about
Blacksmith Music presents JEAN GRAE and her electrifying and highly anticipated album ‘JEANIUS’. Slated for a July 8th release, ‘JEANIUS’ is Jean Grae’s fourth full-length album and the second Blacksmith Music release. With the production bar raised greatly, this will be the record taking her out of the underground and into the mainstream. Produced by 9TH WONDER (Mary J Blige, Jay-Z and Destiny’s Child), Jean Grae delivers an impressive range of vision that instantly marks her as an extraordinary artist. Arguably the most gifted and critically well received emcee of the past five years, Jean’s combination of strikingly on point lyrics and top notch production promise to make this record one that solidifies her place amongst hip hop’s elite MC’s. Born in South Africa, Jean Grae grew up in a home full of music. Both parents were independent artists, creative souls, and jazz musicians. At 13 years old, she became the youngest person to be a part of Alvin Ailey’s second company. She also attended the LaGuardia School of the Arts and Performing Arts (made famous by the show Fame). When she finally came out of her shell, she formed a music group with a friend. This move into music making eventually landed her into a crew called Natural Resources. While in Natural Resources she honed her rhyming skills and beat making skills. After a short but successful stint, Natural Resources disbanded in 1999, leaving Jean to make her own path. It wasn't until she was asked to participate in Mr. Len’s solo LP (ex-Company Flow) that her skills were made known to a larger listening public. She followed her Len appearance up with an impressive full length, entitled ‘Attack Of The Attacking Things’. In late 2003, she followed up with another head-turning EP, ‘The Bootleg of the Bootleg EP’. In 2005, she signed with Talib Kweli’s Blacksmith Records. Recently, Jean has toured Europe with Talib Kweli in summer 2007, was on the 2007 Rock The Bells tour, and was a coach on the MTV MADE “I Wanna Be A Rapper� show.
