#TBT: Mos Def

Tomorrow, Mos Def, who now goes by his given name Yasiin Bey, will release an album called December 99th with Ferrari Shepard. Later this month, he will debut two additional albums. After that, he he will retire from rap.

The time is ripe to revisit Mos Def's creative peak in the late '90s in which he spoke on the black experience with the eloquence of James Baldwin. This list includes standouts from 1998's Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star and 1999's Black on Both Sides. Thrown in at the end for good measure is a small collection of his contributions to "Chappelle's Show" a few years later.

The lead single off Black Star, "Definition" examines the violence that had just claimed the life of Biggie Smalls, life in Brooklyn for black folk, and the ways in which rap dreams are formed.

In an interview with Spin, Mos explained how Black Star was formed:

"I’d done this 12-inch for Rawkus, and they wanted me to do an album, and I didn’t want to, after the Payday experience. But me and Kweli were hanging pretty tough. He was working at [Brooklyn bookstore] Nkiru, doing open mics, and he was dope. He had this whole crew, and they were superscientifical. Their rhymes were dense, talking about Egyptology, these guys had the big brains! Then one day, I bought this jazz album, I think it was Milt Jackson and Lionel Hampton, and I said, “That’s it, we need to do a collabo like jazz, a one-album deal.” I was big on being sovereign and free. And they gave us, like, $80,000, $90,000 to record, which was more money than we’d ever seen at one time. I’d just had my first child, and the goal wasn’t about trying to become a star, it was to become a real, working artist."

An extended reflection on how black life gets devalued. Mos Def's verse on "Thieves in the Night" is one of his most celebrated. Jazz fans will enjoy Mos' performance of the song with Robert Glasper and Chris Dave from 2008, who elevate the track with their virtuosity.

Mos Def released both Black Star and Black on Both Sides on celebrated underground label Rawkus Records. A few months before Black Star was released, Mos laid down a verse for the label's compilation album Lyricist Lounge, Volume 1.

Few things have captured Mos' imagination like the sight of a particularly plump ass. While "Ms. Fat Booty" never achieved the popularity of "Ms. New Booty" that would come later on, it will likely outlive the Bubba Sparxxx mid-aughts smash in the history books. "Ass so big you could see it from the front."

"Mr Nigga" is about the plight of the rich black man. "Who is the cat eating out on the town, and make the whole dining room turn they head round?" The "black dude in first class" phenomenon has been well-documented, on Chappelle's Show and by numerous rappers.

Produced by DJ Premier, "Mathematics" comprises of a dizzying array of numerical references regarding everything minimum wage to mass incarceration to royalty percentages, to illustrate Mos Def's ultimate argument that the deck of society is stacked against black people. "It's one universal law but 2 sides to every story/ 3 strikes and you be in for life, mandatory."

"Hip Hop" is both a celebration and a critique of Mos' chosen profession. It is "ad space for liquor." It is "stimulant and sedative, original repetitive, violently competitive, a school unaccredited. Ultimately it will amaze you... but it can't save you.

Mos Def's greatest song -- an affirmation of black liberation and a plea for the listener to make every day a masterpiece.

"My umi says, shine your light on the world..."

Mos Def is an accomplished actor who appeared on "Chappelle's Show" several times, most notably as the head of the black delegation and the black head of the CIA. In one episode, he delivered a Carpool Karaoke-esque rendition of "Close Edge." Later, in the documentary "Dave Chappelle's Block Party," he would moonlight as Dave's drummer.