Angie Martinez

Angie Martinez
Birth name Angela Martinez
Also known as The Voice of New York
Born (1971-01-09) January 9, 1971
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Genres Hip hop
Occupation(s) Radio personality , rapper, actress
Years active 1996–present
Labels Elektra Records, Roc Nation
Website TheAngieMartinezShow.com

Angela "Angie" Martinez (born January 9, 1971) is an American radio personality, rapper, and actress. Nicknamed “The Voice of New York”, her afternoon radio show has consistently been ranked #1 with more young listeners than any other radio program in the country.[1]

Radio career

Angie Martinez got her first break in radio at the age of 16 answering hot lines at the urban radio station WQHT ("Hot 97"). There she met popular DJ Funkmaster Flex, and began working as his protégé. Martinez quickly picked up on the craft of running a successful radio program. She hosted the Afternoon Drive weekdays, alongside HOT 97's DJ Enuff, where she interviewed the biggest names in music such as Jay Z and Mariah Carey. She resigned from Hot 97 on June 18, 2014.[2] She was announced to have signed on with Hot 97's main New York radio competitor, Power 105.1 (WWPR-FM) on June 19, 2014.[3]

Acting

As an actress, Angie received small roles in independent hip hop films such as Blood is Thicker Than Water and Paper Soldiers.[4] She then appeared in Brown Sugar[5] starring Taye Diggs, Queen Latifah and Sanaa Lathan. In October 2002, Martinez appeared in Paid In Full. More recently she appeared in Video Girl in 2011, Generation um... in 2012, and in the docu-comedy television series This is hot 97 in 2014.

Music career

In 1996, Martinez was encouraged to give rapping a shot by friend KRS-One. She appeared on his track "Heartbeat" from his 1997 album I Got Next.[6] After the song gained a strong fan following, another friend, Lil' Kim, offered her a spot on the "Ladies Night Remix" of her song "Not Tonight" for the Nothing to Lose soundtrack.[7] Along with Missy Elliott, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes and Da Brat, the ladies enjoyed one of the most successful singles of 1997. It peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at #6,[8] and reached #3 on the Hip-Hop / R&B charts.[9] The single sold over 1,000,000 copies and was certified Platinum.[10] The ladies were nominated for two Grammy Awards that year, and were also invited to perform the song live on the MTV Video Music Awards.[11]

A major label battle began to sign Martinez to a recording contract. Her appearance on other rapper's material was in high demand. She recorded songs with Mary J. Blige ("Christmas in the City"[12] ), Cuban Link ("Freak Out"), N.O.R.E. ("Oh No Remix"[13] ), Beenie Man ("Tell Me Remix"[14] ) and Funkmaster Flex & Big Kap's compilation album The Tunnel ("Wow"[15] ). She also recorded interludes for mixtapes by Kid Capri, DJ Clue and DJ Kayslay. In 2001, she appeared in the music video for Jay-Z and R. Kelly's "Guilty Until Proven Innocent".[16]

On April 17, 2001, she finally released her delayed debut album, Up Close and Personal.[17] The album included production by DJ Clue, Salaam Remi, Knobody and RocWilder among others, and featured guest appearances by Jay-Z, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Wyclef Jean, Busta Rhymes and Kool G. Rap. The first single, "Dem Thangzzz" was produced by The Neptunes, and also featured background vocals by Pharrell Williams and Q-Tip. The album debuted at #32 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart,[18] and #7 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album Chart[19] selling 69,000 its first week. The second single, "Coast 2 Coast" (Suavamente) featuring rapper Wyclef Jean re-sparked interest in the album.[20] She promoted the album with magazine posters, in-store signings, club appearances and television appearances with MTV and BET.

Following her first album's release, Angie began work on a second record, 2002's Animal House. In order to build anticipation for the record, she appeared on BET's Rap City[21] and began a nationwide radio tour. She recorded a verse for the remix to her Artist Sacario record "Live Big". It became the number one record in the tri-state area and coincidentally coincided with the release of Martinez's first single from her second album, "If I Could Go" which also featured Sacario and singer Lil' Mo. "If I Could Go" became a huge crossover hit on pop radio, climbing into the top 20 on The Billboard Hot 100 Chart.[22] It became the #1 played on urban radio in 2002. The album, Animal House (named after Martinez's own production company and recording posse), was released on August 21, 2002. It entered the Billboard Hot 200 Albums Chart at #11,[18] and the Billboard Hot Hip-Hop / R&B Charts selling 92,000 units in its first week. The follow-up single, "Take You Home" featuring R&B singer Kelis became a minor hit reaching the top 100 on the Billboard Hot 100.[23] The album was more strongly received by critics and fans. Following the release of the album, she was featured on a remix for labelmate Lil' Mo's track "Gangster", and Nina Sky's hype single "Time to Go". Following this she announced she was retiring from the recording industry to concentrate on her other projects.[24]

In 2002, Martinez was hired to be a judge on the second season of American Idol, but quit after a few days of auditions, citing discomfort with crushing the dreams of auditioners.[25]

In November 2014, Martinez was signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation.

Personal life

Martinez has a son named Niko Ruffin (born June 12, 2003)[26] with Tamir "Nokio" Ruffin[27][28] of Dru Hill.

In 2014, Martinez supported CC Sabathia's charity, the PitCCh In Foundation, by running in the 2014 New York City Marathon.[29]

She joined WWPR New York as afternoon personality in 2014.

Awards and nominations

Discography

Studio albums

Year Album Peak chart positions
U.S. U.S. R&B
2001 Up Close and Personal 32 7
2002 Animal House 11 6

Singles

Year Song Peak chart positions[30][31] Album
US U.S. R&B U.S. Rap UK
2000 "Mi Amor" (featuring Jay-Z) — 51 — — Up Close and Personal
2001 "Dem Thangs" — 80 24 —
"Coast 2 Coast" — — — —
2002 "If I Could Go" (featuring Lil' Mo & Sacario) 15 26 11 61 Animal House
2003 "Take You Home" (featuring Kelis) 85 62 — —
"—" denotes a title that did not chart, or was not released in that territory.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Happy Birthday, Angie Martinez!". Latintrends.com. 2012-01-09. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  2. ↑ "Angie Martinez Resigns From Hot 97". Vibe. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
  3. ↑ "Angie Martinez joins Power 105.1 after leaving Hot 97". NY Daily News. 2014-06-19. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  4. ↑ "Paper Soldiers". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  5. ↑ "Brown sugar". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  6. ↑ "KRS-One - Heartbeat / A Friend (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  7. ↑ "Lil Kim f/ Da Brat, Missy Elliott, Angie Martinez, & Left Eye "Ladies Night (Not Tonight Remix)" (1997) - The 50 Best Rap Songs by Women". Complex. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  8. ↑ "Lil' Kim - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  9. ↑ "Lil' Kim - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  10. ↑ "Gold & Platinum". RIAA. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  11. ↑ "Lil Kim - Ladies Night "Live" (Not Tonight Remix 1997)". YouTube. 2012-03-23. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  12. ↑ "Mary J Blige - Christmas In The City (Feat. Angie Martinez) Lyrics". Lyricsty.com. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  13. ↑ "Noreaga - Oh No (Remix) (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  14. ↑ "Beenie Man – Tell Me (Remix) Lyrics | Genius". genius.com. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  15. ↑ "The Tunnel (Edited) by Funkmaster Flex". Rhapsody. 1999-01-01. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  16. ↑ "JAY-Z - Guilty Until Proven Innocent ft. R. Kelly". YouTube. 2009-06-16. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  17. ↑ Kerry L. Smith (2001-04-17). "Up Close and Personal - Angie Martinez | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  18. 1 2 "Angie Martinez - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  19. ↑ "Angie Martinez - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  20. ↑ "Yahoo". Voices.yahoo.com. 2014-04-23. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  21. ↑ "Sacario & Angie Martinez BET Rap City The Basement. Classic Episode!!!". YouTube. 2010-03-15. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  22. ↑ "Angie Martinez - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  23. ↑ "Angie Martinez - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  24. ↑ "Angie Martinez On Shelving Rap Career: "I Cringe Sometimes When I Hear Some Of Those Songs" – For The Best In Hip-Hop News". SOHH.com. 2015-12-09. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  25. ↑ "Angie Martinez Quits 'American Idol' After Two Episodes". MTV. 2002-10-31. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  26. ↑ World Entertainment News Network. "Angie Martinez Gives Birth". Retrieved 9 March 2015.
  27. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20071225065207/http://experts.about.com/e/a/an/Angie_Martinez.htm. Archived from the original on December 25, 2007. Retrieved July 13, 2006. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  28. ↑ "Undercover". Undercover.com.au. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  29. ↑ "CC Sabathia's wife Amber gears up for NYC Marathon". NY Daily News. 2014-10-27. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  30. ↑ "Up Close and Personal - Angie Martinez - Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
  31. ↑ "Animal House - Angie Martinez - Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 March 2015.

External links

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