Kollegah

German rapper Kollegah traversed an expansive stylistic spectrum across his career, shifting from the gangsta approach he labeled "pimp rap" toward equally innovative modes of expression. His supple, polysyllabic flow and assured persona yielded strong sales, notably on the platinum-certified 2014 album King.

Felix Antoine Blume entered the world in 1984 in Friedberg, Hesse, the son of a Canadian father and German mother. From an early age he tested himself in rap battles, and after periods employed at a bus company and as a translator he secured a contract with Selfmade Records in 2005. The mixtapes Zuhältertape X-Mas Edition and Boss der Bosse preceded his debut studio album Alphagene in 2007, which was promptly followed by the self-titled sophomore set in 2008. In 2009 he entered a publicized dispute with several artists on the Aggro Berlin roster while also linking with Düsseldorf rapper Farid Bang for the collaborative release Jung Brutal Gutaussehend. Concurrent with law studies at Johannes Gutenberg University, he issued his third album Bossaura in 2011. Kollegah and Farid Bang reconvened in 2013 for Jung, Brutal, Gutaussehend, Vol. 2, which ascended to number one in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. One year later his fourth studio album King duplicated that chart performance in Germany and Switzerland, incorporating contributions from Farid Bang alongside Favorite, Casper, and Game. Although every prior project had appeared on Selfmade, Kollegah revealed at the start of 2016 that he had founded his own imprint, Alpha Music Empire. Later that year his fifth studio album Imperator immediately claimed the top positions in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. The expansive Monument arrived in 2018; despite Kollegah declaring an indefinite hiatus from music around its release, he reemerged at the close of 2019 with the 24-track album Alphagene II.