Lupe Fiasco Bio: A Tale of Strife and Success - The Hip Hop Insider (2024)

I credit Lupe Fiasco’s track “The Instrumental” as being a sort of ‘gateway drug’ that introduced me to this genre known as rap and hip-hop. The smooth production, abstract lyrics, and ominous chorus painted vivid images in my young mind, and, much like a fiend, I was craving more. Thankfully, Lupe’s body of work at the time included (in my opinion) the modern classics Food & Liquor and The Cool. While the former captured Lupe’s youthfulness and lyrical prowess, the latter was a dark and dreary escape.

Although Lupe’s album Lasers was met with mixed reviews from fans and critics, for me, the rich, bellowing choruses combined with the conscious and complex lyricism made the record an anthem of my formative years. Since then, Lupe has sort of fallen off the radar but continues to release critically acclaimed albums, albeit inconsistently. Let’s explore Wasalu Muhammad Jaco’s life and career, one filled with strife and success.

Lupe Fiasco Quick Facts

Birthplace

Lupe was born on February 16, 1982 in Chicago. He was raised a Muslim on the West Side of Chicago on the Madison Terrace housing project. Lupe has eight siblings.

Parents and Early Life

Lupe’s parents are named Shirley and Gregory. His mother works as a chef, and his father is primarily an operating plant engineer. Lupe’s father is part of the Black Panther Party and is also a successful African drummer. Gregory is also a karate teacher and owns several karate schools. Shirley and Gregory got divorced in 1987 when Lupe was only five years old.

Lupe primarily lived with his mother through childhood, but still had a strong relationship with his father. When Lupe reached the sixth grade, he went on to live with Gregory in Harvey, Illinois. His father taught him many valuable life skills necessary to survive in that environment.

For example, he taught Lupe how to use a gun to protect himself from drug dealers. Lupe was well educated and was an avid reader as a child. His ‘nerdy’ personality translated to him being a bit of a loner, but led to academic success. He participated in several academic decathlon competitions as a teenager.

Lupe was not a fan of hip-hop music early on due to its vulgarity, and he listened mainly to jazz. However, Lupe was fond of poetry, and he decided to pursue a hip-hop career in the eighth grade after listening to Nas’ lyrical album It Was Written. His high school years were spent making mixtapes for friends and family with his friend Bishop G. Their music was popular among classmates at their school, Thornton Township High.

Professional Career

Humble Beginnings

Lupe decided to pursue a solo rap career at the age of 18, a decision that was met with some resistance from his parents. Within a year, Lupe joined a gangsta rap group called Da Pak that released just one single before splitting up. Lupe claims he felt some dissonance rapping about drugs and women, saying it reflected poorly on his character. Instead, he found inspiration from rappers like Jay-Z and Nas and released an introspective solo track called “Could Have Been” that was ultimately discovered by MTV.

Lupe’s first solo deal was a short tenure with Arista Records, which is only notable because it allowed him to meet Jay-Z. Jay-Z liked Lupe and helped him sign a deal with Atlantic Records. As he was working on an album with the new record label, Lupe released a series of three Fahrenheit 1/15 mixtapes that ‘put him on the map,’ so to speak.

Lupe’s remix of Kanye West’s track “Diamonds from Sierra Leone” called “Conflict Diamonds” was his attempt to raise awareness of the rampant conflict diamond business in places like Africa. Kanye was impressed by the remix and invited him to be a feature on his track “Touch the Sky,” a well-received song that achieved some commercial success. Eventually, Lupe released his lead single, “Kick, Push” which was to be on his first studio album.

The song went on to be nominated for two Grammy awards in 2007 for Best Rap Solo Performance and Best Rap Song. Lupe has made it clear that he is not a skateboarder himself and does not claim to have lived through the experiences discussed in the track.

Early Critical Success

Lupe’s debut album Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor, co-produced by Jay-Z, was released on September 19, 2006. The album title references food and liquor stores that are common in Chicago. Further to this, Lupe feels the name represents a dichotomy between evil, the liquor, and good, the food. The album was met with universal critical acclaim and was nominated for three Grammy Awards, including Best Rap Album.

Lupe went on to win Best Urban/Alternative Performance for the song “Daydreamin” featuring Jill Scott. In Lupe’s highly successful 2006 year, other accolades include being voted as “Breakout Man of the Year” by GQ magazine and being nominated for four BET Hip Hop Awards.

2007 saw further critical and commercial success for Lupe. He released his sophomore studio album Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool, which was also met with critical acclaim, and is considered by many outlets to be the best rap album released that year. It features the lead single “Superstar” featuring Matthew Santos, which is semi-autobiographical. “Superstar” peaked at #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Lupe, Kanye West, and Pharrell Williams went on to form a group called Child Rebel Soldier in the same year.

Despite releasing a few mid tracks, Child Rebel Soldier ultimately became defunct/cancelled in a few short years, according to a tweet by Lupe in 2013. Lupe joined Kanye West’s Glow in the Dark Tour in 2008, alongside fellow artists Rihanna and N.E.R.D.

Contentions with Atlantic Records

At a concert in 2010, Lupe performed new music, which he claimed was from a finished album called We Are Lasers. However, his record label Atlantic feared there was not enough commercial ‘hits’ on the tracklist and insisted Lupe record songs of their choosing. Lupe, of course, declined, citing that he wouldn’t own the songs. This soured the relationship between Lupe and Atlantic, causing several album delays. Fans even started a petition to pressure the label into releasing Lupe’s original intended album.

He dropped the singles “BMF: Building Minds Faster” and “Go To Sleep” to appease his disgruntled fans during the delay. Furthermore, he worked on a rock side project called The Jaws of the Lords of Death, which was met with limited success. Ultimately, the album Lasers was released over two years after its completion on March 8, 2011. The lead single “The Show Goes On” peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and received ample radio time.

The single, coupled with the hype surrounding the album, led to commercial success for Lasers as it sold just over 200,000 copies in its first week. However, the album was met with negative to mixed reviews. Many critics and fans felt disappointed by its simplistic lyricism and pop-sounding choruses. Nevertheless, the album received several Grammy nods in 2012, including Best Rap Album. “The Show Goes On” was nominated for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song.

Food & Liquor II, Tetsuo & Youth Era

Following Lasers, Lupe planned to release the sequel to his debut album. It was originally slated to be a double-disc with Part I to be released in late 2012. The lead single “Around My Way (Freedom Ain’t Free)” was met with criticism from Pete Rock, who stated he felt ‘violated’ by the single’s heavy use of a sample from his song “They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.).”

One of the album’s tracks titled “Battle Scars,” featuring Guy Sebastian, was a commercial success in Australia, debuting at #1. The song went on to receive Platinum certification in several countries. Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1 was released on September 25, 2012, to generally favorable critical reviews. As a result, the album was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 55th Grammy Awards. Part II of the album was initially intended to be released in 2013 but was eventually scrapped.

In 2013, Lupe announced that his fifth studio album would be titled Tetsuo & Youth. The album was postponed until 2015. It was officially released on January 20, 2015, backed by the lead single “Deliver.” The album was received positively by critics, with some even surmising that this was a “return to form” for Lupe. The album debuted at #14 on the US Billboard 200, selling just over 40,000 copies in its first week.

DROGAS Era to Present Day

Following several announcements by Lupe regarding a slew of albums he was planning to release, he ultimately settled on releasing DROGAS Light and DROGAS Wave in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Lupe referred to DROGAS Light as “a refinement of Lasers,” featuring many songs from the artist’s “vault.” The album was met with lukewarm reviews and sold around 20,000 copies in its first week.

Lupe released DROGAS Wave the subsequent year in 2018, with the album’s theme being presented as a tale about enslaved Africans who are thrown overboard but ultimately survive and begin to live under the sea. They dedicate their lives to sinking slave ships like an ‘underwater force against slavery.’ Drogas is the Spanish word for drugs, and Lupe states he made it into an acronym standing for “Don’t Ruin Us, God Said.”

The album was met with generally positive reviews from critics but only managed to sell around 11,000 copies in its first week. Both DROGAS albums were released under Thirty Tigers, marking his departure from Atlantic records.

Videos

Dating and Relationship History

Lupe has been dating American model Danielle Evans since 2013; however, it is unclear if they are still together.

Controversies

A great bulk of Lupe’s work centers around his political philosophy and views. Songs like “Words I Never Said” and “American Terrorist” clearly demonstrate his ability to perform so-called ‘conscious rap.’ While Lupe has expressed nuanced and informed opinions surrounding topics such as terrorism, world conflict, and American politics, some of his views have been controversial. For one, Lupe called Barack Obama “the biggest terrorist,” and he feels a lot of America’s foreign policy inspires terrorism.

He even criticized Obama’s stance on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Lupe didn’t vote in any US election until 2018, stating that Donald Trump’s racist views caused him to become a voter for Democratic candidates.

Lupe also has a very public beef with fellow hip-hop artist Kid Cudi. The beef began around 2015 when it became known that Lupe was charging $500 a verse to his fans. Cudi called Lupe a scammer, especially because Lupe would often share the same verse with different fans. In 2021, Lupe tweeted, “Fuck cudi 4 life”, showing that the beef is longstanding and not likely to end any time soon.

Net Worth, Career Earnings, and Residence History

Lupe’s net worth is around $14 million. It can be assumed that most of his earnings come from his music career, but very little is known about the specifics. Lupe’s business ventures include co-founding an independent record label, 1st, and 15th Entertainment, to which he also serves as CEO and President. He also started a design company called Righteous Kung-Fu which designs various things from shoes to skateboard decks.

Lupe is an avid car enthusiast and owns several luxury cars, such as Ferraris and Mercedes Benz. Lupe is very private in regards to his real estate and residence history, and thus little is known about where he has lived.

Discography

Studio Albums

• Lupe Fiasco’s Food and Liquor (2006)
• Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool (2007)
• Lasers (2011)
• Food and Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1 (2012)
• Tetsuo & Youth (2015)
• Drogas Light (2017)
• Drogas Wave (2018)

EPs

• HOUSE (with Kaelin Ellis) (2020)
• TAPE TAPE (with Soundtrakk) (2020)

Mixtapes

• Fahrenheit 1/15 Part I: The Truth is Among Us (2005)
• Fahrenheit 1/15 Part II: Revenge of the Nerds (2006)
• Fahrenheit 1/15 Part III: A Rhyming Ape (2006)
• Enemy of the State: A Love Story (2009)
• Friend of the People: I Fight Evil (2011)
• Lost in the Atlantic (2013)
• Pharaoh Height 2/30 (2015)

FAQs

Research Citations

• Lupe Fiasco – Wikipedia
• Lupe Fiasco discography – Wikipedia
• Lupe Fiasco Calls Out Kid Cudi, Says He’s ‘Been a Bitch’ – XXL (xxlmag.com)
• Lupe Fiasco Net Worth: Rap Career & Charity [2022 Update] (wealthypeeps.com)