Hopsin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hopsin
Hopsin performing in 2013
Background information
Birth name	Marcus Jamal Hopson
Born	(1985-07-18) July 18, 1985 (age 40) Los Angeles, California
Genres	Hip hop alternative hip hop hardcore hip hop
Occupation(s)	Rapper songwriter record producer music video director actor
Instruments	Vocals FL Studio
Years active	2001–present
Labels	Undercover Prodigy 300 Warner Bros. Funk Volume Ruthless
Children	1
Signature

Marcus Jamal Hopson (born July 18, 1985), known as Hopsin, is an American rapper, songwriter, and music producer. He is also a music video director and actor. Hopsin is from Los Angeles, California. He is famous for wearing white eye contacts in his music videos and during his shows.

Hopsin first signed with Ruthless Records, a record label in Los Angeles. Through them, he released his first album, Gazing at the Moonlight (2009). In the same year, he started his own independent music label called Funk Volume. He released his next two albums, Raw (2010) and Knock Madness (2013), with Funk Volume.

Later, he signed with Warner Records for his fourth album, Pound Syndrome (2015). This album was very successful, reaching the top 20 on the Billboard 200 chart. In 2016, Hopsin started a new label, Undercover Prodigy, with 300 Entertainment. He released his fifth album, No Shame (2017), through this new label.

Funk Volume also helped other artists like SwizZz, Dizzy Wright, and Jarren Benton release their music before the label closed in 2016. In 2020, Hopsin joined the board of directors for Artist Republik, a technology company focused on music.

Early Life and Music Start

Marcus Hopson was born on July 18, 1985, in Los Angeles. He grew up in the Panorama City area of Los Angeles. He went to James Monroe High School. Hopsin has loved skateboarding since he was twelve years old. You can often see him skateboarding in his music videos.

He started rapping when he was sixteen. By 2003, he began taking music more seriously. Many songs from his self-produced album Emurge were recorded that year. In 2004, Hopsin and friends were involved in a school prank at James Monroe High School. He spent 8 days in jail. After this, he decided to focus on his music career. He bought a microphone and started using FL Studio software to make beats. He says that Eminem was the rapper who first made him interested in hip hop music.

Music Career Journey

First Steps: Ruthless Records and Funk Volume

Hopsin began recording his first project, Emurge, in 2002. It was released locally in 2003. This album was never officially released. Hopsin signed with Ruthless Records in 2007. He started recording his first official album as early as 2004. His first single, "Pans in the Kitchen," came out on May 27, 2008.

His debut album, Gazing at the Moonlight, was released on October 27, 2009. It did not get much promotion. Soon after, Hopsin left Ruthless Records because he felt he wasn't getting enough support or money. Before leaving, Hopsin started his own independent label, Funk Volume, with Damien Ritter. SwizZz, Damien Ritter's younger brother and Hopsin's former classmate, was the first artist to join Funk Volume. In June 2009, Hopsin and SwizZz released a mixtape called Haywire to promote their new label. This mixtape became very popular online, being downloaded over 100,000 times.

Growing Success with Funk Volume

Hopsin released "Nocturnal Rainbows" on August 1, 2010. This was the first song from his second album, Raw. On October 8, 2010, he released a music video for "Sag My Pants," the second song from Raw. This video became a huge hit on YouTube, with over 37 million views. In the song, Hopsin playfully makes fun of other rappers.

His second album, Raw, was released on November 19, 2010. In March 2011, Hopsin went on a two-month tour across the country called the I Am RAW tour to promote the album. In July 2011, Hopsin released the fourth part of his "Ill Mind of Hopsin" video series. This video also got over 21 million views on YouTube. On October 31, 2011, Hopsin was featured in a mobile battle rap game called Battle Rap Stars.

Breaking Through with Knock Madness

Hopsin performing in Toronto on May 16, 2013

In January 2012, Hopsin appeared in Tech N9ne's music video for "Am I A Psycho?" on MTV2. In February 2012, Hopsin was featured on the cover of XXL magazine as one of their "Top 10 Freshmen." This list highlights new and rising rappers.

In July 2012, Hopsin released the fifth part of his "Ill Mind of Hopsin" video series. It was incredibly popular, getting over 1 million views in less than 24 hours and now has over 50 million views. In "Ill Mind of Hopsin 5", Hopsin talks about his feelings about young people and other rappers. This song also reached number 17 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Digital songs chart. In October 2012, Hopsin performed in a BET Cypher at the 2012 BET Hip Hop Awards.

Hopsin's album, Knock Madness, was released on November 26, 2013. It did well on the US Rap Charts. Other artists like Dizzy Wright, SwizZz, Jarren Benton, and Tech N9ne were featured on the album. Hopsin said this album has a more positive message. In late 2012, Hopsin and the Funk Volume artists went on a three-month world tour, performing 58 shows in 60 days across the United States, Europe, and Australia.

On July 18, 2013, Hopsin released "Ill Mind Six: Old Friend" on his YouTube channel. This video confirmed that Knock Madness would be released on November 26, 2013. Knock Madness debuted at number 76 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 12,000 copies in its first week. After the Knock Madness tour in December 2013, Hopsin planned to take a break from public promotions to focus on making music and finding himself.

Pound Syndrome and New Beginnings

On January 30, 2014, Hopsin was supposed to perform in Fort Collins, Colorado. He felt very sad and left the venue before the show. To make up for it, he performed a free show for fans in Fort Collins on July 11, 2015. He even dedicated a song called "Fort Collins" on his album Pound Syndrome to the city.

On July 1, 2014, Hopsin announced that "Ill Mind of Hopsin 7" would be released on July 18, 2014. He said it was the most honest song he had ever written. The video for "Ill Mind of Hopsin 7" received over 1 million views on YouTube in just one day. In this song, Hopsin shares his thoughts on religion and its connection to history.

Hopsin joked on social media that he was quitting rap and moving to Australia. However, on December 25, 2014, he released a video with Jarren Benton saying it was all a joke. He also announced his new album, Pound Syndrome, would be released in 2015.

On May 27, 2015, Hopsin confirmed in an interview that Pound Syndrome would be released on July 24. He said it was "definitely the best album that [he's] ever created." In June 2015, his songs "Sag My Pants" and "Ill Mind of Hopsin 5" were certified Gold by the RIAA, meaning they had sold over 500,000 copies. The first song from the album, "Crown Me," was released on June 1, 2015. The second song, "Fly," came out on July 8, 2015. In July 2015, Hopsin also signed a deal with Warner Bros. Records. Pound Syndrome was released on July 24, 2015, and debuted at number 17 on the Billboard 200, selling 17,000 copies in its first week.

New Labels: Undercover Prodigy and No Shame

In January 2016, Hopsin announced that his label, Funk Volume, was "officially dead" due to disagreements with his business partner, Damien Ritter. In March 2016, Hopsin released "Ill Mind of Hopsin 8." This song was a "diss track" aimed at Damien Ritter and Funk Volume. After this, Hopsin officially left Funk Volume and started a new label called Undercover Prodigy.

He released more songs with his new label, including "Bout the Business" (April 20), "Die This Way" (May 31), and "False Advertisement" (August 25). He also collaborated with Futuristic on the song "Scrollin" from Futuristic's album As Seen on the Internet on August 26.

In February 2017, Hopsin confirmed he was working on his next album. He released the songs "All Your Fault" and "Bus That" on April 17. On September 22, 2017, Hopsin released "The Purge," the first song from his fifth album. "Happy Ending" was released as the second song on October 13. In the same month, Hopsin signed a distribution deal with 300 Entertainment. On November 1, 2017, Hopsin released "Witch Doctor" and announced the title and cover of his fifth album, No Shame. The album was released on November 24, 2017, and reached number 42 on the US Billboard 200 chart.

After No Shame was released, Hopsin put out music videos for songs from the album. "Ill Mind of Hopsin 9" was released on the same day as the album. "Panorama City" and "Tell'em Who You Got It From" came out in January and February 2018. In July 2018, Hopsin was featured on a song and music video with Canadian rapper Dax called "YourWorthIt.org." In December 2018, Hopsin released the songs "Low-Key" and "Hell's Carol."

Taking a Break and Returning to Music

On January 28, 2019, Hopsin released another song with Dax called "You Should've Known." Hopsin then released "The Old Us" on February 28 and "Picasso" on May 8. On July 15, 2019, Hopsin released a new song called "I Don't Want It." In this song, he announced he would be taking a break from music to deal with personal challenges.

On February 16, 2020, Hopsin uploaded a video to his YouTube channel announcing his return to music and an upcoming album. On April 21, he released a new song called "Covid Mansion." In September 2020, Hopsin joined the advisory board of Artist Republik, a company that helps musicians connect and grow.

Acting Career Highlights

Hopsin started his acting career as an extra in movies and Disney Channel TV shows. He appeared in shows like John Tucker Must Die, Even Stevens, Lizzie McGuire, Cold Case, Malcolm in the Middle, and Gilmore Girls. His most notable work was on That's So Raven, where he worked for several years starting at age 15. He only had one speaking part during his time on the show.

He also appeared as a rapper in the 2009 movie Fame. In 2015, Hopsin had a role in the second season of the TV drama series Murder in the First.

Albums by Hopsin

Studio albums

• Gazing at the Moonlight (2009)
• Raw (2010)
• Knock Madness (2013)
• Pound Syndrome (2015)
• No Shame (2017)

Film and Television Appearances

Films

Television

Video games

See also

In Spanish: Hopsin para niños