Mystic (singer)
| Mystic | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Mandolyn Wind Ludlum |
| Also known as | DU Goddess |
| Born | c. 1974–1975 Lower Lake, California, United States |
| Origin | Oakland, California |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Occupation(s) | singer, rapper |
| Instruments | vocals |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Labels | Goodvibe, DreamWorks |
| Associated acts | Digital Underground, Aceyalone |
| Website | www |
Mandolyn Wind Ludlum (born c. 1974–75), better known by her stage name Mystic, is an American hip hop artist from the San Francisco Bay Area. After touring and recording with Digital Underground she released her debut solo album in 2001.
Born Mandolyn Wind Ludlum on a hippie commune in Lower Lake, California to a white mother and African-American father, she was raised by her mother after her parents split up when she was three years old (an experience she explores in her song "Fatherless Child"). She grew up in rural California, Hawaii, Mexico, and Oregon before settling in her eventual home base, Oakland, California.
She began taking part in MC Battles in the Bay Area in the early 1990s. After dropping out of high school in 1991, she began teaching art in 1996, and also began her recording career, her version of "Gloomy Sunday" appearing on the soundtrack to Abel Ferrara's film The Funeral.
Early on in her musical career, she collaborated with fellow female producer The Angel and toured with Digital Underground between 1997 and 1999, appearing on Digital Underground's Who Got The Gravy album under the name DU Goddess. She worked as a writer for Rude Gal Music before establishing herself as a solo artist.
She signed a solo contract with Goodvibe Recordings in 1999 (signing on the same day her father died of a heroin overdose) after label co-chair Matt Kahane heard her on a mixtape by Bahamadia. She worked with respected underground hip-hop producers including Shock G and A-Plus on her 2001 critically acclaimed debut album, Cuts for Luck and Scars for Freedom, which was labelled as "conscious rap" and saw her receiving comparisons with Lauryn Hill. She participated in the summer 2001 Tree of Life tour with her labelmates to promote the album, whose lead single, "The Life", was featured in the ESPN show The Life and a commercial for Bud Light in 2004. She also toured with The Black Eyed Peas in 2001.
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