Tech N9ne facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tech N9ne
Tech N9ne performing in 2018
Background information
Birth name	Aaron Dontez Yates
Born	(1971-11-08) November 8, 1971 (age 53) Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
Genres	Hip hop rap rock hardcore hip hop horrorcore chopper
Occupations	Rapper singer songwriter actor
Years active	1991–present
Labels	Strange RBC JCOR Interscope Qwest Perspective A&M Warner Bros.
Signature

Aaron Dontez Yates (born November 8, 1971), known as Tech N9ne (pronounced "tech nine"), is an American rapper and singer. In 1999, he and his business partner Travis O'Guin started their own record label called Strange Music. He has sold more than two million albums. His music has been used in movies, TV shows, and video games. In 2009, he won an award called the Left Field Woodie at the mtvU Woodie Awards.

His stage name comes from the TEC-9 semi-automatic handgun. Another rapper, Black Walt, gave him this name because of his very fast rhyming style, known as chopper. Yates later said his name means "complete technique of rhyme." He explained that "tech" means technique and "nine" stands for the number of completion.

Early Life

Yates was born and grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. He started rapping when he was very young. He would rap the letters of his name to help him remember how to spell it. His father, Carlton Cook, was not part of the family. His mother had health problems like epilepsy and lupus when he was a child. This made him feel emotional and inspired him to "search for God." He would explore old, empty buildings with his best friend, hoping to film a ghost. He went to Southwest High School in Kansas City.

Career Highlights

Early Career and Starting Strange Music (1991–2001)

When he first started, Yates was part of a group called Black Mafia in 1991. He had some success with the group 57th Street Rogue Dog Villians. Later, as a member of Nnutthowze, Aaron Yates signed with Perspective Records in 1993. But the group broke up soon after. Yates then signed with Qwest Records for a short time before moving to JCOR Records.

In 1997, Yates joined a group called the Regime. This group was started by rapper Yukmouth. The next year, he was featured on the soundtrack for the movie Gang Related. Yates also appeared on the song "The Anthem" by Sway & King Tech in 1999. This song also featured famous artists like RZA, Eminem, Xzibit, and Lil Wayne. Later that year, he and his business partner Travis O'Guin started their own record label, Strange Music.

Growing Popularity (2001–2005)

In 2001, Yates released his album Anghellic on JCOR Records. After some disagreements about how to promote the album, Yates and his label ended their partnership with JCOR. They made a deal that allowed them to keep the rights to the album. The next year, he released Absolute Power. This album was a joint project between Strange Music and M.S.C. Music & Entertainment. The album first appeared at number 79 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album's sales greatly increased after a campaign called "F.T.I." was started by Tech N9ne and his label. This campaign encouraged music fans to legally download the album for free from the artist's website. It was a response to the anti-downloading campaigns by the RIAA.

Independent Success and Collabos Albums (2006–2011)

Tech N9ne in 2006

In 2006, Yates released the album Everready (The Religion). The next year, he released Misery Loves Kompany. Yates announced that this album was the first in a series called "Tech N9ne Collabos" albums. These albums feature many different guest artists.

The next year, Yates released the album Killer. By September of that year, he had sold over one million albums throughout his career. Yates said he was happy about this achievement. He had been planning for success his whole life and wasn't surprised. Yates released his second Collabos album, Sickology 101, in April 2009.

Yates later performed at the Rock The Bells 2009 Festival and the tenth annual Gathering of the Juggalos. In October, he released K.O.D., which stands for King of Darkness. This album had a dark mood because Yates was dealing with his mother's illness. An EP of new songs using unused beats from the K.O.D. album was released in 2010. It was called The Lost Scripts of K.O.D.. Later that year, Yates released his third Collabos album, The Gates Mixed Plate. In October, he released his second EP, Seepage. On December 23, he released his first mixtape, Bad Season. On June 7, 2011, Yates released All 6's and 7's. This album featured many hip-hop and rock artists, including B.o.B, E-40, Snoop Dogg, Hopsin, T-Pain, Lil Wayne, and Deftones.

In 2011, Yates said he planned to release his fourth Collabos album, Welcome to Strangeland. This album would feature all the artists from Strange Music. He also mentioned future albums like K.A.B.O.S.H. and 816 Boyz. In July 2011, Yates wrote that Rick Ross agreed to be on a song for the K.A.B.O.S.H. album. He also hoped to work with Jay-Z on that album. He said the K.A.B.O.S.H. album would be a rock album.

Tech N9ne was featured on Lil Wayne's album Tha Carter IV on the song "Interlude." This song included verses from Tech N9ne and André 3000. Lil Wayne said that he and Tech N9ne became like brothers when Yates visited him in jail. Tech N9ne believed the song would help many new fans discover his music.

EPs, Something Else, and Special Effects (2012–2015)

Tech N9ne performs at The Blue Note in Columbia, Missouri, in 2013

In 2012, Tech N9ne talked about his plans. He confirmed the release of Klusterfuk, the K.A.B.O.S.H. album, and a new solo album. He was also featured on the song "Edge of Destruction" with Twista on Machine Gun Kelly's first album.

On September 18, Tech N9ne released an EP called "E.B.A.H." (Evil Brain Angel Heart). On October 30, he released another EP called Boiling Point. He announced his thirteenth album would be Something Else. The first song from the album was "B.I.T.C.H.", which stands for Breaking In To Colored Houses, and featured T-Pain. The album was released on July 30, 2013, and received great reviews. The album was divided into three parts: Earth, Water & Fire. It featured guest artists like B.o.B, Big K.R.I.T., CeeLo Green, the Doors, Game, Kendrick Lamar, Serj Tankian, T-Pain, and Wiz Khalifa.

Tech N9ne announced a new "Independent Grind" tour in January 2014. This tour included Freddie Gibbs, Krizz Kaliko, and Jarren Benton. The tour ran from April 9 to June 28, ending in Kansas City. Also in 2014, Yates released Strangeulation, the fifth album in his Collabos series.

In April 2015, Yates confirmed that Eminem would be on a song called "Speedom (Worldwide Choppers 2)." The song was released on April 20, 2015, to support his upcoming album, Special Effects. This album was released on May 4, 2015. Tech N9ne said Eminem worked on the song for free. In return, Yates would be a guest on one of Eminem's songs for a future project. Yates said he was "flabbergasted" that Eminem respected his music so much.

On May 4, 2015, Tech N9ne released Special Effects. The album featured guest artists like Corey Taylor, B.o.B, Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz, T.I., Hopsin, E-40, Yo Gotti, Audio Push, and Eminem. It also included artists from his Strange Music label like Krizz Kaliko.

A Special Effects tour started in early April 2015. Tech N9ne was joined on tour by Murs, Chris Webby, Krizz Kaliko, Zuse, and King 810.

Recent Albums (2018–Present)

On March 2, 2018, Tech N9ne released Planet, which was his 20th studio album. On April 19, 2019, he released N9na, his 21st album. Almost a year later, on April 10, 2020, his 22nd album, Enterfear, was released. On July 29, 2020, he was featured on "CMFT Must Be Stopped", a song by Slipknot singer Corey Taylor. On October 23, 2020, Tech N9ne released a new project called Fear Exodus.

On October 8, 2021, Tech N9ne released an album called "Asin9ne". This album featured guest artists like Lil Wayne, Mumu Fresh, Snow Tha Product, Russ, E-40, and even actor Dwayne Johnson.

Tech N9ne also appeared on fellow Kansas City area musician Samantha Fish's 2021 album Faster. He rapped on the song "Loud."

On May 3, 2022, at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Tech N9ne announced his upcoming album Bliss. He performed a song from the album called "They Know Meh" with another Kansas City rapper, The Popper.

Bliss was released on July 28, 2023. The album included guest artists like Conway the Machine, Joyner Lucas, Kim Dracula, and Qveen Herby.

On May 7, 2024, Yates was featured on the Falling in Reverse song “Ronald” from their 2024 album Popular Monster. He appears in the music video as a God-like character. Yates will also join Falling in Reverse on their tour in Europe and North America.

On July 12, 2024, Yates released a music collaboration album called COSM.

Music Style

Yates is known for his unique rhyme schemes and very fast rapping, called the Chopper style. Music experts say his techniques show his "wide-ranging, mind-blowing flows." One reviewer called his style "bizarre hardcore rap."

Yates has said that he creates his flow patterns to sound like percussion when he raps. After hearing a song's music, he would come up with different patterns and then "fill in" the actual words.

Yates says he is influenced by old school hip hop artists like N.W.A, Public Enemy, and Eric B. & Rakim. He also enjoys other types of music. He lists The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Elton John, AC/DC, and Metallica as influences. He has said, "I love beautiful music, beautiful music no matter what type."

Tech N9ne often works with rappers from his record label Strange Music, such as Krizz Kaliko and Stevie Stone. He also collaborates with underground rappers from his hometown, Kansas City. He has worked with many famous artists like E-40, Ice Cube, Lil Wayne, Twista, Eminem, Busta Rhymes, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, Machine Gun Kelly, Yelawolf, T-Pain, Wiz Khalifa, and Insane Clown Posse.

Tech N9ne has also worked with rock and metal musicians. These include Serj Tankian from System of a Down, Corey Taylor from Slipknot, Chino Moreno and Stephen Carpenter from Deftones, Jonathan Davis from Korn, Five Finger Death Punch, and Falling in Reverse.

Personal Life

Yates got married in 1995 but separated in 2005. He filed for divorce in 2015, and it was finalized in November 2017. On October 23, 2024, he married his longtime girlfriend Kristen. They have two daughters together. Yates is a big supporter of Kansas City culture and its professional sports teams. These include the Kansas City Chiefs (football), Kansas City Royals (baseball), and Sporting Kansas City (soccer). Before the Chiefs played in the 2019 AFC Championship game, he released a song called "Red Kingdom."

Discography

Filmography

Documentaries

Film

Television

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Tech N9ne para niños