Oddisee
| Oddisee | |
|---|---|
Oddisee performing live.
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Amir Mohamed el Khalifa |
| Born |
February 24, 1985 Washington, D.C. |
| Origin | Largo, Prince George's County, Maryland |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Occupation(s) | Rapper, producer |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Labels | Halftooth Records, Mello Music Group, Oddisee Music, All City Records |
| Associated acts | Low Budget Crew, Diamond District, yU, Uptown XO, Trek Life, Heralds of Change |
| Website | oddisee |
Amir Mohamed el Khalifa, better known by his stage name Oddisee, is an American rapper and producer from Washington, DC. He is one third of Diamond District. He was also part of the Low Budget Crew.
Oddisee was raised by his African American mother and Sudanese father, initially in affluent Silver Spring, Montgomery Co, MD, per a Scott Simon NPR interview on February 18, 2017. He described his boyhood there and a caucasian best friend as referenced in his lyrics and detailed with Simon. According to another National Public Radio interview with el Khalifa, his family relocated in adjacent Prince George's County which is one of the wealthiest African American counties in the nation but borders some of the DC area's roughest parts. He moved to Washington, DC after high school.
In 2010, Oddisee released Traveling Man on Mello Music Group. His Odd Spring mixtape was listed on the Washington Post's Best Local Hip-Hop mixtapes of 2010. In 2011, Oddisee released Rock Creek Park, which was ranked as a Mixtape of the Week by Stereogum.Odd Seasons, a collection of EPs released throughout the previous 12 months, was also released that year.
In 2012, he released the album titled People Hear What They See.The Beauty in All, his first instrumental release since Rock Creek Park, was released in 2013. In that year, he also released Tangible Dream. In 2015, he released The Good Fight. In 2016, he released the EP, Alwasta, and the mixtape, The Odd Tape.
Oddisee was originally influenced by his parents' heritages, combined with a hip-hop influence from his older cousins. In an interview with NPR, he explained why he was influenced by early East Coast emcees such as Eric B. & Rakim, De La Soul, and A Tribe Called Quest. He stated that these rappers don't talk about drugs or murder, and he could relate more to their lyrics.
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