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Raymond Lawrence "Boots" Riley (born April 1, 1971), is an American
film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, pr ...
, producer,
screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...
,
rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
, and
communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...
activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...
. He is the lead vocalist of
The Coup The Coup is an American hip hop band from Oakland, California. Their music is an amalgamation of influences, including funk, punk, hip hop, and soul. Frontman Boots Riley's revolutionarily-charged lyrics rank The Coup as a renowned political ...
and Street Sweeper Social Club. He made his feature-film directorial debut with '' Sorry to Bother You'' (released July 2018), which he also wrote.


Early life

Riley was born in 1971 in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
into a family of social justice organizers. He is the son of Walter Riley, an African-American attorney, and Anitra Patterson, whose father was African-American, while her mother (Boots' maternal grandmother) was a
Jewish refugee This article lists expulsions, refugee crises and other forms of displacement that have affected Jews. Timeline The following is a list of Jewish expulsions and events that prompted significant streams of Jewish refugees. Assyrian captivity ; ...
from
Königsberg Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was ...
who fled Europe with her parents as a teenager in 1938. He is the second youngest of five siblings. By the time Boots was one, his family moved to
Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
and when he was six they moved to
Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay ...
, where he later attended Oakland High School. When the school faced cutbacks in the 1980s, 2000 of Oakland High's 2200 students protested by participating in a walkout organized by Riley and friends. Interested in politics at a young age, Riley joined the International Committee Against Racism at age 14 and the radical Progressive Labor Party at age 15.


Career


Music


The Coup

In 1991, Riley founded the political hip-hop group
The Coup The Coup is an American hip hop band from Oakland, California. Their music is an amalgamation of influences, including funk, punk, hip hop, and soul. Frontman Boots Riley's revolutionarily-charged lyrics rank The Coup as a renowned political ...
with fellow
United Parcel Service United Parcel Service (UPS, stylized as ups) is an American multinational shipping & receiving and supply chain management company founded in 1907. Originally known as the American Messenger Company specializing in telegraphs, UPS has grown t ...
worker E-roc. Along with rappers Spice 1 and
Mopreme Shakur Maurice Harding (born August 16, 1967), better known by his stage name Mopreme Shakur, originally known as Wycked, is an American rapper. He was a member of the hip-hop group Thug Life and is the stepbrother of Tupac Shakur. He was also a member ...
(then known as Mocedes), they released a song on a 1991 compilation album called ''Dope Like a Pound or a Key'', released by Wax That Azz Records.Boots Riley Biography
" ''All American Entertainment''. All American Speakers Bureau.
The group's DJ, Pam the Funkstress, joined in 1992. Riley was both chief lyric writer and music producer of The Coup's albums. In 1992, The Coup signed to Wild Pitch Records/ EMI. The group released their debut album '' Kill My Landlord'' in 1993. Two singles from that album were shown on national Black radio and received play on
BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...
, ''
Yo! MTV Raps ''Yo! MTV Raps'' is an American two-hour television music video program, which first aired on MTV Europe from 1987 to mid-90s and on MTV US from August 1988 to August 1995. The American version of the program (created by Ted Demme and Peter Doug ...
'': "Dig It" and "Not Yet Free". In 1993,
E-40 Earl Tywone Stevens Sr. (born November 15, 1967), better known by his stage name E-40, is an American rapper. He is a founding member of the rap group The Click, and the founder of Sick Wid It Records. He has released 26 studio albums to date, ...
released the video for "Practice Lookin' Hard", a song based around Riley's lyric, "I got a mirror in my pocket and I practice lookin' hard", from the song "Not Yet Free". The video featured Riley singing the chorus while he, E-40, and
Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...
reflected light into the camera from a handheld mirror while dancing around. In 1994, The Coup released their second album, '' Genocide & Juice''. It featured guest appearances by E-40 and Spice-1. Fueled by video play and some radio play for the single "Fat Cats And Bigga Fish", the album shot up the charts, but stalled when EMI suddenly absorbed Wild Pitch. At this point, E-roc left The Coup on amicable terms. 1998's ''
Steal This Album ''Steal This Album'' is the third studio album by American hip hop duo The Coup. It was released on Dogday Records on November 10, 1998. It peaked at number 37 on the ''Billboard'' Heatseekers Albums chart, as well as number 51 on the Top R&B/H ...
'', released on indie label Dogday Records, was called "a masterpiece of slow-rolling West Coast funk" by ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' magazine. The single from that album, "Me And Jesus The Pimp In a ‘79 Granada Last Night", was an eight-minute song about the grown-up son of a prostitute driving his mother's killer to a secluded place in which to murder him. A novel, ''Too Beautiful For Words'' by Monique W. Morris, based on the story characters and descriptions in the song, was published by
HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News C ...
in 2000. The album also featured a guest appearance by
Del The Funky Homosapien Teren Delvon Jones (born August 12, 1972), better known by his stage name Del the Funky Homosapien (sometimes stylized as Del tha Funkee Homosapien) or Sir DZL, is an American rapper. Music career 1988–1997: Early life and beginnings Born in O ...
on the track "The Repo Man Sings for You". The group's fourth album, ''
Party Music ''Party Music'' is the fourth studio album by American hip hop group The Coup. It was originally released on 75 Ark on November 6, 2001. It was re-released on Epitaph Records in 2004. Album cover controversy The original cover of the album, crea ...
'', was released on 75 Ark Records in 2001. It was re-released in 2005 by
Epitaph Records Epitaph Records is an American independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, most acts signed to the label were punk and pop punk acts, while there are many post-hardcore and emo ba ...
. The original cover art depicted group members standing in front of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center as they explode. Riley is depicted pushing a button on a bass guitar tuner and DJ Pam the Funkstress is shown holding conductor's wands. The photo was taken in May 2001. The album was scheduled to be released just after the September 11, 2001 attacks. In response to the uncanny similarity of the artwork with the attacks, the album release was delayed until an alternative cover could be prepared. The album hit No. 8 in the 2001 ''
Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the cr ...
'' Pazz and Jop Poll- the most important year-end critic's list, was named "Pop Album Of The Year" by ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...
'', and "Hip-Hop Album Of The Year" by ''Rolling Stone''. The album included a guest appearance by
dead prez Dead Prez, often stylized as dead prez, is an American hip hop duo composed of stic.man and M-1, formed in 1996 in New York City. They are known for their confrontational style, combined with lyrics focused on both militant social justice, self ...
on the song "Get Up." Boots Riley released a controversial press release one week after the 9/11 events, which was later published in the book, ''Another World Is Possible''. The press release stated that "last week's events were symptomatic of a larger backlash against U.S. corporate imperialism." The controversy surrounding the cover art, press release, and the lyrics from ''Party Music'' (specifically the song "5 Million Ways To Kill A CEO") led to Riley appearing on local network news affiliates all over the U.S. He also appeared on
Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is o ...
's ''
Hannity and Colmes ''Hannity & Colmes'' was a live television show on Fox News in the United States, hosted by Sean Hannity and Alan Colmes, who respectively presented a conservative and liberal perspective. The series premiered on October 7, 1996, and the final epi ...
'' and ABC's ''
Politically Incorrect ''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...
'' with
Bill Maher William Maher (; born January 20, 1956) is an American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. He is known for the HBO political talk show '' Real Time with Bill Maher'' (2003–present) and the similar ...
. During this time, conservative commentator Michelle Malkin called Boots's lyrics "a stomach-turning example of anti-Americanism disguised as highbrow intellectual expression". ''The Independent'' concluded it was "protest album of the year, by a million-man march." In 2006, The Coup released '' Pick a Bigger Weapon'' on Epitaph Records, featuring guest appearances by
Tom Morello Thomas Baptist Morello (born May 30, 1964) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and political activist. He is best known for his tenure with the rock band Rage Against the Machine and then with Audioslave. Between 2016 and 2019, More ...
,
Talib Kweli Talib Kweli Greene (; born October 3, 1975) is an American rapper. He earned recognition early on through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper Mos Def in 1997, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's musical career continued with ...
, Black Thought from
The Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...
, and Jello Biafra.


Work with Tom Morello

In 2003,
Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commer ...
and
Audioslave Audioslave was an American rock supergroup formed in Glendale, California, in 2001. The four-piece band consisted of Soundgarden's lead singer and rhythm guitarist Chris Cornell with Rage Against the Machine members Tom Morello (lead guitar) ...
guitarist
Tom Morello Thomas Baptist Morello (born May 30, 1964) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and political activist. He is best known for his tenure with the rock band Rage Against the Machine and then with Audioslave. Between 2016 and 2019, More ...
invited Riley to be part of the "Tell Us the Truth Tour", which was meant to shed light on the
monopolization In United States antitrust law, monopolization is illegal monopoly behavior. The main categories of prohibited behavior include exclusive dealing, price discrimination, refusing to supply an essential facility, product tying and predatory pricin ...
of the media and the coming
FTAA The Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) was a proposed agreement to eliminate or reduce the trade barriers among all countries in the Americas, excluding Cuba. Negotiations to establish the FTAA ended in failure, however, with all parties un ...
agreements. The tour, hosted by Janeane Garofalo and
Naomi Klein Naomi A. Klein (born May 8, 1970) is a Canadian author, social activist, and filmmaker known for her political analyses, support of ecofeminism, organized labour, left-wing politics and criticism of corporate globalization, fascism, ecofascism ...
, featured acoustic performances by Riley, Morello,
Billy Bragg Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His music i ...
,
Steve Earle Stephen Fain Earle (; born January 17, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, author, and actor. Earle began his career as a songwriter in Nashville and released his first EP in 1982. Initially working in the country music ...
, Mike Mills, and
Jill Sobule Jill Sobule (born January 16, 1961) is an American singer-songwriter best known for the 1995 single "I Kissed a Girl", and "Supermodel" from the soundtrack of the 1995 film '' Clueless''. Her folk-inflected compositions alternate between ironic ...
. In 2006, Morello approached Riley to form a band together under the name Street Sweeper. The duo, who later changed their name to Street Sweeper Social Club, releasing their self-titled debut album in 2009. They toured in support of it along with
Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...
and the recently reunited
Jane's Addiction Jane's Addiction is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1985. The band consists of vocalist Perry Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, drummer Stephen Perkins and bassist Eric Avery. Jane's Addiction was one of the first bands fr ...
. On May 24, a press release went out announcing Street Sweeper Social Club as one of the headliners of the 2010
Rock the Bells Rock the Bells was an annual hip-hop festival that originally took place in Southern California only, but has since toured throughout the world. The concert featured a line-up of high-profile alternative hip-hop artists, often headlined by a mor ...
tour. Street Sweeper Social Club released ''
The Ghetto Blaster EP ''The Ghetto Blaster EP'' is the first EP from the rap rock supergroup Street Sweeper Social Club, released on August 10, 2010. It features covers of "Paper Planes" by M.I.A. and "Mama Said Knock You Out" by LL Cool J as well as a remix of the ...
'' in late July 2010.


Independent work

In 1991, the same year Riley co-founded The Coup, he and other activists and hip-hop artists created the Mau Mau Rhythm Collective. The Collective put on "Hip-Hop
Edutainment Educational entertainment (also referred to as edutainment) is media designed to educate through entertainment. The term was used as early as 1954 by Walt Disney. Most often it includes content intended to teach but has incidental entertainmen ...
Concerts," which allied with and promoted the campaigns of community-based organizations like Women's Economic Agenda Project (WEAP), Copwatch, International Campaign To Free Geronimo Pratt, the
Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been ...
Alumni Association, and various anti-police brutality projects. The Collective would use the growing popularity of their concerts to bring a large number of youth to take over a closed Oakland city council meeting and hold a public meeting. In 2005, Riley produced the score for an episode of ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, ...
'' entitled " Pranksta Rap". In 2007 and 2008, Riley toured heavily with New Orleans-based band
Galactic Galactic is an American jam band from New Orleans, Louisiana. Origins and background Formed in 1994 as an octet (under the name Galactic Prophylactic) and including singer Chris Lane and guitarist Rob Gowen, the group was soon pared down to a ...
. The band performed The Coup songs behind Riley's vocals and they also performed their collaboration, "Hustle Up". In 2008, while performing with Galactic in Norfolk, VA, police interrupted the concert and Riley was charged with using "abusive language"—a charge that hadn't been laid in 26 years, and never before against a performer. In 2010 and 2011, Riley recorded with Ursus Minor on the album ''I Will Not Take "But" for an Answer'', and toured with the group in France.


Film and television

Boots Riley began working on a screenplay for "an absurdist dark comedy with aspects of
magical realism Magical is the adjective for magic. It may also refer to: * Magical (horse) (foaled 2015), Irish Thoroughbred racehorse * "Magical" (song), released in 1985 by John Parr * '' Magical: Disney's New Nighttime Spectacular of Magical Celebrations'', ...
and science fiction," inspired by his own time working as a telemarketer, which he finished in 2012. In 2017, he was able to begin production on his screenplay for '' Sorry to Bother You'', directing it himself, with stars Lakeith Stanfield,
Tessa Thompson Tessa Lynne Thompson (born October 3, 1983) is an American actress. She began her professional acting career with the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company while studying at Santa Monica College. She appeared in productions of '' The Tempes ...
, and Steven Yeun. The film premiered at the
Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,6 ...
on January 20, 2018, and was theatrically released in the United States on July 6, 2018, by
Annapurna Pictures Annapurna Pictures is an independent American media company founded by Megan Ellison in 2011, that specializes in film production, live theatre production, television through its Annapurna Television division, and video game publishing through i ...
. The film received praise for its cast and concept, as well as Riley's screenplay and direction. In June 2020, he announced plans for a new TV series entitled ''I'm a Virgo'', starring Jharrel Jerome. He had more recently signed a deal with Media Res.


Activism

Riley identifies as a
communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...
. When E-Roc left The Coup in 1994, Riley decided to stop making music in favor of forming an organization called The Young Comrades, with a few other radical, black community organizers including journalist and activist JR Valrey. The organization mounted a few important campaigns in Oakland which yielded some minor victories, such as the campaign against Oakland's "no cruising" ordinance. In 2000, Riley, through his workshop on Art and Organizing at
La Peña Cultural Center La Peña Cultural Center or La Peña for short, is a multicultural center in the United States. It was founded in 1975 by Latin American and Californian allies in Berkeley, California in response to the 1973 coup d'état in Chile, or '' golpe de e ...
, led a group of young artists to create "Guerilla Hip-Hop Concerts" on a flatbed truck which traveled throughout Oakland to protest California's Proposition 21. The workshop also distributed tens of thousands free cassettes of "The Rumble", which he called "newspapers on tape. In 2002, Riley taught a daily high school class, "Culture and Resistance: Persuasive Lyric Writing", at the School of Social Justice and Community Development in East Oakland. During the fall of 2011, Riley became heavily involved with the Occupy Oakland movement. In 2018, he spoke at the Socialism 2018 conference. At the 34th Independent Spirit Awards in 2019, Riley criticized U.S. involvement in the
2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis The Venezuelan presidential crisis is an ongoing political crisis concerning the leadership and the legitimate president of Venezuela; the office of the president has been contested since 10 January 2019, with the nation and the world divided ...
during his acceptance speech for the
Best First Feature Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporation ...
award for ''Sorry To Bother You''. His speech, which was cut short, was delivered to the press. In February 2020, Boots announced his support for Vermont Senator
Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 20 ...
in the
2020 United States presidential election The 2020 United States presidential election was the 59th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. The Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and the junior U.S. senator from California Kamala H ...
.


Discography


Group artist


The Coup

* '' Kill My Landlord'' (1993) * '' Genocide & Juice'' (1994) * ''
Steal This Album ''Steal This Album'' is the third studio album by American hip hop duo The Coup. It was released on Dogday Records on November 10, 1998. It peaked at number 37 on the ''Billboard'' Heatseekers Albums chart, as well as number 51 on the Top R&B/H ...
'' (1998) * ''
Party Music ''Party Music'' is the fourth studio album by American hip hop group The Coup. It was originally released on 75 Ark on November 6, 2001. It was re-released on Epitaph Records in 2004. Album cover controversy The original cover of the album, crea ...
'' (2001) * '' Pick a Bigger Weapon'' (2006) * '' Sorry to Bother You'' (2012) * Original Soundtrack: ''Sorry To Bother You'' (2018)


Street Sweeper Social Club

* '' Street Sweeper Social Club'' (2009)


Solo guest appearances

*1991 – ''Dope Like a Pound or a Key'' (Compilation) *1994 – "Streets of Oakland" from '' The Big Badass'' by Ant Banks *2004 – ''Zugzwang'' by Ursus Minor *2007 – "Hustle Up" from ''
From the Corner to the Block ''From the Corner to the Block'' is the fifth studio album by the New Orleans-based jazz fusion/funk group Galactic. Unlike the group's other albums, ''From the Corner to the Block'' is a collaboration with various alternative hip hop musicians. ...
'' by
Galactic Galactic is an American jam band from New Orleans, Louisiana. Origins and background Formed in 1994 as an octet (under the name Galactic Prophylactic) and including singer Chris Lane and guitarist Rob Gowen, the group was soon pared down to a ...
*2009 – "Soledad" from '' Este Mundo'' by Rupa & the April Fishes *2011 – "M M M", "Get On With It" from ''I Will Not Take "But" for an Answer'' by Ursus Minor *2011 – "9/11 'til Infinity" from '' From the Dumpster to the Grave'' by
Star Fucking Hipsters Star Fucking Hipsters is an American punk rock band from New York City who have released albums on Fat Wreck Chords and Alternative Tentacles records. They have been called a "punk supergroup" and feature members from numerous notable bands inc ...
*2011 – "Black Flags" (Single) by
Atari Teenage Riot Atari Teenage Riot (ATR) is a German band formed in Berlin in 1992. Highly political, they fuse left-wing, anarchist and anti-fascist views with punk vocals and a techno sound called digital hardcore, which is a term band member Alec Empire u ...
*2014 – "Pocket Full of Slave owners" (Single) by
Muja Messiah Robert Hedges (born December 10, 1976), better known by his stage name Muja Messiah, is an American rapper from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has been a member of the groups Raw Villa and Villa Rosa. ''Vibe'' named him in "51 Best MySpace Rappers" a ...
*2014 – "Black Is Beltza" (Single) by Fermin Muguruza


Filmography


References


External links

*
Street Sweeper Social Club Website

"Revolutionary Party Music"
– video report by ''
Democracy Now! ''Democracy Now!'' is an hour-long American TV, radio, and Internet news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman (who also acts as the show's executive producer), Juan González, and Nermeen Shaikh. The show, which airs live each weekday at ...
'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Riley, Boots 1971 births Living people American socialists American communists American Marxists American rappers American film directors Rap rock musicians American hip hop record producers African-American rappers African-American rock singers African-American record producers African-American film directors Jewish rappers Jewish American musicians African-American Jews Rappers from Chicago Rappers from Detroit Rappers from Oakland, California West Coast hip hop musicians American people of German-Jewish descent 21st-century American rappers Record producers from Illinois Record producers from California African-American communists Jewish socialists Jewish anti-fascists