Tech N9ne

He saw glimpses of success in the group 57th Street Rogue Dog Villians [sic] with their single "Let's Get Fucked Up."

Aaron Dontez Yates (born November 8, 1971), better known by his stage name Tech N9ne (pronounced "tech nine"), is an American rapper and singer.

Early in his career, Yates was a member of a group formed in 1991 called Black Mafia.

As a member of the group Nnutthowze, Aaron Yates signed with Perspective Records in 1993.

However, the group disbanded soon after being released from the label.

Yates signed with Qwest Records briefly before moving to JCOR Records.

In 1997, Yates joined the group the Regime, which was formed by rapper Yukmouth.

The following year, he was featured on the soundtrack for the film Gang Related.

In 1999, he and business partner Travis O'Guin founded the record label Strange Music.

He has sold over two million albums and has had his music featured in film, television, and video games.

Yates appeared on the song "The Anthem" by Sway & King Tech in 1999, which also featured artists RZA, Eminem, Xzibit, Pharoahe Monch, Jayo Felony, Chino XL, KRS-One, and Kool G. Rap.

Later that year, he and business partner Travis O'Guin founded the record label Strange Music.

In 2001, Yates released the studio album Anghellic on JCOR Records.

After disputes arose about the promotion of the album, Yates and his label severed ties with the JCOR with a deal that allowed them to retain the rights to the album.

The next year, he released Absolute Power, under a 50–50 joint venture between Strange Music and M.S.C. Music & Entertainment (which was founded by former Priority Records head Mark Cerami).

The album debuted number 79 on the Billboard 200.

The album's sales are said to have tripled following a campaign, going by the name of "F.T.I."

was started by the rapper and his label.

The campaign, which asked music listeners to legally download the album free through the artist's own website was in response to the anti-downloading campaign by the RIAA.

In 2006, Yates released the album Everready (The Religion).

The following year, he released Misery Loves Kompany.

Yates announced that the album was the first in a series of "Tech N9ne Collabos" albums that feature a wide range of guest appearances.

The following year, Yates released the album Killer.

That September, he exceeded one million album sales over his entire catalog.

Yates remarked of the accomplishment that, "It just reminded me of all the work we'd done in the past, up until now [...] I don't think it's sunken in yet. I've been celebrating for the last two days because that's a hell of an accomplishment. I've been planning success all my life. I'm not even a bit surprised, I'm happy about it. That just means I was right."

In 2009, he won the Left Field Woodie award at the mtvU Woodie Awards.

His stage name originated from the TEC-9 semi-automatic handgun, a name given to him by rapper Black Walt due to his fast-rhyming chopper style.

Yates later applied a deeper meaning to the name, stating that it stands for the complete technique of rhyme, with "tech" meaning technique and "nine" representing the number of completion.

A major influence of the chopper genre of rap music, he has featured many mainstream artists on his albums including E-40, Ice Cube, Three 6 Mafia, B.o.B., Twista, Busta Rhymes, Kendrick Lamar, Lil Wayne, T-Pain, Snoop Dogg, The Game, Wiz Khalifa, CeeLo Green, T.I., 2 Chainz, Corey Taylor of Slipknot, Eminem, Logic, and Boyz II Men.

Yates was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri.

He began rapping at a very early age, and would rap the letters of his name in order to remember how to spell it.

His father Carlton Cook was estranged from the family and his mother suffered from epilepsy and lupus when he was a child, which emotionally affected him and inspired him to "search for God".

He would explore abandoned buildings with his best friend, hoping to catch a ghost on film.

He attended Southwest High School in Kansas City.

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.

That October, he released K.O.D., an acronym for King of Darkness.

The album featured a dark overtone, as Yates was dealing with the illness of his mother.

An EP of new songs over unused beats from the K.O.D. album was released in 2010 as The Lost Scripts of K.O.D..

Later that year, Yates released his third Collabos album, The Gates Mixed Plate.