Ahmad Ali Lewis (born October 12, 1975), simply known as Ahmad (often stylized in

all caps In typography, text or font in all caps (short for "all capitals") contains capital letters without any lowercase letters. For example: All-caps text can be seen in legal documents, advertisements, newspaper headlines, and the titles on book co ...

), is an American rapper, songwriter,

motivational speaker A motivational speaker (or inspirational speaker) is a speaker who makes speeches intended to motivate or inspire an audience. Such speakers may attempt to challenge or transform their audiences. The speech itself is popularly known as a pep ta ...

and author from

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. He is perhaps best known for the 1994 single " Back in the Day". Ahmad is also a former member and founder of the hip-hop fusion band 4th Avenue Jones.

Career

Ahmad made his recording debut in 1993 on the soundtrack of The Meteor Man with the song "Who Can". Released when Ahmad was 18, "Back in the Day" the remix version (produced by Maurice Thompson of Barr 9 Productions) hit No. 26 on the US pop charts and No. 19 on the U.S. R&B charts on the strength of its

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved/bent back or has a deeply grooved indentation, which serves to grab, latch or in any way attach itself onto another object. The hook's d ...

, sung over a sample of the

Teddy Pendergrass Theodore DeReese Pendergrass (March 26, 1950 – January 13, 2010) was an American Soul music, soul and R&B singer and songwriter. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Pendergrass lived most of his life in the Philadelphia area, and initial ...

song "Love TKO". It also reached No. 64 in the UK Singles Chart. It was the first single off his first album, ''

Ahmad Ahmad () is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other English spellings of the name include Ahmed. It is also used as a surname. Etymology The word derives from the root ( ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from ...

''. The remix of "Back in the Day" is also featured on the soundtrack of ''

The Wood ''The Wood'' is a 1999 American coming-of-age comedy drama film directed by Rick Famuyiwa in his feature directional debut and starring Omar Epps, Richard T. Jones and Taye Diggs. It was written by Famuyiwa and Todd Boyd. Plot Roland is get ...

'', a 1999 motion picture. Ahmad secured his first recording contract as a senior in high school and earned a gold record for his chart-topping hit. He later formed the hip-hop fusion band 4th Avenue Jones. He went back to school and enrolled in

Long Beach City College Long Beach City College (LBCC) is a public community college in Long Beach, California, United States. It was established in 1927 and is divided into two campuses, the Liberal Arts Campus (LAC) in Lakewood Village and the Trades, Technology, an ...

in 2006; after graduating he was accepted by

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

, to acquire bachelor's degrees in sociology and African American studies. Lewis was married to his former 4th Avenue Jones bandmate, Tena Jones, from 1998 to 2007. Their son, Yeshuwa Ali, was born in 2004. Lewis is a practicing Christian.

Discography

Albums

Solo * 1994: ''

'' (Giant/Reprise/Warner Bros. Records) * 2010: '' The Death of Me'' (WeCLAP) With 4th Avenue Jones * 2000: ''No Plan B'' (Lookalive Records) * 2002: ''No Plan B pt. 2'' (Lookalive/Interscope Records) * 2002: ''Gumbo'' (Lookalive Records) * 2003: ''Hiprocksoul'' (Lookalive Records) * 2004: ''Respect'' (Lookalive Records) * 2005: ''Stereo: The Evolution of Hiprocksoul'' (Lookalive/Gotee/EMI Records)

Singles

* 1994: " Back in the Day" (US No. 26; UK No. 64) With 4th Avenue Jones: * 2000: "Respect" * 2002: "Move On" * 2005: "Stereo" Videos: * 1994: "Back In the Day" * 1994: "You Gotta Be" * 1996: "Come Widdit'" * 2001: "Respect" * 2002: "Move On" * 2005: "Stereo"

Appearances

* 1993: "Who Can?" (from "The Meteor Man" (soundtrack)) * 1994: "That's How It Is" (from "Jason's Lyric" (soundtrack)) * 1994: "Come Widdit" feat. Ras Kass, Saafir (from ''Street Fighter'' (soundtrack)) * 1995: "Only If You Want It" (from ''Pump Ya Fist'') * 1999: "Back in the Day (Remix)" (from ''The Wood'' (soundtrack)) * 1999: "The Guest List" (from ''Something For Everyone To Hate'' (Sackcloth Fashion album)) * 2000: "Fresh Coast" (from ''Dust'' (Sup The Chemist album)) * 2004: "Give It Here" feat. Pep Love (from ''All Balls Don't Bounce'' revisited (2LP) (Aceyalone album) * 2006: "Hard Hit" (from ''The Movement'' (D.I.T.C. album) * 2006: "Fight Here" feat. Afrobots,

DJ Vajra Christopher Karns (born January 25, 1979) is an Americans, American turntablist, who won the 2011 DMC World DJ Championships. He has also won the 2002 WSTC World Championships, six DMC Regional Championships, and three Redbull Thre3style Champions ...

(from ''5 Sparrows For 2 Cents'' (The Procussions album)) * 2006: "More" (from ''Pro Pain'' (Mars ILL album))

References

External links

Stanford Magazine – 'This Is the Rebirth' – January/February 2009
* https://web.archive.org/web/20090307084039/http://allhiphop.com/stories/news/archive/2009/03/05/20930202.aspx
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation – Ahmad Ali Lewis isn't a Typical Stanford Undergrad – Nor is he a Typical Rapper
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad 1975 births Living people Giant Records (Warner) artists African-American male rappers 21st-century American male rappers 20th-century American male rappers Rappers from Los Angeles West Coast hip-hop musicians African-American songwriters Songwriters from California 20th-century American rappers 21st-century American rappers 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American musicians American male songwriters