HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Xavier Marquis Davis (born March 13, 1984), better known by his stage name Ex Marquis is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, 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
Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
.


Career


Early years

Marquis began writing songs at nine years old. He came from a family of musicians and singers. At age 16, he purchased his first keyboard which helped him hone his productions skills and prepare him for his opportunity to study music and produce records at FlyteTyme Studio, the studio belonging to
Jimmy Jam Jimmy may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Jimmy'' (2008 film), a 2008 Hindi thriller directed by Raj N. Sippy * ''Jimmy'' (1979 film), a 1979 Indian Malayalam film directed by Melattoor Ravi Varma * ''Jimmy'' (2013 f ...
and Terry Lewis. "The time I spent at Flyte Tyme was essential to my growth as a music producer and artist. There was so much history there. Just to know that you were recording in the same place that Michael and Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Boys II Men, and Usher once recorded in is breathtaking and motivating.""Artist Biography","", Retrieved 10/22/11


2008-2010: The X-Files Mixtape: Episode 1

In 2008, Marquis began recording his first mixtape "The X-Files Mixtape: Episode 1. He wanted to bring something different to hip-hop, stating, "I like to give listeners' ears a full course meal. A lot of artists are either afraid or unable to step out of the box. People get tired of the same ole' thing all the time, so I attempt to give them a little bit of everything to fill not only their appetites, but mine as well." In the middle of recording the mixtape in
St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 311,527, making it Minnesota's second-most populous city a ...
, he decided to move his operation to
Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
. Shortly after his move he met rapper
AnonymousCulture Anttwon Jemon Thames IV is an American rapper and songwriter from Dallas, Texas, better known by his stage name AceCulture, formally known as AnonymousCulture. Music career AnonymousCulture originally went by the stage name Anonymous????. In 2 ...
and immediately began producing tracks for the emcee. One of the many tracks he produced for AnonymousCulture was "PosterBoi. Through AnonymousCulture, he met producer and rapper
LehtMoJoe LehtMoJoe is an American record producer and electronic hip hop rapper. Career LehtMoJoe's stage name combines the names of his favorite Dallas Stars ice hockey players during the late nineteen-nineties, Jere Lehtinen, Mike Modano and Joe N ...
. He later collaborated with the producer on the song "Touch the Sky". Marquis later remixed LehtMoJoe's "Look Around". The X-Files Mixtape: Episode 1 was released April 2010. In November 2010, Marquis released the single "Open Letter". The single was later awarded the "Urban Finals Grand Prize" by
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
partner company Ourstage.com. He finished once in the Top 10 and twice in the Top 40 of ourstage.com's monthly song competition.


2011-Present: The X-Files Mixtape: Episode 2

After moving back to his hometown, Minneapolis, he assembled a band for his live performances and completed "The X-Files Mixtape: Episode 2". On July 28, 2011, Marquis headlined "The X-Files Mixtape: Episode 2 Release Show." Accompanied by his backing band, Marquis performed to a near-capacity crowd at the historic First Avenue in Minneapolis, MN. In September 2011, it was announced that Marquis and his band made it to the Rawkzilla Battle of the Bands Finals. Rawkzilla is the largest battle of the bands in the Midwest. Marquis and his band came in second place out of 86 bands. In November 2011, he was awarded his second "Urban Finals Grand Prize" by
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
partner company Ourstage.com for his song "Lovelee Day" featuring singer/songwriter Gabrielle Samone. Marquis released his single "Soul Glo" January 1, 2012. The single showed his boastful side with lyrics like "Too big for these rappers coming from the Sota, give up, let go, stop that, it's over." In February 2012, it was announced that Marquis was selected as one of three finalist out of 236 entries in the annual "Are You Local?" best new band contest held by Vita.mn. He was featured on the cover of the Vita.mn magazine. In the interview conducted for the magazine Marquis stated, "I've always aspired to be someone that reaches the masses, I wanna fly all over the world and have stadiums full of people that love the music I make." The Are You Local? showcase and SXSW Send Off show was held at First Avenue in Minneapolis, MN, on March 2, 2012. Xavier and his band performed wearing Xavier's XM logo shirts and neon paint under black lights. "Rapper Xavier Marquis' set was arguably even wilder. His various backup/hype vocalists jumped around Marquis in their neon face paint, and his surprisingly metallic band pounded away, coolly mashing up Silversun Pickups' "Lazy Eye" in the set highlight "Maybe Something."" In December 2012, Marquis released his single "Show Girl". Shortly after the single release, XM released his first official music video. The "Show Girl" music video was directed by director Adam J. Dunn. The video told a dark tale about a murderous groupie.


Discography


Mixtapes

*''The X-Files Mixtape: Episode 1'' (2010) *''The X-Files Mixtape: Episode 2'' (2011)


Singles

*"Dangerous" (2009) *"Hate Me" (December 2009) *"Paradise" (January 2010) *"You Killin' Me" (July 2010) *"Crazy Love featuring Sedrick Stylez" (August 2010) *"Open Letter" (November 2010) *"Lovelee Day" featuring Gabrielle Samone (May 2011) *"Don't Want Know" featuring Munqs (June 2011) *"Soul Glo" (January 2012) *"Show Girl" (December 2012)


Videography

*"S.O.S. (Spot Me)" (2010) Directed by Corey Lawson *"Show Girl" (2012) Directed by Adam J. Dunn


Past live performance band members

*Dave Sellner (Drums) *Josh Ackerley (Bass/Vocals) *Bob "Zen" Firestone (Electric Guitar) *Shaquille Lapree (Vocals) *Marcus Kar (Djembe) *Corey Lawson aka Munqs (Keyboards/Vocals)


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Marquis, Xavier 1984 births Living people Rappers from Minneapolis Record producers from Minnesota 21st-century American rappers