Caushun (born Jason Herndon 1977) is an American rapper, often erroneously referred to as the first openly gay hip-hop artist to be signed to a major record label in the United States. It was reported that he was to be signed to

Kimora Lee Simmons Kimora Lee Simmons (née Perkins) is an American model, business woman, fashion designer, venture capitalist, entrepreneur, TV personality, philanthropist and author. Early life Kimora Lee Perkins was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Stephen M. ...

' Baby Phat Records, which was formed for the purpose of releasing/distributing Caushun's album as well as Kimora Lee's attempt at a recording career. Neither record was ever released. "Caushun" sparked interest and was mentioned in a variety of publications, television programs and documentaries, including MTV as a rapper and celebrity judge, BET, VH1, ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...

'', ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' and ''

Interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" ...

'' magazine. After a 2002 interview in the

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LGBT newspaper '' Metro Weekly'', a 2003 profile in ''The New York Times'' by Touré, and a feature in '' The Advocate'', prominent hip-hop figures took interest and began to endorse Caushun publicly. In a 2007 interview in Allhiphop.com,

Ivan Matias Ivan Matias is an American singer, songwriter, producer, arranger, hip hop ghostwriter, and entrepreneur. He is primarily known for writing and producing hit songs for artists like En Vogue ("Don't Let Go (Love)"), Angie Stone ("Wish I Didn't ...

revealed that he created Caushun and that he wrote, recorded and performed all of the work attributed to Caushun. Matias revealed that the Caushun persona started out as a prank when he and friends called into the STAR & BUC WILD SHOW on HOT 97

WQHT WQHT (97.1 FM, ''Hot 97'') is a commercial radio station, licensed to New York, New York, which broadcasts an urban contemporary music format. The station is owned by Mediaco Holding and operated by Emmis Communications under a shared servi ...

radio station in New York as a flamboyantly gay rapper. After a series of call-in performances that became increasing popular, Matias agreed to meet with radio host STAR aka Troi Torain at Hot97, where he explained the situation. Together, they decided that Caushun needed a face as the popularity and demand for the character grew. Matias contacted Jason Herndon who agreed to play the role of Caushun in public. He was born in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

References

{{reflist 1977 births African-American rappers LGBT African Americans American gay musicians Living people Rappers from New York City LGBT rappers 21st-century American rappers 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people