Antonia D. Reed (born April 22, 1966),
known professionally as Bahamadia, is an American
hip hop
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
artist and singer. Bahamadia released her debut album, ''
Kollage'', in 1996, followed by the independently released
EP ''
BB Queen'' in 2000. She then released a full-length album, ''Good Rap Music'', in 2005. Bahamadia has also released the singles "Dialed Up Vol. 1" (in 2013), "Here" (in 2015), and "Dialed Up Vol. 2" (in 2018).
Bahamadia has been a featured artist on tracks by musicians including
the Roots
The Roots are an American Hip-hop, hip hop band formed in 1987 by singer Black Thought, Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and drummer Questlove, Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''T ...
,
Jedi Mind Tricks
Jedi Mind Tricks (JMT) are an American underground hip hop group from Philadelphia, founded in 1996 by two high school friends, rapper Vinnie Paz (Vincenzo Luvineri) and producer Stoupe the Enemy of Mankind (Kevin Baldwin). In 1999, rapper Jus ...
,
Erykah Badu
Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu, is an American singer and songwriter. Influenced by rhythm and blues, R&B, Soul music, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut al ...
,
Morcheeba
Morcheeba are an English electronic band formed in the mid-1990s with founding members vocalist Skye Edwards and the brothers Paul and Ross Godfrey. They mix influences from trip hop, rock, folk rock and downtempo, and have produced ten regul ...
,
Guru
Guru ( ; International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''guru'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian religions, Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: tr ...
, and
Towa Tei
is a Japanese artist, record producer, and DJ. Born in Yokohama, Japan, Towa was a member of Deee-Lite, from the US label Elektra Records in 1990 and shot to fame via their international hit single, "Groove Is In the Heart". He made his solo ...
, among others.
In November 2016, Bahamadia appeared as a guest client on season 15 of ''
Project Runway
''Project Runway'' is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on December 1, 2004. The series focuses on fashion design. It was created by Eli Holzman and was hosted by Heidi Klum from 2004 to 2017. It has a varied airi ...
'', in which her son, Mah-Jing Wong, was a contestant. His father is part Chinese, part African-American; he was named after his great-grandfather.
Career
Bahamadia attended several high schools in Philadelphia in the 1980s, including
University City and
Parkway
A parkway is a landscaped thoroughfare. The term is particularly used for a roadway in a park or connecting to a park from which trucks and other heavy vehicles are excluded.
Over the years, many different types of roads have been labeled p ...
. While still in high school, she began taking hip hop seriously and was influenced by acts such as
The Cold Crush Brothers,
Schoolly D
Jesse Bonds Weaver Jr. (born June 22, 1962), better known by the stage name Schoolly D, is an American rapper from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Biography
Schoolly D was born Jesse Bonds Weaver Jr. in West Philadelphia and raised in Philadelph ...
and
Lady B. Around that time, she began performing as a DJ.
She gained attention from
Guru
Guru ( ; International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''guru'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian religions, Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: tr ...
of
Gang Starr
Gang Starr was an American Hip-hop, hip hop duo, consisting of Houston-born record producer DJ Premier and Boston-based rapper Guru (rapper), Guru.
Gang Starr was at its height from 1989 to 2003, and is considered a widely influential MC-and-pr ...
in 1993 for her song on the EP ''
Funk Vibes''.
Discography
Studio albums
Singles
Guest appearances
References
External links
Bahamadia Official MySpace Page
{{Authority control
21st-century American women rappers
20th-century American women rappers
African-American women rappers
Chrysalis Records artists
East Coast hip-hop musicians
Good Vibe Recordings artists
Living people
Rappers from Philadelphia
Underground rappers
American hip-hop DJs
Army of the Pharaohs members
1966 births
21st-century American rappers
20th-century African-American women
20th-century African-American musicians
20th-century American rappers
20th-century American women musicians
20th-century American musicians
21st-century African-American women
21st-century African-American musicians
Gang Starr Foundation members