Charles Hamilton (American rapper)

Charles Eddie-Lee Hamilton Jr. (born November 10, 1987) is an American rapper from Cleveland, Ohio. He released his debut mixtape, Crash Landing in June 2008, and signed an undisclosed multi-million dollar recording contract with Interscope Records two months later. He released 11 follow-up mixtapes and his debut studio album, The Pink Lavalamp (2008) that same year, although none of which were released by the label. In December, he was selected for XXL magazine's second Annual Freshmen Class list, which was issued the following year. Hamilton was due to release his second album and major label debut, This Perfect Life in 2009; however, he became a frequent source of controversy for his conduct on social media and in public settings throughout that year—stemming from Hamilton's undiagnosed and alleged bipolar disorder at the time—leading him to be dropped from the label by September. In 2010, Hamilton signed with NewCo Records and was due to release the album My Heart, which was shelved once more. Hamilton instead opted to release several mixtapes on personal blogs from 2011 to 2014. Much of his unreleased material had become leaked online. In early 2015, Hamilton signed with Republic Records to release the single "New York Raining" (featuring Rita Ora), which was used for the television series Empire. The following year, Hamilton released his second album and major-label debut, Hamilton, Charles (2016) to positive reception despite minimal commercial response. Along with his solo career, he was part of the group The Chosen Few, as well as Lupe Fiasco's alternative hip hop collective All City Chess Club. His music and public image contained frequent tributes to the video game series Sonic the Hedgehog. Charles Hamilton was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. He was exposed to music at an early age: "My mother was an entertainment journalist for the Cleveland Call and Post, so she would take me with her to events when I was just a baby." Hamilton stated his mother always made sure he had an instrument around him. His mother put different kinds of instruments in the basement of their Cleveland home, but he naturally gravitated to the keyboard. Hamilton has stated, "At first, I was just playing the rhythm of the songs I would hear... The older I got, the more proficient I got at hearing the notes." For most of his life, Hamilton was self-taught. Picking up the lead and bass guitar in his teenage years, as well as the drums and harmonica. Hamilton has stated that listening to other genres of music, being exposed to different cultures and experiencing life helped mold his musical sound. Hamilton would leave from his mother's home at the age of 18 and would at times be homeless spending his nights at his friends' houses. Hamilton would later utilize a studio built at the Frederick Douglass Academy. Hamilton would spend countless hours in the studio, developing his craft and his own signature sound. Hamilton stated, "The Lab (FDA's studio) means so much to me, because when I literally didn't have anywhere else to go in the world, I can just go into my beloved alma mater and purge myself creatively." The studio in the Frederick Douglass Academy is where most of Charles Hamilton's music is made. Hamilton has also stated, regarding FDA's studio, that "[I] can do my thing in other studios. It's just something about home that makes my music breathe." Hamilton attended Rice High School in Harlem, where he would also participate in freestyle rap battles. Hamilton would later meet his future manager Le'Roy Benros after offering to help with a music event that he was organizing. When Benros eventually heard his music he was "blown away" and arranged a meeting at Hamilton's high school in Harlem. Benros set about promoting his first client in any way that he could, burning CDs, putting him on at showcases and securing his first appearance on the influential blog "You Heard That New". He also managed to introduce Hamilton to Theo Sedlmayr, one of the most powerful entertainment lawyers in the music industry. June 16, 2008 saw the release of Hamilton's debut mixtape Crash Landed; a week later, on June 27, 2008, Hamilton released his mixtape Outside Looking. On August 14, 2008, Hamilton announced he was officially signed to Interscope Records, after well known artist/producer/songwriter Pharrell introduced Hamilton to Interscope Records CEO at the time, Jimmy Iovine. Later in August, Hamilton would announce that he would release a series of 8 mixtapes entitled "The Hamiltonization Process"; it would be titled after his former personal blog at the time. On September 2, 2008, Hamilton released his mixtape Death Of The Mixtape Rapper, which would be the first release in "The Hamiltonization Process": a series of mixtapes written and produced by Hamilton which would lead up to the release of his debut album, The Pink Lavalamp. On September 16, 2008, Hamilton released his mixtape And Then They Played Dilla. The mixtape was a dedication to producer J Dilla, and the mixtape cover was based on J Dilla's critically acclaimed album Donuts. On September 30, 2008, Hamilton and Demevolist Music Group released their mixtape Staff Development. Then, on October 15, 2008, Hamilton released his mixtape It's Charles Hamilton; the mixtape cover was based on Nas's critically acclaimed album Illmatic. On October 28, 2008, Hamilton released his mixtape The L Word. A few weeks later, on November 11, 2008, Hamilton released his mixtape Sonic The Hamilton. On November 18, 2008, Hamilton released his debut single "Brooklyn Girls"; the music video would feature a cameo appearance from pornographic actress Lacey Duvalle, who Hamilton had earlier that year made a dedication song towards entitled "Lacey Duvalle". On November 25, 2008, Hamilton released his mixtape Intervention. On December 8, 2008, Hamilton released his debut album entitled The Pink Lavalamp. The album was originally supposed to have been released as Hamilton's major-label debut studio album, but due to Hamilton's disagreements with Interscope Records about having his single "Brooklyn Girls" placed on the album's tracklist, he decided it would be best to release it as a free independent release with his label Demevolist Music Group. The album would go on to have critically acclaimed reviews and build Hamilton a cult following; it would be the last release in "The Hamiltonization Process". In 2008, Hamilton was chosen for the XXL's 2009 Freshmen cover issue alongside fellow rappers Wale, B.o.B, Asher Roth, Cory Gunz, Blu, Mickey Factz, Ace Hood, Curren$y and Kid Cudi. On February 13, 2009, Hamilton released his mixtape Well Isn't This Awkward. The mixtape lyrically followed the story of a fan who had a romantic obsession with the singer-songwriter Rihanna, and instrumentally included various samples of her music. That May, a video went viral of Hamilton first rap battling, then getting assaulted by his former girlfriend/fellow rapper Briana Latrise, the stepdaughter of Mary J. Blige, due to Hamilton referencing during the battle Latrise having an abortion. On May 25, 2009, during an interview, they publicly apologized to each other, with Hamilton stating, "I apologize honestly for putting some things out there that shouldn't have been out there. I understand it; it was the heat of the moment, and I didn't get the chance to really talk to you about it. I just wanted to tell you I apologize because I know what I shouldn't have said", and with Latrise remarking, "I'm going to thank you for your apology. I'm going to apologize for acting outside of the norm. We're going to talk about our personal business, on our personal time." Hamilton was to release his first studio album on Interscope, entitled This Perfect Life, in 2009. According to Hamilton's blog at the time, the album was to be released digitally on June 23, 2009, and the physical copy in stores on August 25, 2009. The album was supposed to be Hamilton's major label debut and