Freestyle Fellowship is an American hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. It consists of Aceyalone, Myka 9, P.E.A.C.E., and Self Jupiter.[1] The group was a prominent part of the Good Life Cafe collective, and are part of the Project Blowed collective.[2]

History

While in high school in the late 1980s, Aceyalone, Myka 9, and Self Jupiter formed the short-lived MC Aces, a precursor to Freestyle Fellowship, at the Good Life Cafe in Los Angeles, California.[3] Subsequently, former high school friend P.E.A.C.E. was added to form Freestyle Fellowship.[3]

Freestyle Fellowship released the debut studio album, To Whom It May Concern..., in 1991.[4] In 1993, the group released the second studio album, Innercity Griots.[5]

Freestyle Fellowship went on hiatus due to the incarceration of Self Jupiter.[6] In 1998, the group reunited to record the Shockadoom EP, which would be released in 2002.[7] The group released Temptations in 2001,[8] and The Promise in 2011.[9]

Style and influences

"My Fantasy"

Trained in the art of freestyling, members of the group deliver complex, intricate rhymes atop bebop-influenced beats. The track "My Fantasy" showcases Aceyalone's rapid delivery, twisting rhymes, and stream-of-consciousness lyrics.

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According to Los Angeles Times, Freestyle Fellowship incorporates "jazz rhythms into its raps, which have the improvisational ebb and flow and the random explosiveness of a jazz solo."[10] In a 1993 interview with Los Angeles Times, the group's member Myka 9 said, "What we are is liberators, liberating rap from its R&B/funk structures--that 4/4 (time) prison."[10]

The group has been described by LA Weekly as "the astral jazz-cracked geniuses of sherm-strafed South Central, rapping with caged bird cadences about sleeping on park benches, biblical books, and gangsta rap carpetbaggers."[11]

Discography

Studio albums

• To Whom It May Concern... (1991)
• Innercity Griots (1993)
• Temptations (2001)
• The Promise (2011)

Remix albums

• Version 2.0: To Whom It May Concern... Remixed by J. Sumbi (2001)

Mixtapes

• Power Plant (2011)

EPs

• Shockadoom (2002)

Singles

• "Bullies of the Block" (1992)
• "Hot Potato" (1993)
• "Can You Find the Level of Difficulty in This?" (1999)
• "Sex in the City" (2001)
• "Temptations" b/w "Ghetto Youth" (2002)

Guest appearances

• Nobody - "Planets Ain't Aligned" from Soulmates (2000)
• Abstract Rude & Tribe Unique - "Heavyweights Round 4" from P.A.I.N.T. (2001)

Compilation appearances

• "Hot" from Project Blowed (1994)
• "Can You Find the Level of Difficulty in This? (Hive Remix)" from Defcon 4 (2000)
• "Ummm" from We Came from Beyond (2001)
• "Crazy" from Constant Elevation (2002)

References

External links

• Freestyle Fellowship at AllMusic
• Freestyle Fellowship discography at Discogs