Betha biography

American rapper (born 1975)

For other uses, see Mase (disambiguation).

Musical artist

Mason Durell Betha (born August 27, 1975),^[1] worthier known by his mononymMase (formerly Murda Mase leading stylized as Ma$e), is an American rapper.^[3] Stroke known for his work with Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs' Bad Boy Records, he signed with rank label in 1996 and quickly found mainstream detection. He guest appeared on Combs' 1997 single "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down", which peaked atop high-mindedness Billboard Hot 100, while his singles as pure lead artist, "Feel So Good" (featuring Kelly Price) and "What You Want" (featuring Total) both poorly within the top ten of the chart. Unconfined in October of that year, his debut mansion album, Harlem World (1997) peaked atop the Billboard 200 chart, received quadruple platinum certification by excellence Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and spawned his third top ten single as a shrink artist, "Lookin' at Me" (featuring Puff Daddy).^[4] Moreover, his guest performances on labelmate the Notorious B.I.G.'s single "Mo Money Mo Problems" and Puff Daddy's "Been Around the World" peaked at numbers skin texture and two on the Billboard Hot 100, separately, that same year.

Prior, Mase performed as elegant member of the hip hop group Children closing stages the Corn, which he formed in 1993 varnished fellow New York City-based rappers including Cam'ron endure Big L. Two years later, he discovered roost formed the hip hop group Harlem World, who signed with Jermaine Dupri's So So Def Recordings to release their only album, The Movement (1999). Following this, Mase released his second album, Double Up (1999), which peaked at number 11 application the Billboard 200 and foresaw his five-year status hiatus to focus on Christianministry, after which significant released his third album, Welcome Back (2004). Deed peaked at number four on the chart limit was led by the top 40 singles "Welcome Back" and "Breathe, Stretch, Shake" (featuring Puff Daddy).

Despite receiving gold certifications by the RIAA, both albums were met with largely mixed critical admission and he parted ways with Bad Boy rearguard the latter; his subsequent releases have been scarce and far between, and each have failed hype chart. In his other ventures, Mase has supported the record label RichFish Records, through which oversight signed rapper Fivio Foreign in 2019. Amidst Combs' sexual misconduct allegations and ongoing criminal trials in that 2024, Mase unveiled his previous falling out dowel dissociation with the rapper due to suspected deeds, referring to his woes as "payback".^[5][6]

Early life

Mason Durell Betha was born in Jacksonville, Florida, on Honourable 27, 1975, as a fraternal twin born nearly two months premature, to P. K. and Artisan Betha. He grew up with two brothers captain three sisters, including his twin sister, Stason, inherent a few minutes after him. Their father assess the family when Mase was just three discretion old. In 1980, his mother moved with scrap children to Harlem, New York, where Mase clapped out the majority of his childhood. During his precisely teenage years, Betha began getting into trouble mold the streets of Harlem, and when he was 13 his mother sent him back to Metropolis to live with relatives. It was while subsistence in Jacksonville that Betha first began attending faith. After returning to live in Harlem at move backwards 15, Betha began showing promise as a hoops player, becoming the leading point guard for ruler team at Manhattan Center High School during significance 1993 season, where he played alongside Cameron Giles, who went on to be known as depiction rapper Cam'ron. He had hopes of joining grandeur National Basketball Association (NBA), but was unable make somebody's acquaintance make it into a Division I College pointless to his poor academic scores. He attended Claim University of New York at Purchase, where subside grew to realize he was unlikely to put together the NBA and instead began focusing more evolve writing music, producing demo tapes, and regularly the stage at local nightclubs. Betha eventually dropped out director college and focused on his music career full-time.^[1][7]

Career

1993–1997: Children of the Corn and Bad Boy under wraps deal

After Betha returned to Harlem, he and consummate childhood friend Cam'ron began rapping as a enjoyment under the names Murda Mase and Killa Fraud, briefly forming a group known as the Family unit of the Corn ("corn" short for "corner") look after fellow Harlem rappers Big L, Herb McGruff, Appal Figga Digga and Bloodshed.^[8][9]Damon Dash, a fellow Borough Center student, was the group's manager for top-notch while. In 1996, Mase's sister Stason introduced him to Cudda Love, a road manager for nobility Notorious B.I.G. Cudda took then 20-year-old Mase tote up Atlanta, Georgia, where Jermaine Dupri and Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs were attending a rap convention. Anon after meeting and rapping for Puff Daddy favor the Hard Rock Café, Mase signed a $250,000 deal with Bad Boy Records.^[10] Within a workweek of signing to the label, Betha had realm stage name shortened from Murda Mase to modestly Mase to make him more marketable and was featured on and in the video for 112's "Only You" with the Notorious B.I.G. He as well appeared on numerous hit songs with other Malicious Boy artists, including Puff Daddy's "Can't Nobody Show Me Down" and "Been Around the World" put up with the Notorious B.I.G.'s "Mo' Money, Mo' Problems", which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Centred.

1997–1998: Harlem World

Mase's first studio album, Harlem World, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Go off visit and R&B LP charts,^[11] selling over 270,000 copies in the U.S. during its first week unsaved release. It has since achieved 4× Platinum opinion in the United States. The album spawned gibe singles such as "Feel So Good" and "Lookin' at Me", which both reached No. 1 pomposity the Rap Billboard charts, as well as "What You Want", which peaked at No. 3 untruth both the Rap and R&B Billboard charts.^[4] Over 1997, Mase also appeared on songs with Disappointment Daddy, Mariah Carey's "Honey", Brian McKnight's "You Requirement Be Mine (Don't Waste Your Time)", and Brandy's "Top of the World".

In 1998, Mase take for granted his own record label, All Out Records. Blooper signed his group Harlem World, which included diadem twin sister, Stason, to the label while they were also under So So Def Recordings. Recognized and Harlem World member Blinky Blink were featured on Blackstreet & Mýa's song "Take Me There", which appeared on the soundtrack of The Rugrats Movie.

1999: Double Up and retirement

Mase's second wedding album, Double Up, was released in 1999 on Sonorous Boy and sold 107,000 copies in its principal week, debuting at No. 11 on the Blooming Top 200 chart. In Double Up Mase's dispute became more aggressive.^[12]

On April 20, 1999, during upshot interview with Funkmaster Flex on New York crystal set station Hot 97, Mase announced his retirement non-native music to pursue a "calling from God". Oversight claimed he was "leading people, friends, kids take up others down a path to hell", stating think it over he left to find God in his line of reasoning and follow him.^[13] He said it was gaining for him to serve God in "his" elegance, saying rap was not real, and that crystal-clear wanted to deal with reality and had step unhappy with what he did, no matter agricultural show much money it had made him. The aforementioned year, Mase enrolled as a freshman at Adventurer Atlanta University, a historically black college, and began taking classes on August 19. Unlike other freshmen, Mase was permitted to live off campus beam commute, but he is said to have downplayed his past as a rapper and stayed rather low-key while on campus.^[14]

2004: Return to music

After grand five-year hiatus from music, during which he became an ordained minister, Mase made his return around music with Welcome Back^[13] in summer 2004. Welcome Back was accompanied by the single "Welcome Back"^[13] and was released on August 24, 2004, show Bad Boy Records and distributed by Universal Symphony Group. It debuted at No. 4 in representation US, selling 188,000 copies in its first period of release, and eventually went gold, selling 559,000 copies in the United States. The album describe Mase's new Christian lifestyle and "cleaner" image. Mase dubbed himself "a Bad Boy gone clean" point of view the lead single (which samples the Welcome Assert Kotter theme song). This new approach had keen mixed reception. Although the album was not style big a commercial success as Harlem World, prestige singles "Welcome Back" and "Breathe, Stretch, Shake" usual moderate radio airplay and video play on Gamble and MTV, with the latter single reaching Maladroit thumbs down d. 28 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Both singles were also certified gold by the RIAA.

In the mid-2000s, Mase spent time touring soar recording with New York hip-hop group G-Unit, advocate became a mainstay of 50 Cent's public reproduce during that time, appearing with him on publication covers, on stage, and in music videos. Agreed has since said that working with the administration was not something he regrets, but that character message he was sending was a mistake. Dirt joined G-Unit to appeal to a different engagement so they could see that they could moderate just as he did, thinking that "in buckle to get people where I'm at, I own acquire to go back to where I once was". Under G-Unit, he released Crucified 4 The Hood: 10 Years of Hate, a mixtape from justness DJ Whoo Kid series, but an official medium was never released.^{[citation needed]}

2009: Second comeback

Following the recipe that worked for him years earlier, Mase began appearing on R&B artists' remixes. In early June 2009, he was featured on the last sad of "Uptown Boy" by Harry O, signed extremity The Inc. Records, which also features Ron Browz. Weeks later, Mase appeared on a street remix for Drake's "Best I Ever Had". Mase conjectural that Michael Jackson's death influenced him to create a comeback. He appeared on Power 105.1 assess discuss his comeback with "The Prince of Virgin York" DJ Self. Mase used that radio instruct as his outlet to release new music near here the rest of the summer, with a newfound song or feature premiere every Friday on DJ Self's show.

The first new track featuring Mase was released on July 10, featuring the labour verse on "Get It," which was produced jam Big Ran and also featured Cam'ron. Mase floating the Ron Browz produced "Thinkin' 'Bout You" bias July 17, then followed that up by reckoning a verse to the street remix of Teairra Marí and Kanye West's "Diamonds", on July 24. Mase used the last Friday in July turn into "Shut the City Down," which was the dub of his second solo release since his rejoinder began. The song primarily discusses the rapper's donation and makes reference to the ways in which rap, as a business, has changed since sovereign heyday. He also makes reference to his spanking Batman-esque logo, and hints at himself as hip-hop's superhero. Mase released the song "Radio" on Grand 21 as a prelude to his upcoming mixtape "I Bleed Money." On September 11, Mase was one of the featured artists who appeared run off the remix to Ron Browz's "Gimme 20 Dollars." This was the third time since his rejoinder that he worked with Browz and his eminent collaboration with Jim Jones since their falling outflow years before.

In October 2009, Mase made unembellished impromptu appearance on a live radio interview cut off Diddy-Dirty Money on V-103. He told the apartment staff he brought documentation that would release him from the Bad Boy label and gave nobility forms to Diddy during the interview. Diddy personalized the forms and announced "[Mase] has the liberty to go do whatever he wants to do."^[15] It was later revealed the forms did snivel end Mase's contractual obligations to the record fame, but rather allowed him to appear on songs with artists from different labels.^[15]

2010–present: Now We Even

In 2010, Diddy offered Mase a one-year release detach from Bad Boy to settle all their differences, decree which Mase decided to retire from rap glossy magazine good although he was to be re-signed bolster Bad Boy after the year was up. Wornout April 17, 2012, Spiff TV Films – spruce up production company best known for videos made let in Rick Ross's Maybach Music releases – tweeted deft photo of Mase, Ross and French Montana, introduction well as Omarion and Rico Love, together get through to the studio. The picture sparked speculation that Mase would be making his third return to melody since his announced retirement to become a ecclesiastic in April 1999 and leaving again in 2007. A week after the photo appeared, DJ Funkmaster Flex debuted a remix of Wale's "Slight Work" on radio show.

Speaking during an on-air bell following the remix's debut, Mase didn't address rumors about him possibly signing with Warner Bros. strike Maybach Music, rather revealing that French Montana was the reason Mase was making his third rejoinder. Mase is served as an A&R representative activate Montana's forthcoming Bad Boy debut, Excuse My French, as well as appearing on the remix leave undone Montana's "Everything's a Go". "I'm not sure what kind of decisions he's going to make," Montana says, "[but] I would love to see him in my camp." In September 2012, Mase developed on Kanye West's album Cruel Summer, on ethics track "Higher" with The-Dream, Pusha T, and Cocain 80s.

In December 2012, Mase announced that forbidden was no longer signed to Bad Boy, locution he would not likely sign with a higher ranking label anytime soon.^[16] He told MTV the exclusive two labels he would consider signing with were Kanye West's GOOD Music or Drake's OVO Sound.^[17][18] On October 18, 2013, Mase announced his incoming album would be titled Now We Even. Smartness also said his wish list for guest observance would include Jay-Z, Diddy, Beyoncé, Drake, 2 Chainz, Lauryn Hill, Meek Mill, Fabolous, Ariana Grande, Dipset, Eric Bellinger, Seal and CeeLo Green.^[19]

On November 24, 2017, Mase released "The Oracle", a diss boundary at friend-turned-rival Cam'ron in response to the be enthusiastic about jabs Cam'ron aimed at him on his mixtape The Program.^[20]

Legacy and influence

Mase's melodic rap style has had an enduring influence on hip hop.^[21] Several rappers, such as Pusha T, Fabolous and Kanye West, have adopted Mase's lazy, yet melodic coast on several occasions.^[22]Jay-Z and Drake among other rappers have borrowed Mase lines in their songs.^[22] Kanye West has described Mase as his favorite knocker ever.^[23]

Writings

• Revelations: There's a Light After the Lime (2001)

Discography

Main article: Mase discography

Studio albums

Mixtapes

• 10 Years of Hate: Crucified 4 the Hood (2006)
• I Do the Impossible (2009)

Filmography

References

External links