T-Pain
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Faheem Rashad Najm (born September 30, 1984), known professionally as T-Pain, is an American singer, rapper, songwriter and record producer. He is known for popularizing creative use of Auto-Tune pitch correction, often used with extreme parameter settings to create electronic-styled vocal performances. Blending its use with R&B and hip-hop sensibilities, T-Pain became a prominent figure in both genres throughout the 2000s. T-Pain began his recording career as part of the hip-hop group Nappy Headz. He released his debut solo mixtape, Back @ It independently in 2004, and signed with Akon's Konvict Muzik, in a joint venture with Jive Records, the following year. His 2005 debut single, "I'm Sprung", was quickly met with commercial success, peaking at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and receiving platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Its follow-up, "I'm 'n Luv (wit a Stripper)" (featuring Mike Jones), peaked at number five on the chart; both served as lead singles for his debut studio album, Rappa Ternt Sanga (2005). Despite mixed critical reception, his second album, Epiphany (2007), peaked atop the US Billboard 200 and spawned the Billboard Hot 100-number one single "Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin')" (featuring Yung Joc), as well as the top-40 single, "Bartender" (featuring Akon). His third album, Three Ringz (2008), was preceded by the single "Can't Believe It" (featuring Lil Wayne), and his fourth album, Revolver (2011), was preceded by "5 O'Clock" (featuring Wiz Khalifa and Lily Allen). His fifth album, Oblivion (2017) sustained long-term delays and was met with critical and commercial failure, serving as his final release on a major label. Meanwhile, T-Pain saw continued success as a guest performer on nine Hot 100-top ten singles—"Shawty" by Plies, "Cyclone" by Baby Bash, "Good Life" by Kanye West, "Shawty Get Loose" by Lil Mama, "Got Money" by Lil Wayne, "Blame It" by Jamie Foxx, and "Hey Baby (Drop It to the Floor)" by Pitbull—which includes two singles that peaked the chart: "Kiss Kiss" by Chris Brown and "Low" by Flo Rida. The latter was named third in the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Decade and received diamond (10× platinum) certification by the RIAA. "Good Life" and "Blame It" both won Grammy Awards for Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Performance, respectively, from T-Pain's total of 12 nominations for the award. Outside of music, he founded the record label Nappy Boy Entertainment in 2005, which has signed fellow rapper Travie McCoy. Furthermore, he has produced and written material for other artists, and voice acted in film and television including Tom & Jerry, Freaknik: The Musical, The Cleveland Show, Squidbillies, and We Bare Bears.