Prof (rapper)

Jacob "Jake" Anderson (born April 29, 1984), better known by his stage name Prof, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He released his first full-length album, Project Gampo, in 2007 and has since released two additional albums and three EPs. In 2012, City Pages named Prof on their list of Minnesota's 20 best rappers.^[3] A co-owner of Stophouse Music Group, Prof signed to Rhymesayers Entertainment in late 2013.

Early life

Jacob "Jake" Anderson^[3] was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and grew up in the city's Powderhorn neighborhood.^[4] His mother, Colleen, had a rocky relationship with his father (who suffered from bipolar disorder and was physically abusive) whom she would later divorce and move away from, taking Anderson's three older sisters with her.^[4][5][6] In his teenage years, he developed a "comedic, dirty-mouthed rap persona" he named Gampo after a childhood friend.^[4] Anderson graduated from South High School in 2002.^[4]

Music career

In 2010, Prof was part of Rhymesayers' Welcome to Minnesota tour.^[7] During the mid-2000s, Prof regularly performed at the Dinkytowner bar, giving "drunk show[s]" with partner and hype man Rahzwell - which meant beginning their set only after Rahzwell had vomited from every shot and beer that the duo received from the members of the audience. It was at one such show that Prof would meet his manager, Mike Campbell. Prof and Campbell, along with Dillon Parker, later became co-owners of the Stophouse Music Group, a record label that owns and manages their eponymous Stophouse Studios in northeast Minneapolis.^[4]

The staff of City Pages named Prof as Minnesota's 19th-best rapper in 2012, citing his musical dexterity, "his impressive singing voice", and his ability to engage and make audiences laugh.^[3] Conversely, musician and critic Dwight Hobbes of the Twin Cities Daily Planet asserted that Prof's 2011 album, King Gampo, was "asinine, narcissistic self-indulgence run completely riot, without a shred of redeeming artistry" and "rap at its worst".^[8]

Prof has been noted as one of the few Minneapolis rap acts (in addition to Doomtree and several Rhymesayers artists) who are capable of selling out the city's famed First Avenue Mainroom,^[4] and the only to do so in recent years without the backing of Minnesota Public Radio station 89.3 The Current.^[9]

In May 2013, when Busta Rhymes failed to show up at the Soundset Music Festival in Shakopee, Minnesota, Prof substituted for him with only an hour's notice.^[7]

On December 3, 2013, Prof signed to Rhymesayers Entertainment.^[10] The announcement video featured the label's co-founder, Slug, and coincided with the release of a single called "The Reply". The Star Tribune reported on the occasion that Prof would release another album in 2014.^[7]

In a May 2015, Prof announced his debut record on Rhymesayers, entitled Liability. In the same interview, he also revealed he had signed with William Morris Endeavor for his future touring ventures.^[11] Prof released a single called "Ghost" from the album.^[12] Liability was released October 16, 2015,^[13] and peaked at 141 on the Billboard 200 chart November 7, 2015.^[14]

Discography

All albums up to 2013 were released by Stophouse Music Group.^[15][16] Liability was released by Rhymesayers Entertainment.^[11]

Albums

• Project Gampo (2007)
• Recession Music (2009) with St. Paul Slim
• King Gampo (2011)
• Liability (2015)

EPs

• Kaiser Von Powderhorn (2008)
• Kaiser Von Powderhorn 2 (2010)
• Kaiser Von Powderhorn 3 (2012)

References

External links

• Prof at Rhymesayers Entertainment
• Prof at Stophouse Music Group