Chali 2na facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Chali 2na
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Stewart in 2004
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Charles Stewart |
| Born | June 26, 1971 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Labels |
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| Associated acts | Jurassic 5, Ozomatli, Dino 5 |
Charles Stewart (born June 26, 1971), known as Chali 2na, is an American painter and rapper. He is famous for being part of the hip hop groups Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli. People know him for his deep voice and his fast rapping style.
Contents
About Chali 2na
Early Life and Music Beginnings
When he was young, Charles Stewart moved to South Central Los Angeles. This is where the group Jurassic 5 started in 1993. He was raised by his grandmother, who was a Christian. Later, he became a Muslim.
His stage name, Chali 2na, comes from Charlie the Tuna. This was a cartoon mascot for StarKist Tuna who also had a deep voice. In high school, he became friends with Cut Chemist. They were part of a group called Unity Committee with Marc 7.
The Unity Committee often performed at the Good Life Café. This was a place where rappers and poets could share their skills at an open mic night. They were very popular, along with another group called the Rebels of Rhythm. The two groups liked each other's music and decided to work together. In 1995, they recorded a song called "Unified Rebelution." The Rebels of Rhythm included MCs Akil and Zaakir (also known as Soup). These six men then formed the group Jurassic 5.
In 2006, Cut Chemist left Jurassic 5 to start his own music career. The Jurassic 5 group then broke up in 2007.
Chali 2na also helped start the band Ozomatli. This band plays a mix of salsa and funk music and is known for its activism. Even though he is not an official member anymore, he still works with them sometimes and remains good friends with the band. His music, and Ozomatli's, is also influenced by reggae and soul music. He also enjoys house music.
Music Career
Being Part of Jurassic 5
Chali 2na was a founding member of Jurassic 5. The group was known for having four MCs who sounded like one voice when they rapped together.
Solo Music Albums
Chali 2na released a special collection of songs called Fish Market on October 25, 2004. He explained that this collection was a way to share songs he had made with other artists. Many people might not have heard these songs or bought the albums they were on. He wanted Fish Market to be like a guide to his music before he released his own solo album. He also planned for it to be a series, with a Fish Market, Part 2 coming later.
In January 2006, a song called "Don't Stop" came out. This song was meant to be the first single from his album Fish Outta Water. It showed off his fast rapping style. In the song, Chali 2na talked about how much he loved hip hop culture. He also showed respect for early hip hop pioneers like Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa. He also spoke highly of Tupac Shakur.
The singer Anthony Hamilton sang the chorus for "Don't Stop." This song was also featured in the video game NBA Live 06. Another solo song by Chali 2na, "The Anchor Man," was on the soundtrack for NBA 2K7. His song "Something Different" was also on the All-Pro Football 2K8 soundtrack.
Five years after Fish Market, his first solo album, Fish Outta Water, was released. This album received good reviews. In the album, Chali 2na shares stories about important experiences in his life. Many artists worked with him on this album, including Beenie Man, Raphael Saadiq, Rakaa Iriscience, Talib Kweli, Anthony Hamilton, Damian Marley, and Ming Xia.
Another collection of collaborations, Fish Market Part 2, was released in 2010. Like the first Fish Market album, this one was full of songs Chali 2na made with famous artists, such as Linkin Park.
Chali 2na has also shared that he plans to release a series of five short albums, called EPs, in the future. His song "Step Yo Game Up" was featured in the popular video game Sleeping Dogs in 2012.
Working with Other Artists
Chali 2na has worked with many other MCs and musicians. Many of these guest appearances are collected on his Fish Market albums. He released these so that people could hear his collaborations without having to buy many different albums.
He is good friends with the British hip hop artist Roots Manuva and has worked with him on several songs. He has also worked with Linkin Park on the song "Frgt/10" and a short skit called "Chali" from their 2002 album Reanimation. He also worked with Ozomatli on their first album and toured with the New Orleans funk band Galactic. He is featured on Galactic's 2007 album From the Corner to the Block on the song "Think Back."
He collaborated with Blackalicious on their 2002 album Blazing Arrow on the song "4000 Miles," along with Lateef the Truthspeaker. Chali 2na also appeared with fellow Jurassic 5 MC, Akil, on the song "We know something you don't know" from the 2003 album Music for the Mature B-Boy by UK artist DJ Format.
The songs "Red Hot" by Jurassic 5 and "International" by Chali 2na were featured in the 2005 video game SSX on Tour. Fatlip's 2005 song "Today's Your Day (Whachagonedu)" from the album The Loneliest Punk includes a verse from Chali 2na.
Chali 2na was also featured on Lyrics Born's album Everywhere at Once, performing on "Hott 2 Deff." Lyrics Born was also the MC for The Deadliest Catch Tour in 2009, which featured Chali 2na, Gift of Gab, and Mr. Lif.
On K'naan's 2009 album, Troubadour, Chali 2na was featured on "America" with Mos Def. He also appeared on the song "The People Tree" from N.A.S.A. (musical group)'s 2009 album The Spirit of Apollo.
On Long Beach Dub Allstars' 2001 album Wonders of the World, Chali 2na was featured on "Life Goes On" with Half-Pint, Ives, and Tippa Irie. In 2008, Chali 2na recorded with Ditch on the song "All Comes Down To Money," which they wrote together. He also recorded a song called "King Sh#t" with Dutch rap artist Jerome XL in 2008, released in 2010.
In June 2010, British dubstep artist Rusko released a song with Chali 2na called "Gadget GoGo." This song was a bonus track for Rusko's album OMG and was also on Fish Market, Part 2.
More recently, Chali 2na appeared on the song "Break in the Glass" from the 2019 album Ways of the World by the band The Movement. He also featured on the song "Speaking in Tongues" from the 2012 album Drinking From the Sun by Australian hip-hop artists Hilltop Hoods.
Chali 2na was featured on the song "Get Original" on the Black Eyed Peas album Bridging the Gap, released in 2000. In 2012, he was featured on the remix of "Dreamers" by British hip-hop duo Rizzle Kicks. Also in 2012, he featured in Slightly Stoopid's song "Just Thinking" on their album, Top of the World.
In 2014, he appeared in Epic Rap Battles of History, playing the famous scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson. In 2015, he was featured on the song "Love Is Killing Me" by Savoy. In 2016, he worked with Canadian electro-funk band The Funk Hunters on a 5-song EP called ILLectric. He also collaborated with Australian artist Dub FX on two songs: "in another life" and "the sky."
In 2017, Chali 2na partnered with English DJ Krafty Kuts. They released two songs, "It Ain't My Fault" and "Hands High." An album was planned for March 2018.
Film Appearances
Chali 2na is featured in the documentary This Is the Life. This film tells the story of the music scene that grew out of The Good Life Cafe in South Central Los Angeles. This is where he first performed with Unity Committee and where Jurassic 5 was formed.
Chali 2na is also in the documentary Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme. He also appeared in the movie Never Been Kissed as part of Ozomatli, performing in a club.
Chali 2na is interviewed in RASH, a 2005 documentary about street art and graffiti in Melbourne, Australia. He talks about his love for graffiti and paints his signature Tuna fish in murals with Australian artists. This happened during his band's 2005 Australian tour.
Chali 2na also played astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson in the Epic Rap Battles of History video, Sir Isaac Newton versus Bill Nye.
Street Art
Chali 2na is a talented graffiti artist. He has painted many murals across Australia, including in Perth. He has also regularly painted at the Bondi Beach Graffiti Wall.
Music List
Albums
Chali 2na
- Fish Outta Water (2009)
- Adventures of a Reluctant Superhero with Krafty Kuts (2019)
Jurassic 5
- Jurassic 5 (1998)
- Quality Control (2000)
- Power in Numbers (2002)
- Feedback (2006)
Other Collaborations
- Ozomatli (1998) (with Ozomatli)
- The Dino 5 (2008) (with Ladybug Mecca, Prince Paul, Scratch & Wordsworth, as The Dino 5)
- R.I.D.S. (2012) (with Roc 'C', as Ron Artiste)
Mixtapes and EPs
Mixtapes
- Fish Market (2004)
- Fish Market Part 2 (2010)
EPs
- Jurassic 5 (1997) (Jurassic 5)
- Against the Current EP 1 (2012)
- Against the Current EP 2 : Manphibian Music (2014)
- Against the Current EP 3 : Bloodshot Fisheye (2015)
- ILLectric EP (2016) (with The Funk Hunters)
Selected Guest Appearances
- Black Eyed Peas - "Get Original" on Bridging the Gap (2000)
- Swollen Members - "Full Contact" on Bad Dreams (2001)
- Roots Manuva - "Join the Dots" on Run Come Save Me (2001)
- Long Beach Dub Allstars - "Life Goes On" on Wonders of the World (2001)
- Blackalicious - "4000 Miles" on Blazing Arrow (2002)
- Roots Manuva - "Revolution 5" on Dub Come Save Me (2002)
- Linkin Park - "Frgt/10 (feat. Chali 2NA)" on Reanimation (2002)
- Slimkid3 - "Follow I'll Lead" on Liberation (2002)
- Soulive - "Doin' Something" on Turn It Out Remixed (2003)
- DJ Format - "We Know Something You Don't Know" on Music for the Mature B-Boy (2003)
- Ozomatli - "Who's to Blame" on Street Signs (2004)
- Supernatural - "It Ain't a Game" on S.P.I.T. (2005)
- DJ Nu-Mark feat. Chali 2na - "Comin' Thru" on Mushroom Jazz Vol. 5 (2005)
- DJ Format - "The Place" on If You Can't Join 'Em... Beat 'Em (2005)
- Fatlip - "Today's Your Day (Whachagonedu?)" on The Loneliest Punk (2005)
- Breakestra - "Family Rap" on Hit the Floor (2005)
- Sérgio Mendes - "Yes, Yes Y'All" on Timeless (2006)
- Marcelo D2 - "That's What I Got" on Meu Samba É Assim (2006)
- Dan the Automator - "Anchor Man" on Dan the Automator Presents 2K7 (2006)
- X Clan - "Funky 4 You" on Return from Mecca (2007)
- Galactic - "Think Back" on From the Corner to the Block (2007)
- Percee P - "No Time for Jokes" on Perseverance (2007)
- Aceyalone - "Eazy" on Lightning Strikes (2007)
- K'naan - "America" on Troubadour (2008)
- Lyrics Born - "Hott 2 Deff" on Everywhere at Once (2008)
- The Mighty Underdogs - "Warwalk" on Droppin' Science Fiction (2008)
- Solillaquists of Sound - "Death of the Muse" on No More Heroes (2008)
- N.A.S.A. - "The People Tree" on The Spirit of Apollo (2009)
- Speech - "Start Spreading the News" on The Grown Folks Table (2009)
- Jerome XL - "King Sh#t" on De Laatste Dag (2010)
- Rakaa - "Mean Streak" on Crown of Thorns (2010)
- Hilltop Hoods - "Speaking in Tongues" on Drinking from the Sun (2012)
- House Shoes - "So Different / Moody Interlude" on Let It Go (2012)
- Run DMT - "This or That" on Union Of Opposites (2012)
- Rizzle Kicks - "Epic Dreamers' Remix" (2012)
- Slightly Stoopid - "Just Thinking" on Top Of The World (2012)
- Oh No - "Animals" on Disrupted Ads (2013)
- Morcheeba - "Face of Danger" on Head Up High (2013)
- Savoy - "Love Is Killing Me" on 1000 Years (2015)
- Krafty Kuts - "Hands High" on Hands High (EP)
- Cut Chemist - "Work My Mind" on Die Cut (EP) (2018)
- Slightly Stoopid - "Higher Now" on Everyday Life, Everyday People (2018)
- Ozomatli - "Libertad" on Libertad (EP) (2019)
- The Movement - "Break in the Glass" on Ways of the World (2019)
Images for kids
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Chali 2na in 2002
