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Tariq Nasheed is an American film producer and
internet personality An Internet celebrity, also referred to as an Internet personality, is an individual who has acquired or developed their fame and notability on the Internet. The growing popularity of social media provides a means for people to reach a large ...
. He is best known for his '' Hidden Colors'' film series, as well as his commentary and promotion of
conspiracy theories A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...
on
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.


Early life

Nasheed was born in
Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
, Michigan, and spent most of his youth in
Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...
.


Career

In 1991, Nasheed moved to
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, ...
, where he began his career as a rapper and later as a dating expert under the "K-Flex" persona, before transitioning into
documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
filmmaking. Many of his dating books give instructions on how to be a
pickup artist Pickup artists (PUA) are people whose goals are seduction and sexual success. Predominantly heterosexual men, they often self-identify as the seduction community or the pickup community. This community exists through various channels, including ...
. In 2000, Nasheed had his first acting credit in the
mockumentary A mockumentary (a portmanteau of ''mock'' and ''documentary'') is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a Documentary film, documentary. Mockumentaries are often used to analyze or comment on current event ...
TV series ''
The Awful Truth ''The Awful Truth'' is a 1937 American screwball comedy film directed by Leo McCarey, and starring Irene Dunne and Cary Grant. Based on the 1922 play ''The Awful Truth'' by Arthur Richman, the film recounts a distrustful rich couple who begin ...
'' by
Michael Moore Michael Francis Moore is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and author. Moore's work frequently addresses various Social issue, social, political, and economic topics. He first became publicly known for his award-winning debut ...
in the second-season episode "Taxi Driver", where he interviewed politicians in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
about allegations of taking money from
lobbyists Lobbying is a form of advocacy, which lawfully attempts to directly influence legislators or government officials, such as regulatory agencies or judiciary. Lobbying involves direct, face-to-face contact and is carried out by various entities, in ...
, including Mark Pfeifle, who served as deputy communications director to then-presidential candidate
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
, U.S. representative
Tom Lantos Thomas Peter Lantos (born Tamás Péter Lantos; February 1, 1928 – February 11, 2008) was a Hungarian-born American politician who served as a United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative from California from 1981 until his deat ...
, and political campaigner Nick Nyhart of Every Voice. Nasheed produced the 2011 documentary film '' Hidden Colors: The Untold History of People of Aboriginal, Moor, and African Descent''. Nasheed's follow-up film and DVD, ''Hidden Colors 2: The Triumph of Melanin'', was released in 2012. In 2013, Nasheed released the horror film '' The Eugenist'', which he also wrote and directed. In 2014, he released ''Hidden Colors 3: The Rules of Racism'' and co-produced '' Da Sweet Blood of Jesus'' (a remake of the 1973 movie '' Ganja & Hess'') with director
Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and author. His work has continually explored race relations, issues within the black community, the role of media in contemporary ...
. In 2015, Nasheed was an associate producer in the short documentary film ''Wilmington on Fire'', about the 1898 Wilmington Massacre. In 2023 Nasheed opened the Hidden History Museum in Los Angeles. The museum features current and historical Black figures.


Mink Slide

Nasheed is the lead singer of the R&B musical group Mink Slide, which debuted in 2018. Mink Slide's first album, ''Egyptian Musk'', debuted at number 12 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 ...
'' R&B Albums chart.


Views and reception

Nasheed is known online for his controversial commentary on race. He is a proponent of "Foundational Black Americans" (FBA), an ideology and movement he founded, which is defined as, "any person classified as Black, who can trace their bloodline lineage back to the American system of slavery. To be designated as an FBA, at least one parent must come from a non-immigrant background in The United States of America." Nasheed believes FBAs must "seek out
reparations Reparation(s) may refer to: Christianity * Reparation (theology), the theological concept of corrective response to God and the associated prayers for repairing the damages of sin * Restitution (theology), the Christian doctrine calling for re ...
for their own" and that American-born descendants of the American slave trade have not adequately sought out resources for themselves. Nasheed is known for his use of the term "bed wench" and the related term "Negro bed wench mentality". He uses the term to refer to black women who date interracially. He revived and popularized use of this term, which historically was used to disparage black women who were raped by their masters during
slavery Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
. ''Ebony Magazine'' described Nasheed's conception of the term "bed wench" as a put-down of successful black women who challenge the institutions of black
patriarchy Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of authority are primarily held by men. The term ''patriarchy'' is used both in anthropology to describe a family or clan controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males, and in fem ...
. Nasheed also uses the term "buck breaking" to refer to the sexual abuse of Black men, particularly in the context of slavery, via a documentary of the same name, which ''
MEL Magazine ''MEL'' was a men's magazine headquartered in Marina del Rey, California. Originally funded by Dollar Shave Club, ''Mel'' has been described by ''New York Times'' journalist Amanda Hess as "the rare men's magazine that has taken upon itself to i ...
'' described as containing "uncooked nonsense" and being largely inaccurate. According to
Refinery29 Refinery29 (R29) is an American multinational digital media and entertainment website focused on young women. It is owned by Sundial Media Group. History Justin Stefano, Philippe von Borries, Piera Gelardi, and Christene Barberich co-founded Ref ...
, Nasheed "is notorious for his
misogynistic Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women or girls. It is a form of sexism that can keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the social roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practis ...
, queerphobic,
xenophobic Xenophobia (from (), 'strange, foreign, or alien', and (), 'fear') is the fear or dislike of anything that is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression that is based on the perception that a conflict exists between an in-gr ...
and often ahistorical commentary on Blackness in America." Stephen Kearse in ''
The New York Times Magazine ''The New York Times Magazine'' is an American Sunday magazine included with the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times''. It features articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted many notable contributors. The magazi ...
'' refers to Nasheed as a "conspiracy buff". During the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, Nasheed was highly vocal about his distrust of the
COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Knowledge about the structure and fun ...
. He opined that, "they are using yet another Black, non- FBA doctor to do the #CovidVaccine experiment on today...Notice no one has given a ''scientific'' reason as to why we are only seeing Black people injected with this new vaccine" and that the "white powers in control" completely ignored requests for "reparations, decent employment, decent education, decent housing, no police killings."


2018 swatting incident

In May 2018, Nasheed and his family were swatted by
white nationalists White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wav ...
while in his home in Los Angeles. Several calls were made to the
Los Angeles Police Department The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the th ...
(LAPD) falsely claiming that Nasheed had kidnapped and tied up his wife and had planted bombs in the house, which prompted an armed police response. Nasheed commended the LAPD for handling the situation professionally.


Personal life

In 2014, Nasheed married Alexis "Peanut" Cobb. He has three children with her, as well as a daughter from a previous marriage.


Books

* ''The Art of Mackin (Research Associates School Times Publications, 2000) * ''Play or Be Played: What Every Female Should Know About Men, Dating, and Relationships'' (Simon & Schuster, 2004) * ''The Mack' Within'' (Riverhead Freestyle, 2005) * ''The Art of Gold Digging '' (G.D. Publishing, 2008) * ''The Elite Way: 10 Rules Men Must Know in Order to Deal with Women'' (King Flex Entertainment, 2010) * ''Foundational Black American Race Baiter: My Journey into Understanding Systematic Racism'' (King Flex Entertainment, 2021)


Filmography

* ''Hidden Colors'' (2011) * ''Hidden Colors 2'' (2012) * ''The Eugenist'' (2013) * ''Hidden Colors 3'' (2014) * ''Buck Breaking'' (2021)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nasheed, Tariq 21st-century African-American people Living people African-American film directors African-American film producers American anti-vaccination activists American conspiracy theorists American documentary film producers American film producers American infotainers American Internet celebrities American media personalities American reparationists Film producers from Alabama Internet-related controversies People from Birmingham, Alabama Pickup artistry Writers from Birmingham, Alabama Year of birth missing (living people) YouTubers from Detroit YouTubers from Alabama