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Tonedeff
Birth nameAnthony Rojas
Born (1978-12-14) December 14, 1978 (age 45)
OriginNewport News, Virginia, United States
GenresHip hop, Alternative
Occupation(s)Rapper, producer, visual artist
Instrument(s)Vocals, piano
Years active1993 to present
LabelsQN5 Music
Websitewww.tonedeff.com

Tonedeff (born Anthony Rojas on December 14, 1978) is an American rapper, producer, and singer-songwriter from Queens, New York City.

Known for his breathless vocal performances, rapid-fire delivery, which is alleged to be among the fastest in hip hop history, is said by critics as having "the best flows" of the current generation of emcees.[1] Having developed a reputation as a self-sufficient artist who has been known to design his own album covers and edit his own videos,[2] he is also known to sing and play piano on his tracks, as well as self-produce them.

Tonedeff first gained national recognition on the underground hip hop scene after winning a string of distinguished rap battles (i.e. "Braggin Rites"), opening shows for Common, Rahzel, The Beatnuts, Royce Da 5'9", and Brand Nubian.[citation needed] He also appeared as a guest artist on several 12" releases, including the controversial KRS-ONE diss track "Clear Em Out" criticizing Nelly.[3][4]

He has appeared on most of the Cunninlynguists albums, including Will Rap For Food, SouthernUnderground, A Piece of Strange, Strange Journey Volume One and Oneirology but he did not appear in Dirty Acres. He appeared on Immortal Technique's "Peruvian Cocaine" (on the album Revolutionary Vol. 2), playing the role of an American drug distributor in an elaborate drug trade conspiracy. He has also provided comedic skits for artists such as Masta Ace and Pumpkinhead.

Tonedeff founded the QN5 Music label in 1997 and releases music independently, with a roster that includes himself, CunninLynguists, Substantial, PackFM, Mr. SOS, Kokayi, and Extended Famm as well as a production roster that includes himself, Kno, Domingo, Deacon The Villain and Kokayi. He continues to perform and release music internationally today.

Biography

Early life

Born to a Cuban mother and a Colombian father in Newport News, Virginia, Tonedeff wrote his first songs at the age of nine.[5] He formed a group named "The RBM Crew" in 1989 with three schoolmates shortly after relocating to Miami, Florida, from Chicago and began recording and performing locally at talent shows and showcases.[citation needed] In 1993, The RBM Crew was offered a development deal by Warner Black Music and began recording the ultimately uncompleted Calligraphy. They disbanded when the label folded in 1995.

Arsenio Hall Show

At the age of sixteen, Tonedeff appeared on The Arsenio Hall Show as a performer, taking the grand prize of the show's national talent search called "Flava of the Future".[6] He alludes to this event in his song "Morethanthis".

After fielding offers from several major labels, Tonedeff decided instead to pursue a college degree in illustration and multimedia - taking a break from his music career until taking up recording of his debut solo project The Monotone EP during his time at Full Sail Center for the Recording Arts in Orlando, Florida.[7]

QN5 Music

Upon moving to New York City, Tonedeff founded the record label QN5 Music in 1997 as a multi-genre outlet for different artists. After a rocky start with the release of The Monotone EP, the label was put on hold for several years until refocusing as a hip hop specialty imprint in 2001 by recruiting artists such as CunninLynguists and PackFM and production teams, which boasted the talents of hip hop producers Domingo & Elite.

On March 5, 2005, Tonedeff's QN5 Music was the first hip hop label to release its own podcast. It claims to be the first record label podcast ever, but there is some debate as to if major label Virgin beat them to the punch. The show, called WQN5, featured commentary from label artists Session, PackFM, Substantial and Tonedeff as well as guest appearances by Wordsworth.

Extended F@mm

In 2002, Tonedeff joined with QN5 artists Substantial, PackFM, and Session to form Extended F@mm, which released the album Happy Fuck You Songs. The group described the album as an exercise in "conceptual posse cuts" with songs ranging from the Tetris-themed "Line Drop" to bad cell phone connections in "Celly".

On the success of the Happy Fuck You Songs, he made his first appearance in The Source with Extended Famm in 2003 and appeared in a commercial for Hip Hop Week on MTV. He has also been featured in magazines such as Mugshot, Rime and Scratch.

Lollapalooza

Tonedeff received national recognition when selected to perform at the August 2006 Lollapalooza festival in Chicago. He earned his nomination by garnering some of the highest vote totals throughout the "Last Band Standing" competition and finally selected as the winner after four rounds of celebrity-panel judging (which included Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell of Jane's Addiction) and a live-performance round.[8] Other performers at the event were Common, Kanye West, and Gnarls Barkley.

Music journalist Jon Pareles of The New York Times wrote about Tonedeff's performance at Lollapalooza, noting that Tonedeff "has so many variations of rhythm and tone that his songs are enjoyable even without a rewind button to find out what they meant."[9]

Chico & The Man

Tonedeff's next project is a joint-collaboration with the hip hop producer Kno (of CunninLynguists) titled Chico & The Man. On this project, Kno is expected to handle the entirety of the production duties with Tonedeff to focus on the rapping portions.

The song "No Hope (f/ Deacon)" was released on the QN5 Music mixtape Asterisk:Three in 2004. The solemn track is a dedication to a friend of both artists who was murdered in a store robbery in 2004 in Lexington, Kentucky. The duo released their second official song, "My Lady", on the Asterisk:Four mixtape in March 2007.

Kno has said that the album has been pushed back to spring 2010 because of his participation in the CunninLynguists United States tour in late 2009 and because of paperwork for Tonedeff.[citation needed] At the QN5 Megashow 2011, Tonedeff announced that the album would come out on December 13, 2011; he also previewed the first video for the project.

On November 5, 2011, Kno announced on the QN5 forum that Chico & the Man would be pushed back to an indefinite date. [10]

Discography

Albums

  • The Monotone (EP)
  • Hyphen
    • Released: August 15, 2001
    • Label: QN5 Music/Yosumi
  • Extended F@mm - Happy Fuck You Songs
    • Released: November 24, 2002
    • Label: QN5 Music/Freshchest
  • Underscore
    • Released: July 16, 2003
    • Label: QN5 Music/Freshchest
  • Archetype
    • Released: April 5, 2005
    • Label: QN5 Music/Freshchest
  • Cold.Killed.Collected. (2005-2010)
    • Released: June 1, 2011
    • Label: QN5 Music
  • Untitled EP as Peter Anthony Red
    • Release Date: May 2012
    • Label: Quintic
  • Chico & The Man
    • Release Date: TBA
    • Label: QN5 Music
  • Hyperrealism as Peter Anthony Red
    • Release Date: TBA
    • Label: Quintic
  • Polymer
    • Release Date: TBA
    • Label: QN5 Music

Singles

  • "Ridiculous"
    • Released: 2000
    • Label: Tru Criminal Records
    • B-Side: "Head's Up"
  • "Politics"
    • Released: 2005
    • Label: QN5 Music/Freshchest
    • B-Side: "Disappointed"
  • "Bang"
    • Released: 2011
    • Label: QN5 Music

Awards

  • 2000: Braggin Rites MC Battle Champion
  • 2000: Hookt (aka Da Cypha) Battle Champion
  • 2001: The Source Unsigned Hype Battle Finalist
  • 2006: Lollapalooza's Last Band Standing Winner

References

  1. ^ http://www.thestateofhiphop.com/tonedeff-interview.html
  2. ^ http://www.abcdrduson.com/interviews/feature-vo.php?id=174
  3. ^ KRS-One feat. Tonedeff b/w High & The Mighty - 'Clear 'Em Out b/w Rumble' (12" Vinyl Single Record)
  4. ^ KRS-One On Nelly: 'I Can Slap Him Around For Days'
  5. ^ http://www.latinrapper.com/featurednews38.html
  6. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcK2xDn8VqI
  7. ^ http://www.sixshot.com/articles/13024/
  8. ^ http://qn5.com/blog/entry/recap-tonedeff-last-band-standing-finals/
  9. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/ref/arts/music/lollapalooza2006-journal.html
  10. ^ "My Decision On Chico & The Man".

Interviews

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