Uncle Reece Explained

Uncle Reece
Birth Name:	Maurice Hicks Jr.
Alias:	Uncle Reece
Birth Date:	February 14, 1984
Birth Place:	Savannah, Georgia
Origin:	Jacksonville, Florida
Instrument:	vocals, singer-songwriter
Genre:	Christian hip hop, Christian R&B, urban contemporary gospel, Soul, Reggae
Occupation:	Singer, songwriter
Years Active:	2012–present
Label:	Obed

Maurice Hicks Jr. (born February 14, 1984), who goes by the stage name Uncle Reece, is an American Christian hip hop musician. He released his first album, 2014's Bold, with Obed Music Group. This was a Billboard chart breakthrough release.

Early life

Uncle Reece was born Maurice Hicks Jr. on February 14, 1984, in Savannah, Georgia,^[1] to a father who served in the military, Maurice Hicks Sr. and his mother Cecilia Anita Hicks. He loves music.^[1] He graduated from Florida State University with an Associate degree in Mathematics.^[2]

Music career

His music career started in 2012, with the release of "Until I Pass Out" single on March 1 of that year,^[3] and it charted at No. 15 on the Hot Gospel Songs chart by Billboard.^[4] His second single, "I Cant' Help Myself", would chart at No. 19 on that chart and at No. 48 on the Hot Christian Songs. His first album, Bold, came out on June 3, 2014 on his own label Obed Music.^[5] This would chart on two Billboard charts, on the Christian Albums at No. 30 and on the Top Gospel Albums at No. 9.^[4] The album received a three and a half star out of five review by Dwayne Lacy of New Release Tuesday,^[6] and it comes "highly recommend[ed]" from Daniel Cody at Wade-O Radio.^[7] Rea Melissa Davis, writes for AllHipHop, how "Uncle Reece is quite the musical melting pot. With BOLD,Uncle Reece is not confined to the church, and there are no limits or boundaries to the way he can express his praise."^[8] He is nominated at the 30th Stellar Awards for the Rap Hip Hop Gospel CD of the Year and New Artist of the Year.^[9]

Discography

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Album details	Peak chart positions
US Chr^[10]	US Gos^[11]
Bold	Released: June 3, 2014 CD, digital download	30	9

Notes and References

1. Web site: Introducing: Uncle Reece. Kayode. Martins-Olowo. PraizHouse. March 8, 2015. June 19, 2012.
2. Web site: The Future: Uncle Reece. Kadeem. Lundy. The Shadow League. March 8, 2015. June 10, 2014.
3. Web site: Until I Pass Out – Single by Uncle Reece . New Release Tuesday. New Release Tuesday. March 8, 2015. March 1, 2012.
4. Web site: Uncle Reece: Awards. Billboard. AllMusic. March 8, 2015.
5. Web site: Bold by Uncle Reece. New Release Tuesday. New Release Tuesday. March 8, 2015. June 3, 2014.
6. Web site: An . Dwayne. Lacy. New Release Tuesday. March 8, 2015. June 11, 2014.
7. Web site: Album Review: Uncle Reece – 'Bold'. Wade-O Radio. Daniel. Cody. March 8, 2015 . May 29, 2014.
8. Web site: Uncle Reece Chooses to Be BOLD. AllHipHop. Rea Melissa. Davis. March 8, 2015. May 19, 2014.
9. Web site: 2015 N0MINEES: 30th Stellar Awards. Stellar Awards. Central City Productions. March 8, 2015. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20121015054243/http://www.thestellarawards.com/nominees.html. October 15, 2012.
10. Uncle Reece – Chart History : Christian Albums. Billboard. . March 8, 2015.
11. Uncle Reece – Chart History : Gospel Albums. Billboard. . March 8, 2015.