Flo Rida

Flo Rida

Flo Rida on the set of the music video for his song "Sugar".
Background information
Birth name Tramar Dillard
Born December 16, 1979 (1979-12-16) (age 31)
Carol City, Florida, U.S.
Genres Hip hop, pop
Occupations Rapper, singer
Years active 2006–present
Labels Atlantic/Poe Boy
Associated acts Brisco, Ke$ha, Birdman
Website www.officialflo.com

Tramar Dillard (born December 16, 1979), better known by his stage name Flo Rida (pronounced /ˌfloʊ ˈraɪdə/), is an American rapper and singer. As a teenager, he toured with the hip hop group 2 Live Crew. Later, he appeared in numerous popular rap mixtapes and studio albums, most notably in We the Best in 2006. Mail on Sunday was Flo Rida's solo debut album; its first single "Low", featuring T-Pain which was a #1 hit for ten weeks in United States in early 2008. Two other singles resulted from Mail on Sunday: "Elevator" and "In the Ayer". In 2009, his second album R.O.O.T.S. was released; its most successful single "Right Round" was at the top of the Hot 100 for six weeks.

Contents

Early life

Dillard was born in the 187th Street projects of Carol City, Florida.[1] His single mother raised him and his seven sisters, some of whom sang in a local gospel group.[2] As a teenager, Dillard worked with local rap group 2 Live Crew and formed his own amateur group with some friends called the Groundhoggz. His work with 2 Live Crew member Fresh Kid Ice attracted attention of DeVante Swing, a member of the band Jodeci. However, he was rejected by several of the major labels, so he sought many other jobs outside of music.[3] After graduating from high school in 1998, he studied international business management at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas for two years and attended Barry University for two months.[4][3] He returned to Florida to continue pursuing his music career after receiving a phone call from a representative of the independent label Poe Boy Entertainment.[3] Dillard signed with Poe Boy in 2006, and as Flo Rida he began affiliating with other Florida rappers, such as Rick Ross, Trina, T-Pain, and Trick Daddy. A promotional street single entitled "Birthday", featuring Rick Ross, was his first significant release. He made his debut guest appearance with the song "Bitch I'm from Dade County" on DJ Khaled's album We the Best, which featured Trick Daddy, Trina, Rick Ross, Brisco, C-Ride, and Dre.[5]

Music career

Mail on Sunday (2007–08)

Rehearsing for the 2008 MuchMusic Video Awards in Toronto.

Flo Rida received worldwide acclaim and popularity with the chart-topping success of his first single, "Low", featuring T-Pain. It was his first official single from his debut album Mail On Sunday and the soundtrack to the movie Step Up 2 The Streets. "Low" reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[5] "Elevator", featuring Timbaland, "In the Ayer" featuring will.i.am, and "Roll" featuring Sean Kingston followed and all charted on the Hot 100 and other charts.[6]

After the success of Mail on Sunday, Flo Rida made guest performances on other R&B, rap, and pop singles, including "Move Shake Drop" by DJ Laz, "We Break the Dawn" by Michelle Williams, the remix of "4 Minutes" by Madonna, "Running Back" by Australian R&B singer Jessica Mauboy, "Feel It" by DJ Felli Fel, and the remix of "Speedin'" by Rick Ross. During the summer of 2008, he did live performances on the Fox dance competition program So You Think You Can Dance in the US[7] and 2008 MuchMusic Video Awards in Canada.[8] He appeared on the albums We Global by DJ Khaled, Gutta by Ace Hood, and The Fame by Lady Gaga, among others.

R.O.O.T.S. (2009)

Performing in 2009 at K-Fest, a concert hosted by radio station WSPK.

According to, Billboard magazine, Flo Rida began recording his sophomore nine months after Mail On Sunday. The album is titled R.O.O.T.S. and was released on March 31, 2009.[9] The first single "Right Round" was released for airplay in January of 2009. "Right Round" jumped from number 58 to the top spot in one week in late February. It the song broke a record for the most digital one week sales in the U.S., with 636,000, beating the previous record he had set himself with "Low".[10] "Right Round" sampled "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)", a 1985 hit by Dead or Alive.[11] The second official single was "Sugar", which featured R&B singer Wynter Gordon. The song reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100. Other singles were "Jump" featuring Nelly Furtado, which reached #54 on the Hot 100 and was the promotional single for the animated film G-Force, and "Be On You" featuring Ne-Yo, which reached #19 on the Hot 100. In addition to singles from his own album, Flo Rida made guest performances on "Feel It" by DJ Felli Fel, "Starstruck" by Lady Gaga, and "Feel It" by Three 6 Mafia. "Bad Boys", the second single by winner of British competition series The X Factor Alexandra Burke that featured Flo Rida, debuted at #1 on the UK Singles Chart in October.[12]

The Only One (2010)

Flo Rida announced on Twitter in March 2010 that his next album would be titled The Only One.[13] Billboard reported that The Only One is to be a double album.[14] The buzz single "Zoosk Girl", featuring T-Pain was leaked online on March 28.[15] J-Rock produced "Zoosk Girl".[16] "Club Can't Handle Me", produced by David Guetta, was the first official single and reached #18 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States and #4 on the Canadian Hot 100. "Club Can't Handle Me" was also on the soundtrack for Step Up 3-D. Flo Rida also made guest appearances on "iYiYi", a song by Australian teen singer Cody Simpson, and on the song "Out My Video" by Bulgarian singer LiLana. On 31 August 2010, it was annouced that Flo Rida had collaborated with english girl group The Saturdays, after he beat the group to the number one spot in the UK for the second time.[17][18] It was later confirmed, by The Saturdays official website that Flo Rida had recorded a new verison of the girl's ninth single, "Higher", which Rida's vocals would be featured in it.[19][20] It was also announced that the single would be released on the 29th of September 2010[21] Flo Rida recorded his parts of the music video seperately.[22] The video was completed on 29 August 2010.[23]

Discography

Studio albums

Awards and nominations

Year Type Award Result
2008 American Music Awards Breakthrough Performer[24] Nominated
Favourite Male Hip-Hop Artist Nominated
BET Awards Best New Artist[25] Nominated
Best Collaberation ("Low" with T-Pain)[26] Nominated
BET Hip Hop Awards Ringtone of the Year ("Low" with T-Pain)[27] Nominated
Rookie of the Year[28] Nominated
Best Hip-Hop Collabo ("Low" with T-Pain)[29] Nominated
MuchMusic Video Awards Best International Video ("Low" with T-Pain)[30] Nominated
People's Choice Favourite International Video ("Low" with T-Pain) Nominated
MTV Video Music Awards Best Hip-Hop Video ("Low" with T-Pain) Nominated
Best Male Video ("Low" with T-Pain)[31] Nominated
Ozone Awards Breathrough Artist[32] Nominated
Club Banger of the Year ("Low" with T-Pain) Nominated
Teen Choice Awards Choice Breakout Artist[33] Nominated
Choice Rap Artist Nominated
Choice Hook-Up ("Low" with T-Pain) Nominated
2009 ARIA Music Awards Breakthrough Artist Single ("Running Back" with Jessica Mauboy)[34] Nominated
Highest Selling Single ("Running Back" with Jessica Mauboy) Won
APRA Awards Urban Work of the Year ("Running Back" with Jessica Mauboy)[35] Won
Grammy Awards Best Rap/Sung Collaboration ("Low" with T-Pain) Nominated
Best Rap Song ("Low" with T-Pain) Nominated
MOBO Awards Best Song ("Low" with T-Pain)[36] Nominated
MTV Australia Awards Best Video ("Low" with T-Pain) Nominated
Best Collaboration ("Running Back" with Jessica Mauboy) Nominated[37]
MTV Video Music Awards Best Hip-Hop Video ("Right Round" with Kesha)[38] Nominated
NT Indigenous Music Awards Single Release of the Year ("Running Back" with Jessica Mauboy)[39] Won
People's Choice Awards Favourite Hip-Hop Song ("Low" with T-Pain)[40] Won
Teen Choice Awards Best Hip-Hop Rap Track ("Right Round" with Kesha) Nominated
2010 APRA Awards Urban Work of the Year ("Running Back" with Jessica Mauboy) Nominated
Grammy Awards Best Rap Album (R.O.O.T.S.)[41] Nominated
People's Choice Awards Hip-Hop Artist of the Year Nominated
Teen Choice Awards Choice Hip-Hop Artist of the Year Nominated

References

  1. ↑ Cobo, Leila (January 19, 2008). "Rapper Flo Rida puts on "Sunday" best". Reuters (Yahoo!). http://music.yahoo.com/read/news/29997838. Retrieved March 1, 2010. 
  2. ↑ "Bio". Officialflo.com. Poe Boy Entertainment. http://www.officialflo.com/page/2920186:Page:162. Retrieved April 1, 2010. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Concepcion, Mariel (November 28, 2007). "Flo Rida". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/features/flo-rida-1003678482.story. Retrieved March 29, 2010. 
  4. ↑ Garland, Maurice G. (February 2008), "Flo Rida: Sunshine All Day", Vibe 16 (2): p. 86, http://books.google.com/books?id=kCYEAAAAMBAJ 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Kellman, Andy (2007). "Flo Rida: Biography". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:fpfexqwrldke~T1. Retrieved 2007-12-19. 
  6. ↑ Flo Rida > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles. Accessed November 9, 2008.
  7. ↑ Sample, Kristin (2008-06-20). "So You Think You Can Dance: Top 16 Revealed". TV Squad. http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/06/20/so-you-think-you-can-dance-top-16-revealed/. 
  8. ↑ "2008 MMVA Guests". MuchMusic. http://www.muchmusic.com/events/mmva08/show/guests.aspx#florida. Retrieved 2008-06-14. 
  9. ↑ Cohen, Jonathan (2009-01-09). "Flo Rida Gets 'Round' To Second Album". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/flo-rida-gets-round-to-second-album-1003928904.story. Retrieved 2009-01-18. 
  10. ↑ [Flo Rida Makes History Again, New Single Breaks Digital Record "Flo Rida Makes History Again, New Single Breaks Digital Record"]. XXL. February 18, 2009. Flo Rida Makes History Again, New Single Breaks Digital Record. Retrieved September 7, 2010. 
  11. ↑ Reid, Shaheem (February 20, 2009). "Flo Rida Talks About Record-Breaking Single 'Right Round'". MTV News. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1605523/20090220/flo_rida.jhtml. Retrieved September 7, 2010. 
  12. ↑ "Alexandra Burke beats Robbie Williams to top charts". Reuters. October 18, 2009. http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE59H1MR20091018. Retrieved September 7, 2010. 
  13. ↑ "Twitter update 10892447100". Twitter. March 22, 2010. http://twitter.com/official_flo/status/10892447100. Retrieved March 30, 2010. 
  14. ↑ Graff, Gary (August 17, 2010). "Flo Rida to Show Range of Skills on Double Album, 'The Only One'". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/song/flo-rida-featuring-david-guetta/club-can-t-handle-me/20758661#/news/flo-rida-to-show-range-of-skills-on-double-1004109634.story. Retrieved August 20, 2010. 
  15. ↑ "Flo Rida feat. T-Pain “Zoosk Girl”". XXL. March 29, 2010. http://www.xxlmag.com/online/?p=74633. Retrieved March 30, 2010. 
  16. ↑ "Flo Rida - Zoosk Girl". DJ Booth. http://www.djbooth.net/index/tracks/review/flo-rida-zoosk-girl/. Retrieved April 15, 2010. 
  17. ↑ Flo Rida record a track with The Saturdays
  18. ↑ Flo Rida get together with The Saturdays
  19. ↑ "Future Releases". Galaxy FM. http://www.galaxysouthcoast.co.uk/future-releases-2106. Retrieved 2010-09-03. 
  20. ↑ "The Saturdays Announce New Single + Flo Rida Collaboration!". thesaturdays.co.uk. 2 September 2010. http://www.thesaturdays.co.uk/news/saturdays-announce-new-single-flo-rida-collaborati/. Retrieved 5 September 2010. 
  21. ↑ "Future Release". Galaxy FM. 2010. http://www.galaxysouthcoast.co.uk/future-releases-2106. Retrieved 5 September 2010. 
  22. ↑ Copsey, Robert (31 August 2010). "Flo Rida records duet with The Saturdays". Digital Spy (Hachette Filipacchi Médias). http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/news/a270282/flo-rida-records-duet-with-the-saturdays.html. Retrieved 5 September 2010. 
  23. ↑ Magrath, Andrea (30 August 2010). "Goodbye Hollywood! The Saturdays fly home after a whirlwind week in LA". Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers Ltd. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1307340/The-Saturdays-fly-home-whirlwind-week-LA.html. Retrieved 5 September 2010. 
  24. ↑ Harris, Chris. "Lil Wayne, Coldplay, Alicia Keys Lead 2008 American Music Award Nominees". MTV News. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1597006/20081014/jonas_brothers.jhtml. Retrieved 2008-10-14. 
  25. ↑ Best New Artist. BET Awards 2008.
  26. ↑ Best Collaboration BET Awards. 2008
  27. ↑ Ringtone of the Year Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  28. ↑ Rookie of the Year. BET Hip Hop Awards 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  29. ↑ Best Hip Hop Collabo BET Awards 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  30. ↑ Best International Video - Artist. MuchMusic Video Awards 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  31. ↑ Best Male Video, Best Hip Hop Video. MTV Video Music Awards 2008.
  32. ↑ "Ozone Awards 2008 Nominees". http://slumz.boxden.com/f87/ozone-awards-2008-nominees-1119190/. Retrieved 2008-07-15. 
  33. ↑ "2008 Teen Choice Awards winners and nominees". Los Angeles Times. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1597006/20081014/jonas_brothers.jhtml. Retrieved 2008-06-17. 
  34. ↑ 2009 ARIA Awards details announced Retrieved 20 August 2010
  35. ↑ APRA Award winners announced Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  36. ↑ "MOBO Nominations". MTV UK. 2008-09-11. http://www.mtv.co.uk/events/mobo-awards/news/45355-mobo-nominations. Retrieved 2009-03-07. 
  37. ↑ "List of nominees". Sydney Morning Herald. 2009-02-19. http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertainment/music/list-of-nominees/2009/02/19/1234632976114.html. Retrieved 2009-03-07. 
  38. ↑ Jayson Rodriguez. "Flo Rida Says He 'Looks Up To' His VMA Rivals". MTV News. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1618819/20090814/index.jhtml. Retrieved 2009-08-14. 
  39. ↑ NT music awards
  40. ↑ People's Choice Awards Nominations 2009 Retrieved 2008-11-10
  41. ↑ Robinson, Dantrel (2009-0113). "It's A Rap! — A Look At Rap In 2009". Grammy.com. http://www.grammy.com/blogs/its-a-rap-%E2%80%94-a-look-at-rap-in-2009. Retrieved 2009-01-13. 

See also

External links

Flo Rida
Discography
Studio albums
Mail on Sunday · R.O.O.T.S. · Only One Flo (Part 1)
Singles
"Low" · "Elevator" · "In the Ayer" · "Right Round" · "Sugar" · "Jump" · "Be on You" · "Club Can't Handle Me" · "Turn Around (5, 4, 3, 2, 1)"
Featured singles
"Move Shake Drop" · "We Break the Dawn" · "Running Back" · "Feel It" · "Ruff Me Up" · "Bad Boys" · "Kick It Out" · "Feel It" · "iYiYi" · "You Make the Rain Fall" · "Higher"
Promotional singles
"Shone"
Related articles
Atlantic Records · DJ Khaled · Rick Ross