Tech N9ne is one of the biggest rap artists in the Midwest. He is known for his fast recitative and distinctive production.
For a long career, he has sold several million copies of LPs. The rapper's tracks are used in films and video games. Tech Nine is the founder of Strange Music. Another fact that deserves attention is that despite the popularity of Tek Nine, he considers himself an underground rapper.
Childhood and youth
Aaron Dontez Yates (real name of the rapper) was born on November 8, 1971, in the city of Kansas City (Missouri). He does not remember his biological father at all, since he left the family when Aaron was very young. He was raised by his mother and stepfather.
He was brought up in a primordially religious family, and this postponed the misprints for his later life. Aaron tried to merge religion with his love of rap music. Parents experienced an undisguised hatred of "devilish" music, so at home Aaron could hardly enjoy the sound of his favorite tracks.
The childhood of a black guy can hardly be called happy and cloudless. Aarona's mother was diagnosed with a mental disorder. During the next aggravation of his condition, he was forced to live with his aunt. The street atmosphere dictated its own rules, which were completely different from the rules that prevailed in the house of the mother and stepfather.
His friends are addicted to hard drugs. In an interview, Aaron said that he considers it a real miracle that in his teenage years he did not get hooked on crack. Music helped him get out of a severe depression. Soon he joined a completely different company - Yates began to participate in street battles.
After graduating from high school, Aaron left home. In 1991, he gives the first impromptu concerts and is looking for his own style. With the first money - there were problems with drugs. Common sense and the desire to live a normal life prompted him to seek help and give up the addiction.
Creative path and music of Tech N9ne
Tech N9ne's professional career began when the rapper joined the Black Mafia team. He then continued on with the bands Nnutthowze and The Regime. Participation in the presented teams did not lead the singer to the expected success. Despite this, he gained his first experience on professional sites.
His work and musical experiments were closely followed by the late Tupac Shakur. Aaron, who skillfully mixed together recitative with funk, rock and jazz, did not fit into the generally accepted standards. This prevented me from joining the rap scene and signing a contract with at least some recording studio.
Opening of the Strange Music label
Aaron took a chance and started his own label. His brainchild was called Strange Music. The first commercial success came only at the beginning of the "zero". It was then that the premiere of the LP Anghellic took place. It is interesting that the record survived in the style of horror-core. With the release of the collection, the situation has changed radically.
Tek Nine began to be called the king of fast reading. The track Speed Of Sound is especially valuable, where Aaron proofreads more than nine syllables per second.
Tech N9ne didn't aim for massive fame. Over and over again, he never tired of repeating that he prefers to remain in the "shadow" of popularity. He positioned himself as an underground rap artist. He cannot be fully called an underground artist, since the rapper's tracks are actively used in films, TV series, computer games, on shows and radio.
The rapper's compositions are filled with philosophical reflections on the meaning of life, death, otherworldly forces.
Depressive themes are felt in the singer's compositions. To enjoy the melancholic and even mystical mood of Aaron, it is enough to listen to the KOD LP, which was presented in 2009.
The track Leave Me Alone, which was included in the album, brought the rapper an MTV award.
Tek Nine's subsequent albums turned out to be not so gloomy and dark, so they are most likely better attributed to commercial projects. The fact that his compositions found a great response from the public made the singer go in search of a new sound. Special effects, which was presented in 2015, gave fans a new sound and fresh emotions.
The rapper's discography includes almost 50 collections. This fifty includes: full-length long-plays, maxi-singles, mini-albums and works recorded with other bands and artists.
Details of the rapper's personal life
The rapper got married in the mid-90s. His wife was the charming Lekoya Lejeune. The couple lived together for 10 happy years. The woman gave birth to two daughters and a son by Aaron. After 10 years of living together, Lekoya and Aaron decided to leave. They have not officially divorced.
Only in 2015, the former lovers decided to divorce in court. The trial went on for several years. For a long time, the former spouses could not share the property acquired in marriage, as a result, Aaron had to “unfasten” Lejeune a decent amount of money and part of the property.
Despite the fact that the divorce process of former lovers can hardly be called peaceful, Aaron is grateful to Lejeune for the children and 10 happy years of family life. He dedicated several tracks to her.
Interesting facts about the rapper
- He starred in more than ten films.
- The rapper loves the work of NWA, Bone Thugs, Rakim, Notorious BIG, Slick Rick, Public Enemy.
- He loves baseball and football.
- The rapper remains both a mainstream and underground artist who, according to his image, is opposed to the industry.
- In 2018, he revealed that he plans to retire in four years and end music.
Tech N9ne in the present time period
In 2018, the rapper's anniversary album was released. We are talking about the collection Planet. Recall that this is the 20th full-length LP in the rapper's discography. The record, as always, was mixed on the Strange Music label. In April of the same 2018, the rapper announces the start of The planet tour.
In 2020, the presentation of the rapper's new LP took place. The collection was called ENTERFEAR.
The presentation of the record was preceded by the single Outdone. In parallel with the release of the single, the premiere of the video took place, which gained a million views in a few days. In the same 2020, he took part in the recording of the song Lions by rapper Joey Cool.
It would seem that he presented the record - and it's time to relax. But, the novelties did not end there. In 2020, he presented the 7-track EP More Fear, consisting of compositions not included in the record. Tech said that he thinks the tracks are too cool and does not want them to "gather dust on the shelf."
Currently, the rapper continues to control the work of his own label. In 2021, he pleased with the release of videos for the tracks EPOD (featuring JL) and Let's Go (featuring Lil Jon, Twista, Eminem, Yelawolf).
