Godfather Buried Alive, an Album by Shyne. Released 10 August 2004 on Def Jam (catalog no. B0002962-02; CD). Genres: East Coast Hip Hop. Featured peformers: Anthony 'Wolf' Jones (executive producer).
. Moses Michael Levi Barrow (born Jamal Michael Barrow; November 8, 1979)is a rapper better known by his Shyne. Barrow was born in, but moved to New York as a child to live with his mother, and began his music career in the. His father is attorney and politician, since 2008. Shyne and his mother lived in the neighborhood of, where he became a musician and rapper after being discovered in a barbershop by Imani Hayley. On the verge of releasing his debut album, he was involved in a nightclub incident on December 27, 1999, and in March 2001 he was convicted of assault and sentenced to 10 years in prison. His 2000 debut album was still a success, and he continued to record music while incarcerated.
While serving his prison sentence, Shyne became interested in Judaism, and later became observant, practicing, officially changing his name to Moses Michael Levi Barrow in 2006. After being released from prison in 2009, he was deported to as a non-citizen felon. He has since performed in Jerusalem and Ukraine, and continued to release albums. Contents.
Early life Shyne was born Jamal Michael Barrow on November 8, 1979 in to Frances Imeon Myvette and, who were not married. Barrow divided his time between his mother in Brooklyn and his politician father, who was elected in 2008 as the of Belize, making him the first black leader of the country. Shyne's mother is the sister of, one of Dean Barrow's long-time political colleagues in Belize.
Barrow's middle name comes from his uncle. Barrow's mother moved to the United States when he was three years old, leaving her son with his father who was busy with politics which left young Shyne between the care of his mother's brother Michael and father's sister Denise, in Belize City. When he was 8 years old, Barrow moved to to live with his mother in. Shyne would spend summers in Belize with his father After he moved to New York, he began to develop a strong interest in the hip-hop culture of the 1980s and 1990s. Music career 1997-1999: Career beginnings and signing to Bad Boy In 1998, while Barrow was in a, he was discovered by producer, who was working on 's first posthumous album,.
He quickly took Barrow to, where signed him on the spot. It was reported that Shyne received millions of dollars, 3 cars of his choice and 2 homes just for signing. The contract also included a 5 deal. This event caused a small media shockwave. Not long after, Shyne began making appearances on recordings made by his label-mates.
He was notably featured on 's second album, (1999), and on a of 's 'Sittin At Home'. In the same year he featured on chief executive ' debut album.
1999–2008: Shyne, prison, and Godfather Buried Alive. This section of a needs additional for. Please help by adding. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially or harmful. ( July 2015) On December 27, 1999, Shyne, along with Combs and his then girlfriend, were involved in a high-profile incident at a club.
Three people were injured. Shyne was charged with attempted murder, assault, and reckless endangerment. Shyne released his in September 2000.
The album featured from and 's, as well as from Bad Boy's in house producers. Shyne's self-titled debut album was recorded prior to the rapper's arrest. It made 's number five spot on the charts and sold more than 900,000 copies. In July 2001, Shyne was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Combs was acquitted of weapons charges in the case. While many labels met with Shyne while he was at the, the rapper ultimately signed with for a $3 million contract. In 2004, Shyne released his second album, while imprisoned.
The album, recorded prior to imprisonment and partially over the phone, sold 434,000 copies and hit No. 1 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop chart. 2009-present: Release from prison and third album Upon his early release in 2009 from his 10-year prison sentence, the Belize native was deported to his homeland as a non-citizen felon; he had never become a US citizen. He was represented by Harvard professor and attorney in his attempt to forestall deportation and later to regain entry. On February 16, 2010, Shyne signed a seven-figure deal with.
'We are excited about working with Shyne, he's a revered Hip Hop Star and we want to give him the attention he deserves.' Said Steven 'Steve-O' Carless, national lifestyle director of Def Jam, in a call from his New York Office. After a trip to Jerusalem in 2010, where he converted to, Shyne collaborated with Israeli reggae and rock musician on his single 'Messiah', released in April 2010. He released 'Roller Song' in 2010. He later announced that he was recording two for release in 2010. Messiah was set to be the first of his 2010 release schedule, while Gangland, was set to be his second.
In October 2010, Shyne criticized Def Jam and announced hopes of signing to. Shyne said, I'm definitely trying to get with Cash Money.I'm not signed to Def Jam anyway, I just need to find another distributor. I might just have Cash Money do everything. That's the beauty about being in the business for yourself. You can decide where you want to go and what you want to do. Although he blamed Def Jam CEO for his frustration, later that month Shyne issued an apology. In November 2010, Birdman said that Shyne's deportation had stalled his Cash Money deal, as it would prevent him from appearing in the US.
In November 2010, Shyne was living in Jerusalem, where he underwent a formal conversion to and arranged further studies with rabbis. He had studied seriously with rabbis while in prison and adopted the Jewish laws to create boundaries and order in his life. He officially changed his name to Moses Levi to reflect his commitment to Judaism. Shyne made a surprise guest appearance in the Matisyahu and concert in 's Kikar Safra on June 23, 2011. He rapped into Matisyahu's set for 'King Without a Crown'.
He shouted 'Free, Free ' to thunderous applause before he exited the stage. Matisyahu and Shyne have shared Judaism and have become best friends. They have discussed collaborating more frequently in the future. In August 2011, Shyne appeared on the track 'Outro', from 's platinum-selling ninth studio album (2011), along with,. In December 2011, Shyne said signing to Cash Money Records 'is still a possibility'. In March 2012, Shyne and finally reconciled.
The two were photographed together at Fashion Week in Paris; Diddy tweeted, 'Me and Shyne Po front row at Kenzo #ParisIsBurning RT to da world!!!!' In April 2012, Shyne traveled to, where he was a featured speaker at a conference on inter-religious understanding.
The conference – called Global Winds of Change: Religions' Role in Today's World;The Challenges in Democracies and Secular Societies – brought together members of the world's many faiths to discuss the role of religion in modern society., a member of the Ukrainian parliament and the President of the, hosted the three-day event. In October 2012, Shyne endorsed for president of the United States, faulting incumbent for not doing anything to prevent the rapper's deportation to Belize. In 2012, Shyne released a mixtape, Gangland. Shyne called out, due to his blasphemous Black Bar Mitzvah mixtape, as well as Jewish-Canadian rapper. He has recorded towards, Swag Blanket's DLSupreme. In November 2012, Shyne became involved in a with West Coast rapper, after Shyne described West Coast rapper 's universally acclaimed debut album as 'trash'.
Shyne dissed Game on tracks such as 'Bury Judas' and 'Psalms 68 (Guns & Moses)'. These tracks reflected his study of Judaism. In December 2012 noted Shyne on its list of rapper stars who had suffered the '30 worst fall-offs in rap history', ranking him as 23. But Shyne's Gangland mixtape appeared to show a revival of his popularity; it was downloaded more than 100,000 times on DatPiff.com, earning him a 'Gold' ranking. Personal life Club New York shooting On December 27, 1999, Shyne and his Mentor/label bossand his then-girlfriend, were involved in a shooting incident at a Manhattan club that resulted in three people being injured. Shyne, then 20 with an album pending release, was charged with and later convicted of attempted murder, assault, and reckless endangerment. Combs was arrested but acquitted at trial of charges.
Shyne's debut album was released in 2000 and was successful. Incarceration On June 1, 2001, Shyne was sentenced to ten years in prison. He began serving his sentence at the maximum security prison in. This seemed to spell the end of his rap career; his legal team's appeal for a suspended sentence ultimately failed.
Shyne severed all ties with Sean Combs and Bad Boy Records. He had his name legally changed, in early March 2006, from his birthname of Jamal Michael Barrow to Moses Michael Levi Barrow. He had been studying Judaism in prison with rabbis. Barrow has said that from the age of thirteen, he began to identify as an Israelite after learning that his great-grandmother was from. He has speculated that she may have been among the, ancient Ethiopian Jews.
As a teenager, he began to pray daily and to study Judaism on his own. He formally converted to Orthodox Judaism in Jerusalem in 2010. In 2006 Shyne went to court to challenge New York's application of the, which had resulted in his assets being frozen and limiting his ability to make record deals and income. He and his lawyers argued that allowing Shyne to make deals with record producers would enable him to pay a higher potential settlement to victims of the night club shooting, who were separately pursuing a civil suit against him. Despite his conviction for crimes, his incarceration drew many sympathizers, as well as the admiration of many in the hip hop community.
His adherence to the, which he referred to several times on his eponymous debut album, earned him a hardcore reputation in the prison community and on the streets. Even while incarcerated, he was visited by representatives of record labels who wanted to make deals. Shyne was not without detractors. Fellow New York rapper called him a 'punk' and made light of his situation and his part in the 'night club incident.' Shyne retaliated on his 2004 release Godfather Buried Alive, with a track entitled 'For the Record'.
Release and deportation On August 4, 2009, Shyne was released to his former producer Nick Dahms. A Manhattan judge signed the order that would schedule Shyne for release on October 6, 2009.
He had served more than 9 years of a 10-year sentence, on which no terms for post-release supervision had originally been placed. At the request of the, a mandatory probation period of at least two and half years was added to Shyne's sentence. Shyne and his attorney, Oscar Michelen, had hoped to avoid probation. The rapper was transferred to the, where he spent the last months of his incarceration, from where he had been held for the parole hearing. Some of the community rallied to celebrate his release, and the events were followed by media. On October 6, 2009, Shyne was released from New York State custody. He was immediately taken into Federal custody.
He was detained by at a 'detention facility in Western New York State'. At least one source revealed that the facility in question was the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility in. According to his attorney, Federal officials were reviewing the rapper's immigration status and making a determination on whether or not he would be to his native Belize. Shyne had a but had never become a citizen. There was speculation that Shyne might have been released on bail in the U.S. While his case was being resolved.
Shyne's uncle, said that the family had prepared for the rapper's potential return to Belize. He also revealed that Shyne and his representatives had been expecting to be intercepted by ICE officials upon his release and had deferred members of his legal team to prepare the necessary documents in an effort to deal with this situation., Belize's Prime Minister and Shyne's estranged father, sent a petition to New York Governor to pardon his son. In 2008 Governor Paterson had pardoned rapper who, in a similar situation, also faced deportation. Barrow stated he had been assured that the Governor received his letter and that his request was under consideration, but that he did not expect to have any influence in swaying the decision. The family said they had sought the assistance of, a professor and part of President 's circle.
On October 15, 2009, Finnegan released a statement indicating that all legal matters regarding the case had been turned over to Ogletree. Shyne was deported to Belize on October 28, 2009, though he continued to fight for residency in the United States.
In February 2010, the rapper was refused entry into the due to his conviction as a felon. He had begun his journey in, but was deported upon arrival in the UK after immigration officials refused to allow him to enter the country. In November 2010, Shyne was living in, having converted to and changing his name officially to ' Moses Michael Levi. He spent his time learning the and stated that he spends up to 12 hours a day studying it. In 2011 he performed there, forming a collaboration with Matisyahu. In December 2011, almost 12 years after the initial shooting, Matthew 'Scar' Allen was shot and killed outside of Brooklyn's Footprints nightclub.
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With a bevy of behind-bars interviews, Shyne, incarcerated for the past few years in upstate New York’s Clinton Correctional Facility in connection with the infamous 1999 J-Lo/Puffy club shootout, created a groundswell of hype this summer around his mysteriously created comeback album. After Godfather Buried Alive shot to number one in its first week, though, wardens at the jail apparently caught on to the former Bad Boy emcee’s game and cut off his phone and media privileges. Without the benefit of hype, the album now must stand alone on its merits if it is to extend Shyne Po’s bubble until his release from jail as many as six years down the line — a lofty task to ask of a record conceived and thrown together entirely while the artist was behind bars. more: A quick listen reveals an album recorded primarily as a tormented Jamal Barrow awaited sentencing for his alleged crime, but a handful of vocals recorded through the phone from jail (“Buried Alive,” “For the Record”) fill in some blanks on what still feels like a largely incomplete album.
“Buried alive” in jail, Shyne’s worldview is even darker than what was found on his debut, 2000’s Shyne, perhaps Bad Boy’s darkest non-Biggie release. Accordingly, Godfather operates with little of the crime-is-fun giddiness of his newly sworn rival 50 Cent and pals, instead opting for Biggie-like cautiousness.
A few compelling tracks offer dark jewels of insight matched with appropriately dark beats, particularly the Buckwild-produced, Bob Marley-flavored “Quasi O.G.,” in which Shyne shows signs of a burgeoning political awareness while making astute observations on the state of black America. Addressing those who would pass negative judgment on his criminal record, Shyne suggests he’s “just carrying on the tradition of Joe Kennedy/ Bootlegging, ties with the mob and shit.” Elsewhere, “Edge” and “Godfather” hold down the album’s second half with tight flows over well-used beats from producers Charlemagne and Yogi. But there are some really bad moments. Why anyone with a rep on the line would want to fuck with Irv Gotti and Ashanti is perplexing.
Yett “Jimmy Choo,” a mind-numbing ode to women’s fashion produced by Irv and featuring Ashanti that is Godfather‘s worst track, has been made into its first video. “Martyr,” produced by Chucky Thompson and the unknown Moses Levy, also has an insipid, tuneless hook that overburdens an already below-grade track. Surprisingly, the hack-ish Swizz Beats comes with some heat, chopping some eerie strings into one of the album’s best backdrops on “Shyne,” and Just Blaze does his usual good work on “Here with Me” and “Diamonds and Mack 10s.” But Shyne brings little to the table on the latter two other than cliched gangsterisms.
That might be what the fans want and expect from Shyne, but it’s a disappointing turn after the promise he shows on earlier tracks like “Quasi O.G.”.