5th Ward Weebie - Biography
By Eric Brightwell
Jerome Cosey, better known as 5th Ward Weebie, calls himself Bounce King but also the genre’s clown prince and, more importantly, one of its primary ambassadors, tirelessly working to keep it alive and spread its popularity amongst new audiences. Despite collaborating with high-profiled artists like B.G., 504 Boyz, Kane & Abel, Master P, Mystikal, Partners-N-Crime, Lil Wayne, Three-6 Mafia and others, so far his fame is largely limited to New Orleans and areas around the South where his loyal subjects relocated following Hurricane Katrina’s destruction. Though jumping from label to label has probably reduced his output, his few albums offer a welcome alternative to the overly profuse, skit-and-filler-bloated opuses of most commercially successful rappers. That’s not to suggest that Weebie is much of an innovator, rather he’s a remarkably reliable, consistent party starter guaranteed to get p poppers popping and send backpackers packing.
After graduating from John F. Kennedy High in 1995, Weebie’s involvement with music was in a more limited role, as a back-up dancer for the uncontested Queen of Bounce, Cheeky Blakk, and one of New Orleans rap’s pioneers, Warren Mayes. Despite compact and decidedly rotund physique, Weebie dances with surprising alacrity and ability. Some said there was rhythm in the Cosey family’s blood, with an uncle and grandfather both having played drums. Nonetheless, Weebie wasn’t content to remain on the sidelines for long and he made his recording debut in 1999 with Show the World. It was released by a seminal underground New Orleans label, Mobo Records. Though mostly known for their roster of super grimy, raw West bank rappers like Dog House Posse and Ruthless Juveniles, it also featured bounce artists like Lil Goldie and all three acts appeared on the album. It also turned out to be one of the final releases from the once mighty West Bank label.
In 2000, 5th Ward Weebie appeared on Kane & Abel’s “Shake it like a Dog,” adding the ward designation to his moniker for the first time. The song was a big hit in the South and raised his profile considerably, which set the tone for his upcoming sophomore release. In March of 2001, Weebie released his long awaited, Ghetto Platinum on former No Limit rappers’ Kane & Abel’s Most Wanted Empire. Tracks like “Show That Work” and the KLC-produced “Club Hoppers P Poppers,” exemplified a sound that fell somewhere between the playful experimentalism of Mannie Fresh with the bass-heavy bombast of Beats by the Pound/Medicine Men. Most importantly it showed that bounce still had some life in it. The Most Wanted Empire, however, did not.
Drug kingpin Richard Peña was taken down in 1997 for more than twenty murders in New Orleans and the distribution of over 1000 kilos of coke. Over the next few years, fifteen accomplices were taken down with him, including corrupt cops and several figures with connections to the Calliope projects. The Garcia brothers (Kane & Abel) fell into the latter group and the Most Wanted Empire, it turned out, had been used to launder some of Peña’s drug profits. Additionally charged with lying to the Feds, the Garcia Brothers were given three year sentences in 1999 and their Most Wanted Empire crumbled, leaving Weebie once again without a label.
5th Ward Weebie bounced back with Take it to the Hole (2001), featuring the single “I Really Want You” on South Coast Music. After that, he did the sensible thing and started his own label, Fatt Boy Entertainment which, in 2003, released Da Unexpected. Despite the title’s suggestion, it mainly offered more of the same but proved to fans that Weebie is enjoyably consistent, if nothing else.
Near the beginning of the 2004, whilst in Houston, Weebie was approached by a local Mexican-American rapper, Chingo Bling (the self-proclaimed Tamale Kingpin) about the prospect of recording together. Weebie agreed and the result of their collaboration, “Walk like Cleto” was a hilarious Mexican-American take on Hot Boy Ronald’s bounce hit, “Walk like Ronald.” Ever since, Weebie and Chingo Bling have collaborated frequently, helping to spread bounce in new directions. More of a stretch was Weebie’s appearance that year as a cop attempting to scupper efforts to throw a New Orleans block party in the film, Da Block Party, which also featured New Orleanian notables like Choppa, the once again free, Kane & Abel, Juvenile and Vockah Redu in 2004.
In April of the following year, police sought Weebie in connection with a fatal shooting at a club in Vacherie. The shooter and Weebie were seen leaving together and the police sought to charge him with accessory to second-degree murder. Weebie turned himself in to the St. James Parish sheriff’s deputies. Apparently he wasn’t formally charged because in November, he resurfaced with an enormous regional hit in Houston, were he relocated after Katrina.
His next song was probably the first overtly political bounce song since TT Tucker & DJ Irv’s “Where Dey At” in 1991. November’s, “Hurricane Katrina Got us Living Off dat Fema” - simultaneously funny and angry - was a hit with both refugees and natives in Houston. In December, the newly-politicized bounce king, so often derided for his single-minded devotion to getting parties started, was speaking out in the Los Angeles Times, calling for his city to not hold Mardi Gras out of respect for the victims. The track was included on the Bounce King Status (2006 Fatt Boy Entertainment) mixtape which was closely followed by Bounce King Status Vol. 2 (2006 Fatt Boy Entertainment). Though less prolific in the years since “Fuck Katrina,” 5th Ward Weebie continues to release new songs and perform regularly, including an appearance at 2009’s Jazzfest with “The King of Bounce,” DJ Jubilee and Ms. Tee.
