Timothy Elpadaro Thedford;September 19, 1976, known professionally as Jay Electronica, is an American rapper, and record producer who first received widespread attention after the release of his debut mixtape, , in 2007, and was signed to Jay-Z's record labelRoc Nation in 2010. His debut studio album, A Written Testimony, was released in 2020 after years of speculation and delay.
Early life
Inspired by LL Cool J, Jay Electronica began rapping at the age of 10. He grew up in the Magnolia Projects in New Orleans and attended the all-boys parochial high school St. Augustine High School and was a part of the famed Marching 100 band where he played multiple instruments. Electronica left New Orleans on January 1, 1996 with the intention of moving to New York City but took a stop in Atlanta. Electronica was struck by "all the now hiring signs because of the Olympics," there he accepted the teachings of Elijah Muhammad via the Five-Percent Nation before moving on to becoming a registered member of the Nation of Islam at its headquarters in Chicago.
Career
In 2007, Jay Electronica released his first mixtape, , via MySpace. It was downloaded over 50,000 times. That success and his catalog led to Electronica joining the Rock the Bells Tour in 2008. Later that year, producer Just Blaze and Jay Electronica selected songs for Guitar Center's GAIN project, Fresh Cuts Vol. 3 and included a song which Just Blaze named “Exhibit A.” Just Blaze would later debut Exhibit C on Tony Touch's Sirius Radio program, where it quickly caught on, making its way to terrestrial radio stations like New York'sHot 97 and spawning artist remixes from MCs AZ, N.O.R.E, Saigon, Joell Ortiz and others. A bidding war ensued with Jay finally signing with Roc Nation. Though fans and critics anticipated a full-length debut, Electronica's output in the subsequent decade consisted of several collaborations and non-album solo songs. On February 7, 2020, Jay Electronica announced via Twitter the completion of his album, A Written Testimony, which was recorded over a 40-day period. It was released on March 13, 2020.
Personal life
Jay Electronica and Erykah Badu were in a relationship for 5 years and have a daughter together, Mars Mekeba, born in 2009. Jay Electronica had an extramarital affair with Kate Emma Rothschild, the wife of Benjamin Goldsmith, resulting in the breakdown of Goldsmith's marriage.
