Biography
Bahamadia first gained recognition in hip-hop circles as the female protégé of Gang Starr’s Guru, lending her smooth-flowing raps to numerous late-’90s projects that spanned electronica and acid jazz. Born Antonia Reed in Philadelphia, she began her career by DJing local house parties in the early to mid-’80s before moving to the microphone to demonstrate her skills. Though she stayed active on the Philadelphia scene, her initial recordings did not appear until she connected with producer and radio personality DJ Ran, who produced her independent 1993 single “Funk Vibe.” The track drew the interest of Gang Starr’s MC Guru, who mentored her and secured a recording contract with Chrysalis. Her early singles, 1994’s “Total Wreck” and 1995’s “Uknowhowwedu,” earned underground praise for their jazzy textures and relaxed delivery. She also contributed to the second installment of Guru’s Jazzmatazz series. In 1996 her debut album Kollage arrived, featuring beats from Guru and DJ Premier as well as the Philadelphia collective the Roots.
Chrysalis ceased operations the following year, prompting Bahamadia to fulfill the remainder of her contract before pursuing further solo work. During the interim she built her underground standing through an array of adventurous guest spots, among them the Roots track “Push up Ya Lighter” from Illadelph Halflife, Sweetback (Sade’s backing band), Roni Size’s title cut from the album New Forms, Towa Tei, the Brand New Heavies, the Herbaliser, Morcheeba’s “Good Girl Down,” Rah Digga, Slum Village, and Talib Kweli’s Reflection Eternal collaboration “Chaos,” which appeared on the Rawkus compilation Soundbombing, Vol. 2. She additionally hosted a Philadelphia hip-hop radio program between 1997 and 1999. In 2000 she joined the Los Angeles indie label Goodvibe and issued the seven-track EP BB Queen—short for “beautiful black”—a chilled collection that drew strong critical notice.
Chrysalis ceased operations the following year, prompting Bahamadia to fulfill the remainder of her contract before pursuing further solo work. During the interim she built her underground standing through an array of adventurous guest spots, among them the Roots track “Push up Ya Lighter” from Illadelph Halflife, Sweetback (Sade’s backing band), Roni Size’s title cut from the album New Forms, Towa Tei, the Brand New Heavies, the Herbaliser, Morcheeba’s “Good Girl Down,” Rah Digga, Slum Village, and Talib Kweli’s Reflection Eternal collaboration “Chaos,” which appeared on the Rawkus compilation Soundbombing, Vol. 2. She additionally hosted a Philadelphia hip-hop radio program between 1997 and 1999. In 2000 she joined the Los Angeles indie label Goodvibe and issued the seven-track EP BB Queen—short for “beautiful black”—a chilled collection that drew strong critical notice.
Albums
Singles
