Freestyle Fellowship Explained

Freestyle Fellowship
Background:	group_or_band
Origin:	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genre:	Hip hop
Current Members:	Aceyalone Myka 9 P.E.A.C.E. Self Jupiter
Past Members:	J. Sumbi M.D. Himself

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

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)

Notes and References

Web site: 35. De La Soul "Transmitting Live From Mars" (1989) / Freestyle Fellowship "Sunshine Men" (1991). Complex. Jesse. Serwer. October 16, 2012. August 11, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20121019080331/http://www.complex.com/music/2012/10/the-77-best-rock-samples-in-rap-history/de-la-soul-transmitting-live-from-mars. October 19, 2012.
Web site: It's Your Anniversary: Underground hip-hop Project Blowed is 17. Los Angeles Times. Jeff. Weiss. December 15, 2011. August 11, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130619220103/https://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2011/12/its-your-anniversary-underground-hip-hop-hub-project-blowed-turns-17.html. June 19, 2013.
Book: Goldsmith, Melissa Ursula Dawn. Melissa Ursula Dawn. Goldsmith. Anthony J.. Fonseca. Hip Hop Around the World: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. 2019. 2–3. Aceyalone.
Web site: Today In Hip-Hop: Freestyle Fellowship Releases 'To Whom It May Concern...'. XXL. B.J.. Steiner. October 5, 2013. April 17, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20151224233710/https://www.xxlmag.com/news/hip-hop-today/2013/10/today-hip-hop-freestyle-fellowship-releases-may-concern/. December 24, 2015.
Web site: Today in Hip-Hop: Freestyle Fellowship Drop 'Innercity Griots'. XXL. Sidney. Madden. April 28, 2015. April 17, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20150712171906/https://www.xxlmag.com/news/2015/04/today-hip-hop-freestyle-fellowship-drop-innercity-griots/. July 12, 2015.
Web site: Knowledge of self: Self Jupiter talks Freestyle Fellowship reunion, returning to school, and the West Coast underground. Los Angeles Times. Jeff. Weiss. June 18, 2010. August 11, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20120620045328/http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/06/knowledge-of-self-selfjupiter-talks-freestyle-fellowship-reunion-going-back-to-school-and-west-coast.html. June 20, 2012.
Web site: Freestyle Fellowship: Shockadoom. Pitchfork. Sam. Chennault. July 14, 2002. August 11, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20140304044900/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/3190-shockadoom/. March 4, 2014.
Web site: Freestyle Fellowship: Temptations. Pitchfork. Brad. Haywood. February 12, 2002. August 11, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20160802015605/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/3189-temptations/. August 2, 2016.
Web site: New Release: Freestyle Fellowship: The Promise. Pitchfork. Tom. Breihan. July 25, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20151208075306/https://pitchfork.com/news/43291-new-release-freestyle-fellowship-the-promise/. December 8, 2015.
Web site: Liberating Rap With Jazz Sound : Freestyle Fellowship Adds Riffs to Rhymes. Los Angeles Times. Dennis. Hunt. June 29, 1993. May 22, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20190417084911/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-06-29-ca-8220-story.html. April 17, 2019.
Web site: Having Already Influenced Every Rapper You Like, Freestyle Fellowship Are Back. LA Weekly. Jeff. Weiss. September 27, 2011. May 22, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20150405034948/https://www.laweekly.com/music/having-already-influenced-every-rapper-you-like-freestyle-fellowship-are-back-2403051. April 5, 2015.