Xzibit was
born into a tough life living in
Detroit, also had to grow up without his mother by his side.
She sadly passed away when he was only 9. He was then living with his dad. Without any
entertainment to occupy himself he started writing rhymes at age 10, he didn't even have a
radio to
listen to. His Father and step-mom moved the family to
New Mexico. Xzibit was then taken out of
home at 14 after constantly getting into trouble. When he turned 17 he was released from the state as he was now considered an adult. Xzibit then
made his way to
California looking to start his
music career.
Xzibit arrived in
California on a
mission to get a
deal, so he met with a number of figure heads and started appearing on
peoples albums. A producer by the
name of
Broadway was instrumental in introducing him to Tha Alkaholiks, who in turn got him together with
King Tee. Xzibit turned it out on the
posse cut, "
Freestyle Ghetto" on "King Tee IV Life," and after that got
busy on the Liks' "
Coast ][ Coast" on the joints, "
Hit and Run" (the
sequel, featuring an appearance by adult
movie star Ron Hightower, is on Xzibit's album) and on "Flashback," where he showcased his humorous side as
one of The
Baby Babbas. LOUD
records CEO Steve Rifkin offered him a deal soon afterward.
In 1996
Xzibit completed his debut
solo album, At the
Speed of Life.
"I named the album "At The
Speed Of Life" because there's a whole lot of sh*t that ni*
gas go through. I know more ni*gas that is off-the-wall and crazy, runnin' guns and sh*t than I know regular Joes that all they want to do is feed their kids. That's their
speed. But it's weird how everything is coinciding together, and at the same
time is moving in all kinds of different directions."
Xzibit with his
one of a kind
voice and natural intensity beamed songs like "
Paparazzi" and "
The Foundation" into
peoples minds through
radio, and soon Xzibit was becoming a well known
name on
the streets. At The Speed Of Life was met with excellent reviews.
"I couldn't
pick a better
time because what I'm bringin' to the
table is
fresh and new..."
"I did this album for a lot of reasons other than the flim-flam and the whoopty-whoop, the pictures, the
travel and all that sh*t,"
says Xzibit. "This album is heartfelt."
The song
Paparazzi, explained how he saw the Hip-Hop game,
Xzibit's lyrics
say it all: "It's a shame, ni*
gas in the rap game only for the
money and the
fame." This was the first single from At The
Speed Of Life.
Then came the second single off his debut album, "
The Foundation." a song written for
Xzibit to his son, where he advises the child about the
ups and
downs of
growing up ("You can only run
the streets for so
long"
says Xzibit).
Dj Muggs from
Cypress Hill produced the emotionally charged track which
features a mesmerizing
loop of ghostly wails and the actual cries of Xzibit's
Baby. And
revelations abound in the
hard-nosed two verses of "Carry The Weight," which details Xzibit's life
story, from his troubled past to
makin' it on his own.
In 1998,
Xzibit's 2nd
solo album "40 Dayz & 40 Nightz" followed and was met with great reviews
just like At The
Speed Of Life had been two years
ago. Xzibit was
hard at work appearing on many albums such as Snoop's Top Dogg, Dre's 2001 and Kurupt's Tha Streetz Iz A Mutha. Xzibit was becoming well known to
commercial hip-hop fans, in turn this increased Xzibit's fan
base.
In 2000
Xzibit's 3rd
solo album was released, titled Restless. The album was released in December 2000, and was met with great reviews and earned Xzibit his first
platinum record. Restless included a great selection of
singles including X, Get Your Walk On,
Front 2 Back, and Loud &
Clear.
Restless also marked
the beginning of
Xzibit's own label,
Open Bar entertainment. With Restless ruling the charts with its
hot singles in 2001, Fortress
Entertainment was
hired to make a DVD/VHS titled Restless Xposed which featured
backstage footage from the
Anger Management Tour, Snoop's Puff Puff tour, the
House of Blues tour and much much more. The DVD/VHS is a Fortress/
Open Bar Entertainment/Loud
records release. Xzibit also appeared in The Alkaholiks DVD as well as Snoop and Dre's
Hit comedy,
The Wash. He also played a very
minor role in Eminem's
move, 8mile.
2002 was a huge year for
Xzibit. His 4th album,
Man Vs Machine, was released
early October. Xzibit explains, "
man versus Machine, man… I thought it was fitting because I feel as though its all type of sh*t we up against." and continues "It’s a corporate world, corporate machine we got to
battle. It’s a social machine we got to battle. It’s all type of sh*t". Xzibit incorporated different
styles in the album, from
soul to
opera based
cuts such as his 3rd single off the album '
Symphony In X Major'. 'Multiply' was given good
air play and despite a poor effort to promote the album, on November 12, 2002, Man Vs. Machine officially went gold.
2003 was the year we
found out
Xzibit's group 'The
Golden State Project' couldn't happen
due to problems with
Ras Kass'
record Label. Xzibit started doing
mix tapes towards
the end of the year with Krondon. They later formed 'The Steady
Gang', with Mitchy
Slick, Krondon & Phil The Agony.
The start of 2004 saw Pimp My Ride, the MTV series Xzibit hosted which was a smash Hit worldwide. The Strong Arm Steady DVD was released and gave the fans a look into what the Gang is getting up to. 2004 proved to be another huge year for Xzibit with 'Weapons of Mass Destruction', his 5th solo album, which was released towards the end of the 2004. There was a noticeable lack of guest appearances on 'Weapons of Mass Destruction', but X to the Z proves he can still hold his own in the rap game. Xzibit flexes lyrical muscle and substantial song-writing power throughout the album, with top notch battle-ready verses such as"LAX" and "Klack". mix these tracks with more contemplative or musically complex works like "Judgment Day", which features him spitting inspirational lyrics over church organs, "Scent Of A Woman" is a tribute to a loyal woman, and "Cold World" is a collection of three individual vignettes that illustrate life’s harsh realities.
"Weapons of Mass Destruction" went down in history as a solid, well-constructed album from the West Coast veteran.
During 2005, Xzibit added a number of acting experiences to his already massive list performances. X had major roles in both "Derailed" and in the box office smash "xXx: State of the Union" (xXx 2) where he plays "Zeke" - the arms dealer.
Xzibit had a very successful 2006 with the release of "Gridiron Gang", where Xzibit plays Malcom Moore along side The Rock. Pimp My Ride continued to grow and its success spawned the Pimp My Ride video game. Xzibit also provided voice for video game, “The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay” as well as the voice of Chief Grizzly in the teen animated movie “Hoodwinked”
In late 2006 Xzibit released his 6th solo album, "Full Circle" through independent record label, Koch Records. The album received Strong reviews from critics worldwide.
Xzibit is set to embark on another world tour mid 2007. The tour is labeled the "The Back II Basics World Tour 2007". Germany, Belgium, Japan, Australia and other European countries are a few of the countries the X Man will visit on the tour.