E-40 facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
E-40
|
|
|---|---|
E-40 in 2007
|
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Earl Tywone Stevens |
| Born | November 15, 1967 Vallejo, California, U.S |
| Genres |
|
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Years active | 1986–present |
| Labels | |
Earl Tywone Stevens (born November 15, 1967), known as E-40, is an American rapper. He helped start the rap group The Click. He also founded his own record label, Sick Wid It Records.
E-40 has released 27 studio albums. He has also appeared on many movie soundtracks. He has been a guest on other rap albums too. At first, he was an underground artist. His 1995 solo album, In a Major Way, helped him reach more people. In 1998, he started working with famous rappers from outside his home area. He became even more popular in 2006 with his song "Tell Me When to Go". This song was produced by Lil Jon.
Contents
Early life and beginnings
Earl Stevens was born in Vallejo, California. He grew up with his siblings. Their divorced mother worked three jobs to support them. He became interested in hip hop music after hearing "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang.
Starting in fourth grade, Stevens played the snare and bass drum. He finished high school in Vallejo in 1985. In high school, Stevens played baseball. He also recorded music with his siblings and sold their recordings from his car. After high school, Stevens went to Grambling State University for one year in 1986.
Music career highlights
Forming The Click and early albums
Stevens started his rap career as E-40 in 1986. He formed a group called Most Valuable Players with his cousin B-Legit, sister Suga-T, and brother D-Shot. They impressed students at Grambling State with a rap remix of the school song. They also performed at a talent show.
The group later changed its name to The Click. They released an EP called Let's Side in 1990. This EP was released on Sick Wid It Records. E-40 had founded this independent record label. In 1992, The Click released another album, Down and Dirty. In 1993, E-40 released his first solo album, Federal.
In 1993, The Click had a popular song called "Captain Save Them Thoe". Even though E-40 was very popular on the West Coast, he was not as well known across the country. Only two of his songs, "1-Luv" and "Things'll Never Change", made it onto the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Until 1997, E-40 mostly worked with rappers from the Bay Area. Then, he released a collection called Southwest Riders. This album featured rap artists from the Bay Area and the southern U.S. He continued to work with southern rappers in 1998. He appeared as a guest on albums by Southern artists.
Rise to mainstream fame
In 2003, E-40 started hosting E-Feezy Radio. This was a weekly show on a San Francisco hip-hop radio station, KMEL. The show played Bay Area hip hop music until 2008.
After leaving Jive Records, E-40 signed with Lil Jon's BME Recordings and Reprise Records. After this, he appeared on Lil Jon's song "Snap Yo Fingers". This song became a big hit, reaching the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Then, E-40's song "Tell Me When to Go" became very popular across the United States. E-40 appeared on TV shows like MTV's Direct Effect and BET's 106 & Park. His album My Ghetto Report Card was released in March 2006. It reached #1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It also reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 200 chart.
In March 2010, E-40 released two albums: Revenue Retrievin': Day Shift and Revenue Retrievin': Night Shift. Both albums featured other famous artists like Too Short and Snoop Dogg. In March 2011, he released two more albums: Revenue Retrievin': Overtime Shift and Revenue Retrievin': Graveyard Shift.
Recent projects
In 2012, E-40 released three solo albums. These were part of The Block Brochure: Welcome to the Soil series. He also released two albums with Too Short. One of the songs, "Function", became very successful. It reached #21 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.
The Block Brochure albums featured many guest artists. These included Snoop Dogg, Too Short, and Kendrick Lamar. In 2013, E-40 released the 4th, 5th, and 6th parts of The Block Brochure series.
In 2018, E-40 announced a new album series called "Definitions". He released The Gift of Gab in August 2018. His next album, Practice Makes Paper, came out in July 2019. The third album in the series, Rule of Thumb, was released in November 2023. In 2019, he appeared in the music video for "West Coast" by G-Eazy.
Business ventures
E-40 has also been busy in business. With former NFL player Chester McGlockton, he opened a Fatburger restaurant in Pleasant Hill, California. This restaurant is now closed.
E-40 has also been a spokesperson for Landy Cognac. He opened a nightclub in Downtown San Jose called Ambassador's Lounge, which is also now closed.
In late 2007, E-40 started a line of energy drinks called "40 Water." He has also created several drinks in the wine industry. These include a red wine blend called "Function" and a moscato wine. These wines are sold under his real name, Earl Stevens. In December 2014, he released a pre-mixed drink called Sluricane Hurricane. This drink was inspired by a hit song from his group The Click. In December 2015, E-40 released his own brand of malt liquor called "E-40".
E-40 is also an investor. He has his own investment company. He was one of the first investors in social media apps like Clubhouse and Convoz.
Personal life
E-40 lives in Danville, California, with his wife Tracey. They got married in 1991. They have two children, Earl Jr. (who raps as Droop-E) and Emari (Issue), who also became rappers.
E-40 is a big fan of the San Francisco 49ers (football), San Francisco Giants (baseball), and Golden State Warriors (basketball). On June 25, 2022, the Giants gave away 15,000 bobblehead figures of E-40 at a game. He also threw the first pitch at that game.
Film and TV appearances
E-40 has appeared in several films and television shows.
Film
- Rhyme & Reason (1997)
- The Breaks (1999)
- 3 Strikes (2000)
- Obstacles (2000)
- Malibooty (2003)
- Hair Show (2004)
- Survival of the Illest (2004)
- Dead Heist (2007)
- The Adventures of Tha Blue Carpet Treatment (2008)
- Ghostride the Whip (2008)
- What Are the Chances? (2016)
- Don't Get Caught (2018)
- 16 Bars the Movie (2023)
- 88 Fresh (2023)
Television
- Incredible Crew
- The Jamie Foxx Show – season 5, episode 12
- MTV's My Block: Bay Area
- Hell's Kitchen
- Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives – season 28, episode 19 "Playin' Chicken"
- Blindspotting
Sick Wid It Records
| Sick Wid It | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1989 |
| Founder | E-40 |
| Status | Active |
| Distributor(s) | Caroline Distribution |
| Genre | West Coast hip hop, hyphy |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Location | Vallejo, California |
In 1989, E-40 started his own hip hop record label called Sick Wid It.
Artists on Sick Wid It Records
Former artists
- Nef the Pharaoh
- OMB Peezy
- Al Kapone
- Celly Cel
- D-Shot
- Funk Mobb
- Little Bruce
- Playaz Tryna Strive
- Suga-T
- Mr. Malik
