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 39) 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

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

Hopsin first signed with Ruthless Records and released his first album, Gazing at the Moonlight (2009). In the same year, he started his own record label called Funk Volume. Through Funk Volume, he released his next two albums, Raw (2010) and Knock Madness (2013). 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 launched a new label called Undercover Prodigy with 300 Entertainment. He released his fifth album, No Shame (2017), through this label. Besides his own music, Funk Volume also helped other artists like SwizZz, Dizzy Wright, and Jarren Benton before the label closed in 2016. In 2020, Hopsin joined the board of a technology company called Artist Republik.

Early Life and Music Start

Marcus Hopson was born on July 18, 1985, in Los Angeles. He grew up in the Panorama City area. He went to James Monroe High School, where he was in special education classes.

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 and became serious about it by 2003. Many songs from his early album Emurge were recorded that year.

In 2004, Hopsin and some friends got into trouble for a school prank at James Monroe High School. After this, Hopsin decided to focus on his music career. He bought a microphone and started using music software called FL Studio. He says that the famous rapper Eminem made him interested in hip hop music.

Hopsin's Music Journey

Early Career and New Labels (2003–2009)

Hopsin began recording his first project, Emurge, in 2002, and it was released locally in 2003. It's very hard to find copies of this album today.

In 2007, Hopsin signed with Ruthless Records. He started recording his first official album as early as 2004. His first song from that album, "Pans in the Kitchen," came out in May 2008. His debut album, Gazing at the Moonlight, was released in October 2009. However, Hopsin felt he wasn't getting enough support or promotion from Ruthless Records, so he decided to leave.

Before leaving Ruthless Records, Hopsin started his own independent label, Funk Volume, with Damien Ritter. Damien's younger brother, SwizZz, who went to school with Hopsin, 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 (2010–2011)

Hopsin released "Nocturnal Rainbows" in August 2010, which was the first song from his second album, Raw. In October 2010, he released a music video for "Sag My Pants" on YouTube. This video became a huge hit, with over 37 million views. In the song, Hopsin playfully challenges other rappers like Lil Wayne and Drake. His second album, Raw, came out in November 2010. To promote it, Hopsin went on a two-month tour across the country in March 2011.

In July 2011, Hopsin released the fourth part of his popular "Ill Mind of Hopsin" video series. This video also got over 21 million views on YouTube. In it, he playfully challenges Tyler, the Creator. In October 2011, Hopsin was featured in a mobile battle rap game called Battle Rap Stars.

Breaking Through and Knock Madness (2012–2013)

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

In July 2012, Hopsin released "Ill Mind of Hopsin 5," which was a massive success. It got over 1 million views in less than 24 hours and now has over 50 million views. In this song, Hopsin talks about his feelings on young people and other rappers. The song even reached number 17 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Digital songs chart. In October 2012, Hopsin performed in a rap 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. The album featured other artists like Dizzy Wright, SwizZz, Jarren Benton, and Tech N9ne. Hopsin said this album had 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.

Hopsin also hinted in December 2012 that he was working on a project with Travis Barker. In January 2013, Funk Volume released a music video featuring all their artists for a song called "Funk Volume 2013."

On July 18, 2013, Hopsin released "Ill Mind Six: Old Friend" on YouTube, confirming the release date for Knock Madness. Knock Madness debuted at number 76 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 12,000 copies in its first week.

Pound Syndrome and New Directions (2014–2015)

On July 1, 2014, Hopsin announced "Ill Mind of Hopsin 7," saying it was the most honest song he had ever written. The video for this song got over 1 million YouTube views in one day. In "Ill Mind of Hopsin 7," Hopsin shares his thoughts on religion, history, and government.

Hopsin jokingly announced on Instagram that he was quitting rap and moving to Australia. However, on December 25, 2014, he released a video with Jarren Benton, inspired by the movie Dumb and Dumber To, revealing it was all a prank. He also announced his new album, Pound Syndrome, would be released in 2015.

In May 2015, Hopsin confirmed in an interview that Pound Syndrome would be released on July 24, calling it his "best album ever." In June 2015, his songs "Sag My Pants" and "Ill Mind of Hopsin 5" were certified Gold by the RIAA. The first song from the album, "Crown Me," was released on June 1, 2015, followed by "Fly" on July 8. In July 2015, Hopsin also signed a deal with Warner Bros. Records. Pound Syndrome debuted at number 17 on the Billboard 200, selling 17,000 copies in its first week.

New Label and No Shame (2016–2018)

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," a song where he expressed his feelings about the situation with Damien Ritter and Funk Volume. After this, Hopsin officially left Funk Volume and started a new label called Undercover Prodigy. He then released new songs like "Bout the Business," "Die This Way," and "False Advertisement."

In February 2017, Hopsin confirmed he was working on his next album and released singles "All Your Fault" and "Bus That." On September 22, 2017, he released "The Purge," the first song from his fifth album. The next song, "Happy Ending," came out 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 his new 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, including "Ill Mind of Hopsin 9," "Panorama City," and "Tell'em Who You Got It From." In July 2018, Hopsin appeared in 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."

Break and Return to Music (2019–present)

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

On February 16, 2020, Hopsin uploaded a video to YouTube saying he was back from his break and had a new album coming. On April 21, he released a new song called "Covid Mansion."

In September 2020, Hopsin joined the advisory board of Artist Republik, a music social networking company.

Acting Career

Hopsin started his acting career as an extra in movies and Disney Channel TV shows. He appeared in shows like 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 co-starring role in the second season of the TV drama series Murder in the First.

Discography

Studio albums

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

Filmography

Films

Television

Video games

Images for kids

• 

  Hopsin performing in Toronto on May 16, 2013

See also

In Spanish: Hopsin para niños