Mia Young (born January 9, 1970), better known by her stage name Mia X, is an American
rapper and songwriter from New Orleans. She enjoyed success in the local "
bounce" scene of the early 1990s.
She was the first female
emcee to get a contract with rapper and entertainment magnate,
Master P
Percy Robert Miller (born April 29, 1967), better known by his stage name Master P, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, dancer, actor and entrepreneur. He founded the record label No Limit Records in 1991, which was relau ...
on his successful record label
No Limit Records
No Limit Records is an American record company founded by Master P. The label's albums were distributed by Priority Records, Universal and Koch Records. The label included artists such as Snoop Dogg, Mercedes, Silkk the Shocker, Mystikal ...
. She is known for collaborations with several No Limit Records artists, including Master P and
Silkk the Shocker
Vyshonn King Miller (born June 18, 1975), better known by his stage name Silkk the Shocker (formerly Silkk), is an American rapper from New Orleans, Louisiana. The brother of Master P, Miller signed with his record label No Limit Records, an im ...
on the seminal albums, ''
Ice Cream Man'', ''
Ghetto D
''Ghetto D'' is the sixth studio album by American rapper Master P, released on September 2, 1997 on No Limit Records and Priority Records.
Chart performance
The album debuted at #137 on the ''Billboard'' 200. In its second week the album t ...
'' and ''
Charge It 2 Da Game''.
Personal life
Young grew up in the Lafitte housing project in New Orleans'
seventh ward. Her father was a trucker and her mother was a counselor. She graduated from Redeemer High School and briefly attended Delgado Community College before she decided to pursue a career in music.
In 2006 in a magazine article, her publicist releases a statement of an upcoming cookbook. Before her cookbook she did on online page on Instagram #teamwhipdempots. Her cookbook was finally released in 2018.
In the 2010s, Mia X was diagnosed with
uterine cancer and beat it. In surgery for the cancer, the surgeons accidentally "tore her cornea off", and that left her with 73% vision in one eye.
Music career
Music beginnings
Mia X's rap career began in the late '80s and early '90s before she graduated from high school, when she performed in a "mobile entertainment service" called New York Inc. with
Mannie Fresh, who would later rise to stardom as the production genius behind
Cash Money Records.
She made her recorded debut in 1992 with the single "Ask them Suckas" (an
answer song created in response to "Ask them Hoes" by 39 Posse), on Lamina Records. In 1993, she released "Da Payback," a maxi-single which appeared on both the Rap Dis! and Lamina Records labels, which despite its status as "the No. 1-selling local record of 1993 at Odyssey Records" did not generate any income for the artist.
In 1994, Mia X signed a contract for two albums with Roy Joseph, Jr.'s Emoja Records. The label (along with its successor, Slaughterhouse Records) released her full-length debut ''Mommie Dearest'' in 1995. Joseph later filed a $10 million lawsuit against Master P and No Limit Records, asserting that the label "persuaded Mia X to break her contract." No Limit Records subsequently filed a countersuit against Joseph asking for $20 million in damages.
1995: TRU, No Limit Records and ''Good Girl Gone Bad''
In 1995, Mia X was signed to
Master P
Percy Robert Miller (born April 29, 1967), better known by his stage name Master P, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, dancer, actor and entrepreneur. He founded the record label No Limit Records in 1991, which was relau ...
's label
No Limit Records
No Limit Records is an American record company founded by Master P. The label's albums were distributed by Priority Records, Universal and Koch Records. The label included artists such as Snoop Dogg, Mercedes, Silkk the Shocker, Mystikal ...
after he inquired at Peaches Records and Tapes (where she was working at the time) about promising local female rappers.
She joined the roster as a solo artist and also became a member of Master P's group at the time,
TRU, where she experienced national success. She was the first female rapper to be signed by No Limit Records.
On November 21, 1995, Mia X released her first album titled ''Good Girl Gone Bad'',
which failed to chart on any of the ''
Billboard'' charts.
1997–98: ''Unlady Like'' and ''Mama Drama''
In 1997, she released her first single from her upcoming second album titled "The Party Don't Stop" featuring Master P and Foxy Brown. On June 24, 1997, Mia X released her second album, ''
Unlady Like'',
which peaked at No. 21 on the
''Billboard'' 200 and No. 11 on the
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip-hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Luminate. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated January 30, ...
chart. The record was certified gold in October 1997.
On October 27, 1998, Mia X released her third album, ''
Mama Drama'', which peaked at No. 7 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and No. 3 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts.
1999–present
Beginning in 1999, Mia X went on hiatus from recording following the deaths of fourteen family members, including both her parents, in an eighteen-month span, in addition to the dissolution of the No Limit roster due to Master P pursuing non-musical interests.
In the early 2000s, she worked in real estate and as a ghostwriter for other hip-hop artists.
In the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...
in 2005, Mia X recorded "My FEMA People" in response to the ensuing disastrous conditions in New Orleans.
Mia X appeared on
C-Murder
Corey Miller (born March 9, 1971), better known by his stage name C-Murder, is an American rapper. He initially gained fame in the mid-1990s as a part of his brother Master P's label No Limit Records, primarily as a member of the label's supergr ...
's 2008 release ''
Screamin' 4 Vengeance'', on tracks titled "Mihita" and "Posted on tha Block". On June 13, 2014, she released a new single titled "Mr. Right", featuring artist Ms. Tasha via her label, Mama Mia Muzic. On September 1, 2015, Mia X released a new single titled "No More" featuring Caren Green.
She released a mixtape in 2010 titled ''Unladylike Forever'',
and claimed she was working on a new album titled ''Betty Rocka Locksmith'', but it was never released.
Discography
Studio albums
* ''
Good Girl Gone Bad'' (1995)
* ''
Unlady Like'' (1997)
* ''
Mama Drama'' (1998)
Extended plays
* ''Da Payback'' (1993)
* ''Mommie Dearest (1995)
Filmography
;Films
References
External links
Mia Xon
Myspace
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mia X
1970 births
20th-century African-American musicians
20th-century African-American women
21st-century African-American musicians
21st-century African-American women
21st-century American rappers
21st-century American women rappers
Actresses from New Orleans
African-American women rappers
African-American women singer-songwriters
American rhythm and blues musicians
American women hip-hop singers
American women singer-songwriters
Gangsta rappers
Living people
No Limit Records artists
Rappers from New Orleans
Singer-songwriters from Louisiana
Southern hip-hop musicians