The Game (rapper)
The Game (born Jayceon Taylor on November 27, 1979 in Compton, California) is a rapper signed to Aftermath Entertainment.
Biography
The Game was born and raised in the Santana Blocc Crips neighborhood of Compton, California. His nickname is said to have been coined by his grandmother, who supposedly said that he was always "game" for anything. He lived in foster care in his late childhood and early adolescence; one of his songs apparently suggests that this was the result of his father's raping The Game's sister. Over the next several years, two of The Game's brothers (Jevon and Charles) were shot and killed. Meanwhile, his half brother (nicknamed "Big Fase Hunned") became an active member of the Cedar Block Piru Bloods gang. The Game eventually became active in Cedar Block Pirus as well -- a dangerous position for a resident of a Crip neighborhood.
At 6'4" The Game was a star basketball player at Compton High School. He received a basketball scholarship to Washington State University but was dismissed from the school during his freshman year over allegations of drug use. (As a young man he knew Baron Davis, now a player in the NBA. Davis is godfather to The Game's son, Harlem Caron Taylor.)
Back in California, The Game has said that he made a living "hustling" with his brother Big Fase Hunned, and his involvement in car thefts, drug dealing, and shootings prompted his mother to order him out of her house. He moved into a housing project nearby with Big Fase Hunned in 2000 and entered the local drug trade. On October 1, 2001, he was shot five times; he has said that as he recovered in the hospital he decided to mend his ways, put his past behind him, and pursue his dream of becoming a rapper. With his brother's encouragement, The Game says he studied rap albums by artists such as Notorious B.I.G., Snoop Dogg, Nas, and Jay-Z. Soon after, The Game was discovered by rap producer and former N.W.A member, Dr. Dre. Dre signed The Game to his Aftermath Entertainment label.
Although The Game was originally signed as an artist at Aftermath Entertainment, Interscope CEO Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre decided to have The Game work with 50 Cent and G-Unit. The arrangement was imagined to be mutually convenient, since the growing buzz about The Game would fuel interest in the burgeoning G-Unit act and raise its West Coast profile, and G-Unit would lend credibility to the ingenue. Dr. Dre and 50 Cent were producers on The Game's debut album, The Documentary. The album debuted at the number one spot on Billboard music charts with hit singles such as "How We Do," "Hate It or Love It," and "Dreams."
Although The Game originally wanted to title his album Nigga Wit' An Attitude - Volume 1, an injunction filed at the request of Easy-E's widow prevented him from using N.W.A.'s name in the album title.
Feuds
See Hip-Hop Rivalries for more information.
The Game has a number of rivals, including Suge Knight and Death Row Records, Memphis Bleek and Jay-Z of Roc-A-Fella Records, Yukmouth, Joe Budden, and even his producer, 50 Cent.
Joe Budden
50 Cent criticized Budden's album for "lacking street credibility." Joe Budden took offense and released various insults directed at G-Unit. On a mixtape in early 2004, Budden attacked a G-Unit track that featured The Game. During 2004, The Game made several records dissing Joe Budden, notoriously the track "Buddens." The Game threatened Joe Budden and supposedly flew to New York to confront him. Joe Budden mocked The Game's appearance on the dating game show "Change of Heart" in which he sported a tongue ring. On his web site, The Game defended his embarrassing appearance on the show, saying that he was young and needed the money. Later, at a party in New York, Budden and the Game mutually announced their intention to stop making hostile records about each other, but The Game has subsequently suggested in songs and videos that he won the feud.
Yukmouth
A video surfaced on the Internet in early 2004 in which Yukmouth appeared in a studio with rapper Domination, who was making a disrespectful song aimed at G-Unit. At the end of the clip, Yukmouth mocks The Game's tongue ring (see above). In October 2004, The Game fired back with a record about Yukmouth titled "I Got a Million on It." The track sampled the beat (the Luniz track "I Got 5 on It") that Yukmouth is famous for using. Yukmouth responded with two tracks and a music video featuring an impersonator of The Game. Both songs referred to the Change of Heart and tongue ring incidents, and Yukmouth also claimed that The Game had been slapped by Suge Knight -- a rumor supposedly started by Daz Dillinger. The Game responded on his website, saying that if Suge Knight had ever touched him, he would put him "6 feet under." In February 2005, Yukmouth released a mixtape called "All Out War," attacking The Game on several tracks. The two buried the hatchet later in 2005 and even recorded a song together.
Death Row
Dr. Dre's old nemesis Suge Knight has an ongoing feud with The Game. After the 2005 BET Awards, associates of Death Row had their invitations to a party hosted by Ciara rescinded. Supposedly, a member of Death Row had tried to steal The Game's chain. This feud has persisted in spite of the so-called West Coast Peace Treaty. The Game stated on his Black Wall Street web site that he dislikes Suge Knight because of "the lives he has endangered." In Miami for the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards, Suge Knight was shot and wounded at Kanye West's party by an unknown gunman; The Game vigorously denied involvement in the shooting, but the incident renewed efforts to pacify hip hop feuds and The Game has consequently been discouraged from attending certain events in hopes of averting retaliation.
Roc-A-Fella and Jay-Z
This feud grew out of an earlier rivalry with Memphis Bleek (affiliated with Roc-A-Fella), a feud that itself began because the record label to which The Game belonged before signing to Aftermath -- Get Low, led by JT Tha Bigga Figga -- sounds similar to Memphis Bleek's label -- Dirty Get Low. Consequently, The Game attacked Memphis Bleek on many tracks. Moreover, in "Westside Story," The Game says that he "don't do button-up shirts or drive Maybachs," naming two of Jay-Z's interests. The Game stated that he respects Jay-Z and actually was dissing Ja Rule, but on Bleek's album 534, Jay-Z is featured on the track "Dear Summer" and uses the word "game" frequently. The Game apparently felt that Jay-Z was attacking him and made several remarks about Jay-Z, Memphis Bleek, Beanie Sigel, and Roc-A-Fella Records in an impromptu song at a concert in Amsterdam. Jay-Z, meanwhile, insisted the "game" references in "Dear Summer" were just about the rap game itself, not the rapper. The Game and Jay-Z have since made amends, although The Game has continued dissing Memphis Bleek and the Young Gunz, such as by calling them "Old Gunz" on the "Ghost Unit" mixtape.
50 Cent and G-Unit
The Game was made a member of G-Unit after signing to Aftermath, but after The Documentary was released, 50 Cent announced on the Hot 97 radio station that he was dropping The Game from label and clique. 50 Cent attacked The Game's loyalty, claiming that the latter had refused to participate in G-Unit's feuds with Nas, Jadakiss, and Fat Joe, and that The Game had not given 50 proper credit for his role in the production and marketing of The Documentary. During the Hot 97 interview, the two rappers' entourages fought outside the radio station's offices and a member of The Game's posse was shot and wounded.
Several weeks later, the rappers officially put an end to the disagreement between one another and donated money to charitable causes. However, on June 5, 2005, The Game dissed G-Unit several times during Hot 97's Summer Jam concert at Giants Stadium in New Jersey, at one point calling out "G-Unot" -- a motto that he has also printed and sold on clothing. The insults culminated in the onstage appearance of an individual in a rat costume with a G-Unit tank top. The rat supposedly represented 50 Cent, who had been accused of being a "rat" (a snitch) by rappers such as Fat Joe and Jadakiss. In masquerade fashion, the rat mascot was then beaten down by members of The Black Wall Street. The Game finished his set by tossing his G-Unit chain into the crowd.
Later in summer 2005, The Game released "300 Bars and Runnin'", a 18-minute diss of G-Unit that attacks each member of the crew in turn, except for fellow West Coast rapper Spider-Loc. 50 Cent responded with his video "Piggybank," in which he depicts The Game as Mr. Potato Head. Tony Yayo mentioned 300 Bars said that he hasn't listened to it because it is "too long.".
Benzino
The Game stated on "Don't Need Your Love" that he dislikes The Source, and he also recorded a scathing freestyle rap with Malice, a white rapper from Compton, responding to the long-standing feud between Benzino and Eminem and taking Eminem's side. Benzino has replied on the song "Look Into My Eyes" his reply to Eminem's "Toy Soldiers".
The Radio One incident
On January 25, 2005, while promoting his debut album, The Game was in Washington, D.C., with his manager, Jimmy Henchmen. They were being interviewed on WKYS-FM by DJ Zxulu and by the Hip Hop Zone's Kwasi Jones. A comment made by Zxulu about the earpiece Henchmen was wearing started a confrontation with 20 members of The Game's entourage. Zxulu and Jones were injured and hospitalized. The incident at the radio station caused Radio One to ban The Game's music from its stations in major markets. The ban was lifted after The Game and his Black Wall Street group issued an apology to the radio station. The remix of the single "Hate It or Love It" featured The Game rapping, "I'm rap's MVP/Don't make me remind ya'll what happened in D.C." Jones apparently sued The Game (also naming rapper/producers Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, and Eminem in the suit) for $280 million over the song and the incident itself, but the suit was thrown out and never came to trial. Prince George's County authorities filed assault and battery charges against The Game.
Unity among rivals
The Game, Steve Harvey, and various representatives of California's rap cliques formed a West Coast "peace treaty" supposedly ending the rivalry between Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and Suge Knight that began when Dre left Death Row Records. Although none of these individuals attended the discussions, The Game represented Dre and Harvey represented Knight.
While on tour
The Game and Snoop Dogg jointly promoted the "How The West Was Won Tour." They made a stop in Seattle and performed at the Auburn White River Amphitheatre. A supposed fan named Richard Monroe came onstage and approached Snoop Dogg, setting off a brawl between 12 members of Snoop Dogg and The Game's bodyguards. The incident was captured on a home video that appears to show Monroe leaning his arm on Snoop Dogg's shoulder during a performance of the song "Gin and Juice." The bodyguards respond by wrestling Monroe to the floor and repeatedly punching and kicking the fan. Some members of the audience claim that Snoop Dogg invited fans onstage to perform with him, and there are other reports that The Game punched or kicked Monroe during the incident. Representatives of the venue have defended the performers' bodyguards, stating that the safety of the performers is always a high priority and that fans are not permitted on stage.
More feuds
In 2005, The Game's former mentor JT Tha Bigga Figga released some of The Game's old material on his Get Low imprint, apparently without The Game's permission. While JT does hold the copyright to the recordings, The Game opposed the release and characterized it as an inappropriate attempt to cash in on another man's success.
The Game also attacked Compton rapper Guerilla Black for exploiting his rise to fuel his and other West Coast acts. Both rappers are represented by the same talent agency (Czar Management).
His appearance on Punk'd
In one of the MTV show's practical jokes, construction workers began repaving a driveway outside the studio where The Game was recording tracks for a new album. On leaving the studio building, The Game tossed a bench, a chair, and a broom onto the wet concrete in order to cross it. A series of events led to a Cadillac becoming stuck in the concrete.
The Origin Of 300 Bars and Runnin'
In mid-June 2005, The Game released a 18-minute-long diss song entitled 300 Bars and Runnin' (the title an homage to N.W.A.'s 100 Miles and Runnin' EP), addressing various enemies, notably Memphis Bleek, 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, Olivia, and Tony Yayo. On the track, The Game explicitly quells rumors of a growing beef between himself and Jay-Z ("That wasn't no subliminal, Jay"), though it is unclear whether or not the beef will stay squashed. The track's instrumention consists of several famous hip-hop beats, including Jay-Z's Dead Presidents, Takeover, and Dear Summer, The Blueprint 2, Eazy-E's Real Muthaphuckkin' G's, Mobb Deep's Shook Ones, 50 Cent's In Da Club, Kanye West's Diamonds (From Sierra Leone).
The Black Wall Street
The game started a label called The Black Wall Street Records with his half brother Big Fase 100. The label's name comes from the title of a book written by JT Tha Bigga Figga (head of Get Low Records) called Black Wall Street: The Next Generation of Independent Billionaires. The Black Wall Street label features artists Vita (formerly of Murder, Inc), Black Friday (rapper), Glasses Malone (a Crip), Cyssero, Life, and Producer Nu Jerzy Devil. In 2005, The Game signed on ex-Death Row Records artists Techniec and Eastwood. The Game himself is named as an artist on the label, although he is also signed to Aftermath Entertainment. The label is distributed by Interscope.
Discography
Albums
- Untold Story- (2004)
- The Documentary- (2005) #1 US, #7 UK, 4X platinum
- West Coast Resurrection- (2005)
- Untold Story, Vol. 2- (2005) #61 US
DVD
- The Documentary DVD - (2005)
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Album | |||
| US Hot 100 | US R&B/Hip-Hop | US Rap | UK | |||
| 2004 | "Westside Story" (feat. 50 Cent) | #93 | ?? | ?? | ?? | The Documentary |
| 2004 | "How We Do" (feat. 50 Cent) | #4 | #2 | #2 | #5 | The Documentary |
| 2005 | "Hate It or Love It" (feat. 50 Cent) | #2 | #1 (2 weeks) | #1 (4 weeks) | #4 | The Documentary |
| 2005 | "Dreams" | #32 | #12 | #5 | #8 | The Documentary |
| 2005 | "Put You on the Game" | - | #96 | - | - | The Documentary |
Guest appearances:
- "Playa's Only" (R. Kelly featuring The Game) - (2005) #65 US, #33 UK
- "MVP" (Mary J. Blige feat. The Game & 50 Cent) - (2005) #75 US
- "Crack Music" (Kanye West feat. The Game)