Royce da 5'9"
Template:Infobox musical artist 2
Ryan Montgomery (born July 5, 1977 in Detroit, Michigan), popularly known as Royce Da 5'9", an American rapper. Considered one of the most underrated MC's in the rap industry[citation needed], Royce has four full-length albums credited to his name, and is better known for his freestyling skills — purportedly not having lost a single rap battle. He refers to himself with the nickname "Royce Nickel Nine."
In 1999, the Detroit native, born Ryan Montgomery, introduced himself to the Hip-Hop world on “Bad Meets Evil,” a collaboration with none other than former rhyme partner, Eminem. Praised for his lyrical skill, respected by fellow MCs, and garnering much critical acclaim for his talent, Royce was branded “someone to watch” or the “next to blow.” Not surprising for the writer who penned Dr. Dre’s “The Message” from his multi-platinum Chronic 2001 LP. But the politics of the game soon rained on his parade. “When I signed my first deal, I had a huge budget, and that was all I knew. I wasn’t focused. It wasn’t until now that I learned how to be focused and how to do a great album without spending millions of dollars,” admits Royce, who not too long after his debut album was finished had a reality check.
After being signed to his first artist deal with Tommy Boy, then to a production deal through Sony/Columbia, and later to an independent deal with Koch Entertainment, Royce learned a valuable lesson. There’s no better label to be on than your own. “We’ve done the major label thing, we’ve done the small independent company thing, and it turned out that a lot of the legwork that they do, or that they take credit for, we can do ourselves. Only, we get a better rate per album,” he says proudly. “We are about to do what a lot of Southern artists have been doing on the low. We’re gonna generate the steam of a major artist, but we gon’ be making a lot of money doing it.”
Early career
Ryan Montgomery got his nickname "Royce" when he wore a chain with a R hanging that mimicked the Rolls Royce symbol. Back in high school, Royce and his best friend Jah Da 5'9"(also known as June and June Bug) began rapping and were the 2 shortest guys on the basketball team both standing at 5'9". This is where they originally got their names from. As an underground rap artist, Royce garnered hype with his successful underground hit "Boom". The DJ Premier-produced track was later found on the artist's debut album, Rock City. Royce hit a bump when the album was heavily bootlegged, it was released in the USA and quickly taken off the shelves to then be released in the UK doing fairly in album sales. A few tracks were removed, some new ones added in, a new cover as well was added and then re-released as Rock City 2.0. Despite Royce being hinted as a new protege to rap star Eminem, Em was only featured on one song of the album (Rock City), and was only in the chorus and speaking in the background. Eminem produces the original album, but not the v2.0.
A helpful boost to his career came when Rockstar Games hired the Game Records label on for the rap music radio station "Game FM" in Grand Theft Auto III. Several artists from the Label, including Agallah, Sean Price, Pretty Ugly, JoJo Pellegrino and Black Rob as well as Royce Da 5'9" were featured on "Game FM", a radio station inside the game itself. Royce himself contributed three singles: "We're Live (Danger)", "Spit Game", and "I'm The King", the latter of which was edited specifically for the game.
Royce formed a crew in the late 90's called D-Elite which included him self, Tre' Little, Billy Nix, Jah Da 5'9", Cut Throat/Cutty Mack and Cha Cha who is the only female of the group and is said to be to be Royce's little sister. The group appeared together on the original version of the album Rock City on a song titled D-Elite Part 2. This was the groups only commercial release as a whole.
Bad Meets Evil
Most of his recognition came from his association with longtime friend and collaborator Eminem. The two formed a duo called Bad Meets Evil (with Royce occupying the 'Bad' half, and Eminem the 'Evil' half). Bad Meets Evil produced a number of hits such as "Scary Movies", "Nuttin' To Do" and "Bad Meets Evil", the latter track appearing on Eminem's album The Slim Shady LP. Royce and Eminem, however, would prove to have a rocky relationship.
Although he and Eminem were mutual friends with Proof of Eminem's six-man D12 clique, Royce and another D12 member named Bizarre had beef early on. This however, was smoothed over.
In 1999 Royce contributed as a ghostwriter for Dr. Dre's album, 2001. He ghostwrote several tracks, including "The Message" and the original version of "Xxplosive"—titled "Way I Be Pimpin", which saw Dr. Dre rapping about pimping and getting money and Royce on the hook. But after being under Dre's wing for only a short time, his manager reportedly let slip to a reporter about the ghostwriting. When Royce refused to fire the man, who was a friend of his, his ties with Dre were severed, and "Xxplosive" was retouched to its current album version.
Current-Day
After the release of his 2005 album, Independent's Day, Royce has kept a low profile even though he had promised a second album in December of that year, produced by Nottz. Royce recently went on tour with Mobb Deep, is currently ghostwriting for Puff Daddy's new album [citation needed]. He also does touring rounds with his crew - The M.I.C - to promote them; and he will make an appearance on Canibus' next album as well [citation needed].
His new crew - M.I.C. (Make It Count) - is also the name of his independant record label. The M.I.C. members are as follows Royce, Juan, Kid Vicious (younger brother of Royce), June and Cutty Mack from the old D-Elite crew.
Disputes
Shady Records
In 2002, Royce would call Eminem and ask to be signed to Shady Records. Busy with his movie 8 Mile at the time, Eminem refused, but about a week later signed 50 Cent. Royce took this in stride, and even agreed to do the Anger Management Tour with his crew D-Elite. While on tour, D12 took offense to a line Royce had written: "Fuck Anger Management, I need someone to manage my anger."
They took the line to Eminem, and from there a series of misunderstandings escalated the beef. A barfight between D12 and D-Elite culminated in Eminem and Royce not speaking, and a rekindled beef between Royce and all of D12, including Proof. Detroit's radio stations were alive with the controversy, playing diss tracks back and forth which included "Smack Down"— D12 minus Eminem over 50 Cent's "Back Down" beat— and Royce's "Malcom X" over Capone-N-Noreaga's "Bang Bang" beat, featuring Tre Little, a member of D-Elite.
While Royce and Eminem never directly dissed each other, the rap world focused on their relationship, mostly overlooking the friction between Royce and Proof, who had been even closer friends. That beef continued for two years, during which Royce suffered from severe depression and a drinking problem, but released some of his most recognized material. For instance, his dark sophomore LP Death Is Certain, which garnered favorable reviews from many publications and critics. (See links section for reference).
In 2003, his conflict with Proof finally boiled over in a confrontation on the streets of Detroit. The two rappers' entourages gathered around them, as they spoke heatedly and brandished guns. The police arrested them, and they spent the night in neighboring cells, working out their differences. The two have since ended their beef and have been in the studio. This situation is addressed in Beef 2, the second in a series of documentaries about beef in the rap industry.
Other
Royce had a small dispute with Ruff Ryders over the line "Royce, Reef, Double R" on a song, and 70s disco band Rose Royce, wherein they accused him of stealing their name. He had a problem with popular producer Kanye West over an unreleased song, "Heartbeat", which Kanye produced for Royce. There was a pay dispute, after which Kanye announced he'd never work with Royce again.
Technique
Royce Da 5'9" has been noted for his structure — often two or more of his lines will rhyme exactly, beginning to end. He also has been known to move from one set of rhymes to another, then come back to the first set later in his verse. Phrasing is also a big part of his style: he appears to avoid putting things in simple or often-used terms.
His subject matter ranges from sexuality and women to gangsterism, merely boasting, talking about the state of Hip-Hop and personal problems.
Known mainly in the underground scene of Hip-Hop, he is praised as well as known as the most talented and creative rapper alive. Also known as "Your favorite rapper's favorite rapper".
Discography
Albums
| Album cover | Album information |
|---|---|
 |
Rock City Version 2.0
|
 |
Death Is Certain
|
 |
Independent's Day |
 |
Untitled
|
Official mixtapes
| Mixtape cover | Mixtape information |
|---|---|
| Build & Destroy: The Lost Sessions Part 1 | |
 |
The M.I.C. Official Mixtape
|
Mixtapes
- M.I.C. (Make It Count) Mixtape Vol. 1
- M.I.C. Radio Vol. 1
- Hip-Hop Is Certain
- Defending The Crown I
- Defending The Crown II: Kiss The Ring
- Defending The Crown III: The Coroner
- The King Is Back (Hosted By Statik Selektah)
- Declaration Of Independence
- Bad Meets Evil: Scary Music
- The Bad Side
- The Other Side
- Lyrical Smackdown
- Raw Sessions Vol. 1 (Hosted By DJ Mumblez)
- Raw Sessions Vol. 2 (Hosted By DJ Mumblez)
- Bullets & Tissue
Trivia
- Royce Da 5'9" moved to Oak Park, Michigan — a Detroit suburb when he was 10 years old.
- Had an short cameo/rap in pop singer Willa Ford's Hit Single "I Wanna Be Bad" video.
External links
- Official Royce Da 5'9" website
- Official Royce Da 5'9" forum
- Official Game Records record label website (Royce is no longer affiliated with Game Records)
- Royce Da 5'9" Authority fansite
- Royce Da 5'9" interview
- Sample review of Death Is Certain