, his 27th birthday, he released "Ill Mind of Hopsin 5", which has received over 17 million views within three months. In 2007, he was signed to deceased rapper Eazy-E's record label Ruthless Records,[1] and has since founded his own record label Funk Volume in 2009.[2] Hopsin has released two studio albums along with a mixtape; the debut album Gazing At The Moonlight through Ruthless Records, and Raw and Haywire (featuring SwizZz) through Funk Volume.
Early life
Marcus Hopson was born on July 18, 1985 in Panorama City, Los Angeles, California, and attended James Monroe High School. He dropped out of high school during his senior year in 2004 to pursue a career in music.[3]
Music career
2007-2009: Struggle with Ruthless Records
Hopsin had initially signed with Ruthless Records in 2007, owned by Eazy-E's widow, Tomica Wright. After lack of support and financial compensation, Hopsin expressed anger, saying Wright didn't know what she was doing, did not take advice and had terrible marketing schemes. Hopsin talked about his first album Gazing at the Moonlight stating it was released without his consent and that he was not even able to listen to the mastered version of his album before release.[4] His debut album Gazing at the Moonlight was released October 26, 2009. Hopsin finally left the label as Tomica said he didn't do his job as an artist.[5] Hopsin later founded his own independent label, Funk Volume with Dame Ritter (King Dame). SwizZz, who is Ritter's younger brother, was the first artist to be signed to Funk Volume.
2010-present: Success with Funk Volume
His second album Raw was released as a digital download on iTunes and as physical CD on his label's website on November 19, 2010. On October 8, 2010, Hopsin released a music video for "Sag My Pants" on YouTube mocking Lil Wayne, Drake, Soulja Boy, Lupe Fiasco, and Rick Ross.
The fourth installment of his "Ill Mind of Hopsin" video series received over 16,000,000 views on YouTube. On October 31, 2011, Hopsin was featured in a mobile battle rap game, Battle Rap Stars by Jump Shot Media.[6] On January 22, 2012, Hopsin landed a spot on MTV2's "Sucker Free Sunday" by being featured in Tech N9ne's music video for "Am I A Psycho?". Hip Hop superstar B.o.B was also featured in the video. Hopsin would later collaborate with Tech N9ne once again for the Insane Clown Posse's "Skreem!".
In 2012 Hopsin was on the cover of XXL as part of their annual "Top 10 Freshmen list" along with fellow rappers French Montana, Machine Gun Kelly, Danny Brown, Roscoe Dash, and Kid Ink.[7]
Later in the year Hopsin released his 5th installment of "Ill Mind of Hopsin" which hit YouTube with huge success with over 6,000,000 views in the first week and over 10,000,000 views in the first month.
In October 2012, Hopsin made an appearance on the BET Cypher in the 2012 BET Hip Hop Awards.
Hopsin's upcoming album, Knock Madness will be released in 2013, so far the confirmed featured guests for the album are Dizzy Wright, Jarren Benton, SwizZz, DJ Hoppa, and Tech N9ne. Hopsin also confirmed that he will be touring worldwide following the release of Knock Madness.
Acting career
After making a guest appearance in the film Fame starring Kelsey Grammer,[8] Hopsin's had a starring role in the independent musical film entitled Bomb The World in which he plays a rapper named Face. These were his first major acting appearances since he played a minor role in an episode of That's So Raven in 2002. He also made a few appearances as an extra in the 2001 Disney film Max Keeble's Big Move.
Discography
- Albums
- 2003: Emurge (Unreleased)
- 2009: Gazing at the Moonlight
- 2010: Raw
- 2013: Knock Madness
- Mixtapes
- 2009: Haywire (with SwizZz)
Singles
| Year | Song | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | "Pans in the Kitchen" | Gazing at the Moonlight |
| 2009 | "I'm Here" | |
| "Lucifer Effect" (with SwizZz) | Haywire | |
| "Bad Motherfucker" (with SwizZz) | ||
| 2010 | "Kill Her" | Raw |
| "Sag My Pants" | ||
| 2011 | "How You Like Me Now?" (featuring SwizZz) | |
| 2012 | "Hop Madness" | non-album single |
| "Ill Mind of Hopsin 5" |
As a featured guest
| Year | Song | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | "Am I a Psycho?" (Tech N9ne featuring Hopsin & B.o.B) | All 6's and 7's |
Other guest appearances
| Year | Song | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Ruthless" (Bankrupt Records featuring Hopsin) | Double Vision |
| 2011 | "Bang Bang Boogie" (SwizZz featuring Hopsin) | Good Morning SwizZzle |
| "Beastmode" (Liquid Assassin featuring Hopsin) | Cardell | |
| 2012 | "The End" (Young Noble featuring Hopsin & Lowkey) | Outlaw Rydahz Vol. 1 |
| "Raw Talk" (Stevie Stone featuring Hopsin & SwizZz) | Rollin' Stone | |
| "Skreem!" (Insane Clown Posse featuring Hopsin & Tech N9ne) | The Mighty Death Pop! | |
| "Independent Living" (Dizzy Wright featuring Hopsin & SwizZz) | Free SmokeOut Conversations Mixtape | |
| "Blame Him" (Nay Nay featuring Hopsin) | Long Road Home |
Film Roles
| Title | Year | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Keeble's Big Move | 2001 | Pizza Parlor Guy | Extra |
| Fame | 2009 | Senior Rapper | Supporting Role |
| Bomb the World | 2010 | Face | Starring Role |
Television Roles
| Title | Year | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| That's So Raven | 2002 | Guy #2 | Extra 1 Episode To See or Not to See |
Video Games
- 2011: Battle Rap Stars for iPhone and Android
References
- ^ "HOPSIN - New Face of Ruthless". Rapindustry.com. Retrieved 2011-12-29.
- ^ "My Funk Volume".
- ^ "HOPSIN - New Face of Ruthless". rapindustry.com. Retrieved 2012-04-03.
- ^ "Hopsin reflects on Ruthless Records [1/3]". YouTube. Retrieved 2011-12-29.
- ^ Dwyer, Alex (2011-02-26). "Hopsin Says "Fuck Ruthless Records," Admits Tomica Wright Inspired "[[My Name Is]]" | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales". HipHop DX. Retrieved 2011-12-29.
{{cite web}}: URL–wikilink conflict (help) - ^ "Paul Wall Stars in First-Ever Mobile Battle Rap Game". Rapospective.com. October 31, 2011.
- ^ "And XXL's 2012 Freshmen are…". 2DopeBoyz. 2012-02-28. Retrieved 2012-02-28.
- ^ "IMDB Profile". IMDB. Retrieved 2011-12-29.
- ^ Marcus Hopson - IMDb
External links
- 1985 births
- Living people
- African-American rappers
- Ruthless Records artists
- West Coast hip hop musicians
- All City Chess Club
- American hip hop record producers
- American actors
- Internet personalities
- Hip hop activists
- American Internet personalities
- People from Los Angeles, California
- Rappers from Los Angeles, California
- Underground rappers