Producer, multi-instrumentalist, and baritone rapper/singer
Shafiq Husayn has contemporized and transmuted the funk of early-'70s
Sly & the Family Stone and
Stevie Wonder, bossa nova, avant-garde jazz, and Afro-beat, among other inspirations, all through a cosmopolitan hip-hop filter. One of the few musicians with bicoastal roots in early hip-hop, he ran with two of the form's most powerful organizations, Uncle Jamm's Army and the Zulu Nation, before he initiated his production career with
Ice-T, heard most prominently on the Top 20, gold-selling album
O.G. Original Gangster (1991). The next decade, as one-third of
Sa-Ra,
Husayn made progressive material for dozens of artists including
Jurassic 5,
John Legend, and
Erykah Badu, and with The Hollywood Recordings (2007) and
Nuclear Evolution: The Age of Love (2009), he continued to advance R&B and rap well outside the tightening strictures of commercial channels. The same year that
Sa-Ra issued their second album,
Husayn released the equally remarkable solo set
Shafiq En' A-Free-Ka. As his group wound down, he continued to record frequently with other artists like
Bilal,
Anderson .Paak, and also
Robert Glasper Experiment, whose Black Radio (2012) won a Grammy for Best R&B Album. After an assortment of overtures amid more commissioned work,
Husayn finally made his full solo return with the wide-scoped
The Loop (2019).
Born in Cleveland, Ohio,
Shafiq Husayn moved around during his upbringing due to his step-father's involvement in the military. When he was three years old, his family relocated to Los Angeles, but he also spent lasting formative time in the Bronx, enabling tight musical bonds to be made on opposing sides of the country. On the West Coast, he went to the arena parties thrown by Uncle Jamm's Army, where he linked up with
Ice-T; while on the East Coast, he carried records for DJ
Afrika Islam and became a member of
Afrika Bambaataa's Zulu Nation.
Husayn's recorded debut was made in 1990 as a member of Nile Kings, who released the hard-hitting "Dropping Bombs" 12" through
Ice-T's Epic-distributed Rhyme Syndicate label. Although the group soon split,
Husayn -- then known as
SLJ, and eventually Slej tha Ruffedge -- firmly established his production career. During the next several years, he worked closely with
Ice-T and Rhyme Syndicate affiliates such as
Donald D and
King Tee, as well as
Lord Finesse. He co-produced a large portion of
Ice-T's number 15 pop hit
O.G. Original Gangster, including the title track, and was subsequently behind the sound effects on
Ice's explicit protest song with
Body Count, "Cop Killer."
Another major turning point for
Husayn occurred while working at
Ice-T's studio with the group
Raw Breed. He produced the majority of the sessions, and was put in the path of Hollis, Queens native
Om'Mas Keith, with whom he co-produced two tracks. The 1997 Warner Bros. release
Blood, Sweat & Tears consequently laid the foundation for
Sa-Ra Creative Partners, or simply
Sa-Ra, consisting of
Husayn,
Keith, and South L.A. dweller
Taz Arnold. Together and separately throughout the 2000s,
Sa-Ra developed and advanced a left-field alternative to commercial R&B and rap. They produced, remixed, and appeared on material by
Jurassic 5,
Pharoahe Monch,
N.E.R.D., Platinum Pied Pipers,
John Legend, and
Erykah Badu, among many others. Their own material, highlighted by the single "Glorious" (2004) and the full-lengths The Hollywood Recordings (2007) and
Nuclear Evolution: The Age of Love (2009), were likewise among the most progressive recordings of the decade. Only four months after the latter album was released,
Husayn made his solo debut with
Shafiq En' A-Free-Ka, featuring input from
Keith and
Sa-Ra associates such as
Thundercat,
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, and a pre-fame
Ty Dolla $ign.
The Loop, the follow-up to
Shafiq En' A-Free-Ka, was soon in the works, but its finalization was prevented in part by other commitments.
Bilal,
the Gaslamp Killer,
Blu, and
Keith all issued projects during the early 2010s with help from
Husayn. Additionally,
Husayn co-wrote and voiced the introduction to
Robert Glasper Experiment's Black Radio, winner of the 2012 Grammy award for Best R&B Album. As
Husayn worked intermittently on his second album, Fresh Selects hosted Pre-Alignment, Vol. 1: Beatstrumentals and Dialog (A Prelude to the Loop). The free digital download contained appearances from Breezy Lovejoy (before he became known as
Anderson .Paak), as well as rapper
Krondon, who continued to work with
Husayn as a duo. Under the name
White Boiz, the two released Neighborhood Wonderful on Stones Throw in 2015. Additional previews of
The Loop arrived on 12" in 2014 and 2016 through the Eglo label. By the end of 2018,
Husayn had also recorded with
The Blueprint with
Blu and significantly lengthened his list of credits with artists such as
Ty Dolla $ign, trumpeter
Josef Leimberg, and drummer
Chris Dave. In 2019, through Eglo in the U.K. and Nature Sounds in the U.S.,
Husayn released
The Loop. Another uplifting family affair beaming with positivity, the album featured many of the same collaborators heard throughout
Husayn's work, including
Om'Mas Keith,
Jimetta Rose,
Bilal,
Erykah Badu,
Anderson .Paak, and
Fatima. ~ Andy Kellman