Black Star - Biography
Black Star are a Brooklyn-based rap duo named after the Negro Improvement Association's famous Black Star Line. Although they have thus far only released one album, they're seen by many as one of the leading lights of the Native Tongues posse's second generation.
The two members of Black Star are Talib Kweli (born Talib Kweli Greene October 3rd, 1975 in Brooklyn) and Mos Def (born Dante Terrell Smith December 11, 1973, in Brooklyn). Smith began his showbiz career as an actor, appearing in the film God Bless the Child (1988), on the Nell Carter sitcom You Take the Kids, in the film The Hard Way (1991), and in 1994's The Cosby Mysteries. It was also in 1994 that, as Mos Def, Smith formed his first rap act, Urban Thermo Dynamics, with his younger brother DCQ and their sister, Casey "Ces" Smith. They released two singles on Payday Records. Their debut, Manifest Destiny, wasn't released until 2004, by Illson Media.
The first big step in Mos Def's rap career was appearing on "Big Brother Beat" on De La Soul's Stakes is High. That year he also guested with another Native Tongues act, Da Bush Babees, on their debut. Mos Def made his solo debut on in 1997 with "Universal Magnetic," released by Rawkus.
Meanwhile, whilst guesting with Cincinnati, Ohio rap act, Mood, on their debut, Talib Kweli met local DJ Tony "Hi-Tek" Cottrell. The duo formed Reflection Eternal in 1997 and were included on Rawkus's showcase, Soundbombing. Alongside a slew of other artists, Mos Def and Talib Kweli appeared on 1998's Lyricist Lounge Volume One. Both were working on planned solo debuts when they decided to form the duo, Black Star. Their debut release was Mos Def & Talib Kweli are Black Star (1998 Rawkus), produced by Hi-Tek. It received almost unanimously high praise and reached #53 in the charts. The same year Rawkus also released The Instrumentals (1998).
Afterward, Mos Def went solo and Talib Kweli returned to Reflection Eternal. There was obviously no enmity between the two. On Mos Def's solo debut, Black on Both Sides, featured a guest appearance from Kweli. Mos Def returned the favor on Reflection Eternal's debut, Train of Thought. Since then they've often appeared on one another's albums. However, it wasn't until 2006 that they properly joined forces, for Dave Chappelle's Block Party, contributing the new studio track, "Born & Raised," to the soundtrack.
