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Talib Kweli Greene was born on 3rd October in the year 1975. An American MC from Brooklyn, New York, he is better known as Talib Kweli. He is one of the best – known, successful and critically acclaimed rappers in alternative hip-hop of all times. There are various meanings attached to his name. The first name in Arabic means “seeker” or “student.” His middle name means “true” in Swahili. Through his work “Black Star,” Talib for the first time became well known and was recognised by the people. Since the inception of the “Black August Benefit Concert,” Talib has supported it and is a regular at the shows held there.
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About Talib Kweli
Talib as a child grew up in a highly educated atmosphere. Why wouldn't the household be of an educated atmosphere, when he has a father who is a professor of sociology and his mother, an English professor? As a youngster he was really into Afrocentric rappers, like De La Soul. He was also interested in the Native Tongues Posse and Gall, all of whom which he met in high school. Talib attended the Cheshire Academy, which was a boarding school in Connecticut. Later at the New York University, he learnt experimental theatre.
In the year 1997, Talib made his first ever appearance on Mood's (Cincinnati, Ohio group) album entitled “Doom.” Later at the same place, he met DJ Hi-Tek and then the two sped off their career by working together on “Reflection Eternal.”
He soon went back to New York and joined hands with Mos Def, which resulted in the formation of “Black Star.” Hi-Tek was employed to produce the pair's debut and the only album entitled “Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star.” It was released in the year 1998 and was critically acclaimed. Soon the duo parted ways but Hi-Tek and Talib continued to work together and came out with the album “Train of Thought,” in the year 2000. The album also garnered critical acclaim but only did modest sales.
The twosome, Talib and Hi-Tek also parted ways soon after their work “Train of Thought.” Talib was ready to start a solo career. The result was the 2002s “Quality,” which was a move towards mainstream music. The album was co - produced by DJ Quik and Kanye West. Talib was making his mark in the music industry by giving good and fabulous music. For the same album, he was praised and got wide spread critical acclaim. “Get By,” shot him up the ladder of fame.
He was getting popular day after day and also made many appearances on television shows. He was seen in MTV's Wild 'N Out, Chappelle's Show. Kweli also gave a guest appearance on Kanye West's immensely successful album “The College Dropout,” for the track “Get 'Em High.” Talib continued to grow further. Along with fellow rapper Mos Def, he bought Nkiru, a bookstore and later changed it to the Nkiru Centre for Education and Culture.
In the year 2004, he came out with “The Beautiful Struggle,” which didn't garner much success. The following year saw the release of “Right About Now: The Official Sucka Free Mix CD.” In the year 2006, he came out with “Liberation,” with Madlib as the producer. Next in the pipeline was “Eardrum,” released in the year 2007. It was a huge success. It acquired the #2 slot on the Billboard 200 charts.
March 2008 saw Talib being featured on the 9th Wonder and Buckshot track “Hold It Down.” His other releases in the offing are “Party Robot” and “Prisoner of Conscious.”
