Gerrell Gaddis (born July 22, 1976), better known by his stage name Rell, is an American
R&B singer and songwriter from
Bowman, South Carolina. He was the first male R&B singer to sign to New York City-based label
Roc-A-Fella Records
Roc-A-Fella Records was an American record label and music management company founded in 1994 by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke. Carter issued his debut album, '' Reasonable Doubt ...
, where he recorded with artists such as
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...
,
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
,
Consequence, and
Young Gunz
Young Gunz is an American hip hop duo from Philadelphia, composed of rappers Young Chris (born Chris Ries in March 9, 1983) and Neef Buck (born Hanif Muhammad in March 30, 1983). The group is part of Beanie Sigel's State Property collective ...
.
Life and career
Rell grew up in
Bowman, and is a former
South Carolina State University pre-med student. He signed to
Roc-A-Fella Records
Roc-A-Fella Records was an American record label and music management company founded in 1994 by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke. Carter issued his debut album, '' Reasonable Doubt ...
in 1997, and began work on his debut album which was tentatively titled, ''Medicine''. Rell got his break in 1998, appearing in Jay-Z's rap cult flick ''
Streets Is Watching'' and contributing the club banger "Love for Free" to the
movie's soundtrack and would later be featured on his debut album. Within the latter part of 1998, Rell renamed his debut, ''The Remedy'', and re-released, "Love for Free" as the lead single. In 1999, two other singles ("When Will U See" and "Darlin'") were released as radio buzz singles for the album, however, within the first quarter of that year, ''The Remedy'' was shelved due to the failed charting of his album's singles. Still signed to the Roc, Rell went on to sing hooks for nearly every Roc-a-Fella MC since, including
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
's "It's Obvious" and
Freeway
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
's "Victim of the Ghetto", and appearing on "The Message" featuring
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, actress, and entrepreneur. Often referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Qu ...
, from
Dr. Dre
Andre Romell Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, and actor. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and co-founder of ...
's ''
2001
The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
''.
In 2001, Rell met agreeable terms with Jay-Z, and began retooling for his cancelled debut, ''The Remedy''. The project spawned a new and official lead single titled, "If That's My Baby". While the album was scheduled for a September release, after the release of another single, "It's Obvious", the album was slated to be released in spring 2002. In early 2002, yet again the expected reworked version of ''The Remedy'' was shelved.
In 2004, Rell began work on yet another project, titled ''Long Time Coming''. In promotion of the album, Rell released several leftover tracks from his cancelled project ''The Remedy'' on numerous mixtapes and limited Roc-a-Fella EP samplers. Rell eventually released "Real Love" as the lead single for ''Long Time Coming'' in 2005. However, in the midst of the release, Rell was moved from the Roc label to Dame Dash Music Group. Under the new label, ''Long Time Coming'' was to be released in May 2006. Unfortunately disagreements and lack of promotion from the new label ended up shelving Rell's album and he initially split from the label.
In 2007, collaborations with Latin
reggaeton
Reggaeton (, ) is a modern style of popular music, popular and electronic music that originated in Panamanian reggaetón, Panama during the late 1980s, and which rose to prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s through a plethora of Puert ...
artists
Don Omar
William Omar Landrón Rivera (born February 10, 1979), known professionally as Don Omar, is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is also known as the " King of Reggaeton" by music critics and fans alike. The ...
and
Zion
Zion (; ) is a placename in the Tanakh, often used as a synonym for Jerusalem as well as for the Land of Israel as a whole.
The name is found in 2 Samuel (), one of the books of the Tanakh dated to approximately the mid-6th century BCE. It o ...
saw releases. Rell wrote the title track for
Usher's 2008 album ''
Here I Stand''. Also in 2008, Rell partnered with Nate Pitts, CEO of Right Arm Music Group, the Charlotte-based indie record label which is the home for producers Dale Williams, Shabbykat Production and Dark Sun Production.
In 2009, Rell teamed with
Tre Williams to form
The Revelations. They released their debut album, ''The Bleeding Edge'', on October 6, 2009.
In 2011, Rell wrote "Love Contract" on
Musiq Soulchild
Taalib Hassan Johnson (born September 16, 1977), better known by his stage name Musiq Soulchild (or simply Musiq; pronounced "music") is an American singer-songwriter. His music blends Rhythm and blues, R&B, funk, blues, jazz, and Gospel music, ...
's album, ''
MusiqInTheMagiq''.
Discography
Albums
* ''The Remedy'' (2001) (Unreleased)
* ''Long Time Coming'' (2006) (Unreleased)
Singles
*1997: "Ghetto Stash"
*1998: "Love for Free" (feat.
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
)
*1999: "When Will You See" (feat. Amil)
*2001: "If That's My Baby"
*2001: "It's Obvious" (feat.
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
)
*2004: "No Better Love" (Remix)
1
*2004: "Real Love" (feat.
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...
&
Consequence)
*2008: "Swagga"
1 The song was to be released on Rell's first version of ''The Remedy'' but was re-recorded for Young Gunz
Young Gunz is an American hip hop duo from Philadelphia, composed of rappers Young Chris (born Chris Ries in March 9, 1983) and Neef Buck (born Hanif Muhammad in March 30, 1983). The group is part of Beanie Sigel's State Property collective ...
and a possible track for Rell's other unreleased project, ''Long Time Coming''.
Guest Croons
* 1999: "The Message"
r. Dre, Mary J Blige* 2000: "There's Nothin' Better"
emphis Bleek, Beanie Sigel*
2000
: "Darlin'"
J Clue* 2001: "Still Got Love for You"
eanie Sigel, Jay-Z* 2002: "International Hustler"; "Don't Realize"
reeway; Beanie Sigel*
2002
: "You Know What I Want"
am'ron* 2003: "Victim of the Ghetto"
reeway*
2003
: "Understand Me Still"; "Do It All Again"
emphis Bleek* 2004: "No Better Love"
oung Gunz*
2004
: "Hold Dat"
rince Po* 2005: "Change"
eanie Sigel, Melissa Jay*
2005
: "Could It Be"
weet* 2007: "Damn I Miss the Game"
assidy*
2007
: "Calm My Nerves"
on Omar* 2008: "That's What I'm Talking 'Bout"
ete Rock*
2008
: "You Know"
Z* 2009: "Mysterious"
urious*
2009
: "I See Dead People"
rand Puba*
2009
: "What I Wanna Be"
.O.P.*
2009
: "Rain"
im Jones, Noe* 2010: "Men of Respect"
J Kay Slay, Jim Jones, Tony Yayo, Papoose* 2011: "let Me Fly"
im Jones* 2014: "Blurred Pupil"
lla Ghee*
2014
: "here I Go Again"
hostface Killah* 2017: "Cold Summer"
J Kay Slay, Kendrick Lamar, Mac Miller, Kevin Gates* 2024: "MY BURNER"
ell
Filmography
*1998: ''
Streets Is Watching''
*2002: ''
State Property''
*2003: ''
Death of a Dynasty''
*2010: ''Code Blue''
References
External links
The Revelationson
Myspace
Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...
Rell Interview 3/20/10
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rell
Living people
African-American male singer-songwriters
American male singer-songwriters
Roc-A-Fella Records artists
1976 births
20th-century African-American male singers
20th-century American male singers
20th-century American singers
American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters
American hip-hop singers
American soul singers
People from Orangeburg County, South Carolina
21st-century American male singers
21st-century American singer-songwriters
21st-century African-American male singers
Singer-songwriters from South Carolina