Caskey (rapper)
| Caskey | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Brandon Caskey |
| Origin | Orlando, Florida, United States |
| Genres | Hip hop, Trap, rap |
| Occupation(s) | Rapper |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Labels | Money Mack, Cash Money, Republic |
| Associated acts | Birdman, Anonymass, Hector Sounds, Luke Roswell, The Avengerz Mack Maine |
| Website |
bakingwithcaskey |
Brandon Caskey is an American rapper better known by the mononym Caskey. After releasing mixtapes independently including No Complaints (2012), Caskey signed to Birdman's Cash Money Records and Republic Records in August 2012. He is preparing for his studio album to release in 2017.
Early life
At a young age, Caskey would listen to Heavy metal as he was into instrumentalization, however his older sister got him into rap groups such as N.W.A, and Three 6 Mafia in his elementary school years. Shortly after, he started listening to rappers such as Nas, Eminem and Dead Prez heavily.[1]
Musical career
2010–2012: Beginnings and signing with Cash Money
Throughout his childhood Caskey would write other genres of music, and once he got into high school he began writing raps.[1] Then in his early years he released two underground mixtapes, Blowin' Out My Mind Vol. 1 and The Intangibles.[2] While recording his third official mixtape Homegrown Vol. 1 he linked up with Orlando area producers The Avengerz. Ever since then, The Avengerz formed a significant part of the production side of his music.[1] A few weeks prior to its release he was in a motorcycle accident, where he suffered pinched nerves in his left arm.[3] On April 20, 2011 Caskey released Homegrown Vol. 1 as a free download.[4]
In August 2012, Caskey released his fourth official mixtape titled No Complaints featuring production primarily by The Avengerz.[5][6] The mixtape would be heard by Cash Money Records producer DJ Nasty, who would pass it on to CEO Birdman. Upon hearing it and meeting with Caskey, Birdman said he immediately knew he was a star.[7] In early August 2012, Cash Money Records released a video of Caskey officially signing to Cash Money. In the video they also revealed his debut studio album would be released in 2013.[8][9] Not only did he sign a recording contract, but also a publishing, marketing and merchandising deal with Money Mack Music and Cash Money Marketing LLC respectively. Upon signing he said "I’ve wanted to be a performer my whole life, so signing with Cash Money Records and having this platform to release my music has been a dream. I greatly respect Birdman, Slim and the YMCMB family. I look forward to making the city of Orlando, my fans and my label proud."[10] To celebrate he released "Cash Money Records 100 Bars" on September 13.[11]
2012–present: The Transient Classics, Black Sheep, and The Lost Files
On December 8, 2012, he released his debut single "Keep It on the Low" featuring Kyle Denmead from the No Complaints mixtape.[12] He had a solo track titled "FBGM" on the YMCMB mixtape Rich Gang: All Stars, which was released on February 18, 2013.[13] Then on February 25, 2013, Cash Money re-released No Complaints with two bonus tracks.[14][15] He was featured on the Cash Money Records compilation album Rich Gang, on the song "Sunshine" also featuring Birdman, Limp Bizkit and Flo Rida.[16] Artistdirect would call the song one of the album's standout tracks.[17]
On June 24, 2013, Caskey announced that his upcoming mixtape would be titled The Transient Classics.[18] On July 16, he revealed the cover art for The Transient Classics and announced it would be released on his 21 birthday, August 28, 2013.[19] On August 20, 2013 he released the music video for the song "Show Me Some", which was shot in Paris, France.[20][21] The mixtape was produced by The Avengerz, Myles William and The Colleagues and featured guest appearances from Trae tha Truth, Machine Gun Kelly, Riff Raff, JellyRoll, Rittz, and others.[22] Upon its release it was met with positive reviews from music critics.[23] His debut album is currently being recorded at The Hit Factory in Miami, its release is scheduled for 2014. On April 14, 2015 Caskey released a mixtape titled "The Lost Files." It is said, this is some older songs that possibly did not make the cut for "Black Sheep."[24]
Personal life
His father committed suicide when Caskey was just sixteen years old. He wrote the song "Letter to My Father" on the No Complaints mixtape, as a tribute to him.[25]
Discography
Mixtapes
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Blowin' Out My Mind |
|
| The Intangibles: The Mixtape |
|
| Homegrown Vol. 1 |
|
| No Complaints |
|
| The Transient Classics |
|
| Black Sheep |
|
| The Lost Files |
|
| Black Sheep 2 |
|
| Black Sheep 3 |
|
| Wish U Were Here |
|
| No Apologies |
|
Singles
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B |
US Rap | ||||||||||||
| "Keep It on the Low" (featuring Kyle Denmead) |
2013 | — | — | — | No Complaints | |||||||||
| "Wife Beater" | 2014 | — | — | — | Black Sheep | |||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
References
- 1 2 3 Caskey Talks Birdman Signing Him, Orlando Hip-Hop and Being Afraid of Rap
- ↑ http://www.hotnewhiphop.com/caskey-talks-ymcmb-signing-and-meeting-birdman-with-damon-campbell-new-video.26859.html
- ↑ Baking with Caskey Episode #14, Part 1 “Getting To Know Caskey”
- ↑ Caskey Mixtapes - Homegrown Vol. 1 Archived January 13, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ New Mixtape: Caskey 'No Complaints' | Vibe
- ↑ EXCLUSIVE: Newly Signed YMCMB Artist Caskey Talks Being Birdman’s Only “Blue Eyed” Rapper; “No Complaints” About YMCMB’s Busy Roster | AllHipHop.com
- ↑ Cash Money Signs Orlando Rapper Caskey - XXL
- ↑ Morning Fix: Universal-EMI EU Approval Tomorrow? Amanda Palmer Pays; Cash Money Signs Caskey | Billboard
- ↑ Local rap artist Caskey signed to Cash Money Records | Orlando Weekly Blogs
- ↑ Birdman Signs Caskey To Cash Money Records & YMCMB | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales | HipHop DX
- ↑ Rap Radar :: New Music: Caskey “Cash Money Records 100 Bars”
- ↑ iTunes - Music - Keep It On the Low (feat. Kyle Denmead) - Single by Caskey
- ↑ Caskey “FBGM” (Prod. By The Avengerz)
- ↑ Caskey - No Complaints Hosted by YMCMB // Free Mixtape @ DatPiff.com
- ↑ "Caskey – No Complaints [Free Mixtape Download". The Versed. 2013-02-25. Archived from the original on 2013-06-06. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
- ↑ Full Tracklist: 'Rich Gang' LP Includes R. Kelly, Kendrick Lamar, Chris Brown & More | Vibe
- ↑ Rich Gang Album Review — 5 out of 5 stars @ARTISTdirect
- ↑ Studio Life: Caskey speaks on upcoming project, “The Transient Classics”
- ↑ Caskey “The Transient Classics” Mixtape Trailer YMCMB featuring Birdman
- ↑ Jake Crates (2013-08-20). "Caskey "Show Me Some"". AllHipHop.com. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
- ↑ "Caskey Lets Loose Visuals For "Show Me Some"". TheSource. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
- ↑ http://www.djbooth.net/index/albums/review/caskey-the-transient-classics
- ↑ http://thedrop.fm/caskey-the-transient-classics-mixtape-review/
- ↑ Orlando Rapper Caskey Added To Cash Money, YMCMB Roster
- ↑ Caskey Discusses His Father - AOL On