Curtis Anthony Jackson II (born August 2, 1995), known professionally as Capella Grey, is an American singer, songwriter, rapper and

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

from the

Bronx, New York The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

. He is the founder of Allepac the Family and released two songwriter mixtapes in 2020 and received widespread recognition in 2021 with his breakout single " Gyalis". His debut album, ''Vibe Responsibly, Vol. 1'' was released on June 21, 2024, after signing a record deal with

10K Projects TenThousand Projects, LLC, doing business as 10K Projects (formerly Strainge Entertainment), is an American record label founded in 2016 by British record executive Elliot Grainge. It operates under the Atlantic Music Group (AMG) umbrella, whi ...

Early life

Curtis Jackson II was born on August 2, 1995, in

New Rochelle, New York New Rochelle ( ; in ) is a Political subdivisions of New York State#City, city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately from Midtow ...

. He grew up in a Jamaican family and started playing instruments at a young age, learning how to play music from church. He developed his musical career in

Mount Vernon, New York Mount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is an inner suburb of New York City, immediately to the north of the Borough (New York City), borough of the Bronx. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Moun ...

after graduating high school.

Musical career

2016–2020: Career beginnings and early mixtapes

Capella Grey started his musical career writing and producing for other artists, including "Love You Better" by King Combs featuring

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. A Pop music, pop and hip-hop-influenced contemporary R&B, R&B musician who works in a variety of genres, he has been called the "Honorific nic ...

. He signed an R&B girl group called Rèign to Allepac Records, and wrote and produced their debut album released in 2019. On January 8, 2020, he released his debut mixtape ''Yea Nah I'm Out'', followed by his second mixtape ''The QuaranTape Vibe 1.''

2021–2022: "Gyalis" and breakthrough

On January 4, 2021, he released the single " Gyalis", which samples Juvenile's "

Back That Azz Up "Back That Azz Up", also known as "Back That Thang Up" for a radio edit, is a song recorded by American rapper Juvenile featuring fellow American rappers Mannie Fresh and Lil Wayne. Produced by Fresh, it was released on June 11, 1999, as the ...

". The song went viral in New York and on social media platforms, spawning unofficial remixes from

A Boogie wit da Hoodie Artist Julius Dubose (born December 6, 1995), known professionally as A Boogie wit da Hoodie or simply A Boogie, is an American rapper, and singer-songwriter. He released his debut studio album, '' The Bigger Artist'', via Atlantic Records in ...

Kranium Kemar Donaldson (born 12 August 1993), known professionally as Kranium, is a Jamaican dancehall singer known for his 2013 hit single "Nobody Has to Know" which gave him international recognition and led him to the Atlantic Records record label. ...

Tory Lanez Daystar Shemuel Shua Peterson (born July 27, 1992), known professionally as Tory Lanez, is a Canadian singer-songwriter and record producer. First discovered by Sean Kingston, he received initial recognition for his mixtape ''Conflicts of My S ...

Angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...

and Haile, among others. The song reached number 10 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart, and was called the "song of the summer" by multiple publications. The official remix was released on October 1, 2021, featuring

Popcaan Andrae Hugh Sutherland (born 19 July 1988), known professionally as Popcaan, is a Jamaican Toasting (Jamaican music), deejay. In 2008, Popcaan joined Vybz Kartel's Gaza Music Empire. In 2010, he released his breakthrough international hit "Cl ...

and

. Later that month on October 15, 2021 Capella was featured on fellow New York rapper

DreamDoll Tabatha Robinson (born February 28, 1992), known professionally as DreamDoll, is an American rapper. She appeared on season 16 of Oxygen's '' Bad Girls Club: Social Disruption'', and in 2017, she joined the cast of VH1's '' Love & Hip Hop: New Y ...

‘s single ‘You Know My Body’, the song was a hit and received heavy radio play in New York. He signed with Capitol in 2021, saying they are "not trying to change me as an artist to meet the standards or expectations of music now, which is why I went with them." He also said, "they are a great team of record breakers and I am excited to work with them." On December 17, 2021, Capella Grey released the single "Talk Nice". On March 18, 2022, he released the single "Confujawn" with Nija. On May 6, he released the music video for "Sas Crise" featuring Alayzha Sky and Ghost, and directed by Mikey Scho. On June 10, Capella Grey released the single "OT" featuring

Ty Dolla Sign Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Griffin gai ...

. He appeared on Chris Brown's album '' Breezy'', on the song "Till The Wheels Fall Off" featuring

Lil Durk Durk Derrick Banks (born October 19, 1992), known professionally as Lil Durk, is an American rapper. Regarded as a pioneering artist in the Chicago-based hip-hop subgenre drill music, he is often considered the subgenre's most commercially suc ...

. On July 1, he was featured on

DJ Drama Tyree Cinque Simmons (born April 22, 1978), known professionally as DJ Drama, is an American disc jockey (DJ), record executive and music promoter. He initially gained recognition as the DJ for Atlanta-based rapper T.I., and continued to gai ...

's single "Forever" featuring

Fabolous John David Jackson (born November 18, 1977), known professionally as Fabolous, is an American rapper. Raised in Brooklyn, he first gained recognition for his ability upon performing live on DJ Clue's WQHT, Hot 97 radio show. Jackson then signed ...

, Benny the Butcher, and

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American cult leader, preacher and mass murderer who founded and led the Peoples Temple between 1955 and 1978. Jones and the members of his inner circle planned and orchestrat ...

. Capella Grey was the opening act for

Joey Badass Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott (born January 20, 1995), known professionally as Joey Badass (stylized as Joey Bada$$), is an American rapper and actor. Born in Brooklyn, New York City, he formed the regional hip-hop group Pro Era in 2011, with whom h ...

on a 20-date summer concert tour, the 1999-2000 Tour. On July 22, he also featured on the song "Welcome Back" with Joey Badass and Chris Brown, on the album ''

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

''.

2023–present: ''Vibe Responsibly, Vol. 1''

In January 2023, Capella Grey announced the tentative release date for his debut album for January 27 which was later delayed. On July 17, 2023, Capella Grey released the EP ''Here, Damn'' as a teaser and placeholder before his debut. In October 2023, he released two singles independently, "How I Am" and "Baechester". On December 18, he released his first Holiday album titled ''Nah It’s Brick: A Holiday Vibe''. In May 2024, Capella Grey announced the release date for his anticipated debut album. On June 11, he released the single "Strings" with

Fivio Foreign Maxie Lee Ryles III (born March 29, 1990), known by his stage name Fivio Foreign (), is an American rapper from New York. He first saw mainstream recognition for his 2019 single " Big Drip", which received platinum certification by the Recording ...

and

French Montana Karim Kharbouch (Moroccan Arabic, Arabic: IPA pronunciation, æɾiːm χɑɾbuːʃ born November 9, 1984), better known by his stage name French Montana, is a Moroccan-American rapper. Born and raised in Morocco, he immigrated to New York ...

under his new licensing deal with

. On June 21, he released his debut album ''Vibe Responsibly, Vol. 1'' including features from Jaewon, Young M.A, Jacquees, Cash Cobain, Jada Kingdom, DreamDoll, Journey Montana,

Tone Stith Antonio "Tone" Stith (born July 26, 1995) is an American R&B singer and songwriter signed to RCA Records. Early life Stith was born and raised in New Jersey and raised in a musical family. He began playing the drums at three years old and al ...

and Skillibeng, among others.

Artistry

Capella Grey described his musical style as "singing at the tempo of a rapper", and cited

, Charlie Wilson,

Jodeci Jodeci ( ) is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B quartet consisting of members DeVanté Swing, Dalvin DeGrate, Mr. Dalvin, K-Ci, and K-Ci & JoJo, JoJo. Formed in 1988 in Charlotte, North Carolina, Jodeci began as a duo of DeVanté Swing and JoJo ...

, Diddy,

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and television producer. Born in Queens, a borough of New York City, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 1996. In 1999–2000, ...

, and

Dipset The Diplomats (also known as Dipset) were an American hip hop collective formed in the summer of 1997 by childhood friends Cam'ron and Jimmy Jones in Harlem, New York City. The group was originally composed of Cam'ron, Jim Jones and Freekey Ze ...

as his musical influences.

Allepac the Family

Allepac the Family ("Capella" spelled backwards) is an American record label based in New York City founded by Capella Grey. He calls the genre of the label's music "RNBOP", which was coined by his frequent collaborator BBearded.

Discography

Albums

Extended plays

Mixtapes

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Other charted songs

Guest appearances

Writing discography

Production discography

Filmography

Film and television

Music videos

As lead artist

As featured artist

Tours

Supporting

* 1999-2000 Tour (2022)

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

{{reflist, 2 1995 births Living people American musicians of Jamaican descent African-American songwriters African-American male rappers 21st-century American male rappers 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American singers 21st-century African-American male singers American male singers American male songwriters American hip-hop singers American rappers of Jamaican descent East Coast hip-hop musicians Rappers from the Bronx Songwriters from New York (state) Record producers from New York (state) Musicians from New York (state) Musicians from Mount Vernon, New York