Masta Ace
Born: 1966
Location: Brooklyn, New York, USA
Genre: Hip Hop
Years Active: 1988 -
Real Name: Duval Clear
Meaning of the Name:
Way of Working: Rapper and producer
Associated: Juice Crew, Edo G, eMC,
Essential Releases
Slaughtahouse (1993)
Released as Masta Ace Inc. Satirical critique of gangsta rap.
Disposable Arts (2001)
Storytelling record about a rapper who joins a training school for emcees.
A Long Hot
Summer (2004)
Prequel to Disposable Arts. Storytelling record.
It was only when he stopped trying to be accepted that the Brooklyn-based rapper Masta Ace truly found his niche. Until then, he'd made several attempts to become a household name: joining a legendary supergroup (Juice Crew), moving to the West Coast, and, in a moment of desperation, making a few never released tracks in the style of P. Diddy's Bad Boy Records.
Despite having a few catchy singles on the radio, such as 'Born to Roll', which reached number 23 in the US, it never really worked. Of his attempts to sound like the current "big thing" Ace told Forbes:
"I kind of cringe at some of the stuff that I did musically. I was doing it because I felt like these were things that needed to be said in order to get people's attention, but it’s not who I was as an artist."
Masta Ace's debut appearance in hip hop was on Marley Marl's iconic single 'The Symphony' in 1988. Maybe beginning his career on such a high gave him unrealistic expectations. Rapping alongside fellow Juice Crew members and bona fide superstars of hip hop such as Big Daddy Kane and Kool G Rap set the stage for him to follow in their footsteps. History, however, had other plans.Over the following years, the Juice Crew dissolved. To make matters worse, Cold Chillin' Records demanded his debut album be commercial. Against his better judgement Ace obliged, only to be dropped after failing to reach ambitious sales targets. Two singles from the record made the Top 20 Hot Hip Hop Songs, but it wasn't enough.
Continuing to chase a career in hip hop, Ace racked his brain. Form a group? Masta Ace Incorporated lasted four years. Become a producer? His love for the mic pulled him back in. Move out west? Fans on the east questioned his loyalty. On the verge of giving up, he was diagnosed with life-altering multiple sclerosis in 2000.
With no time to spare, he showed the world what Masta Ace was capable of. "No talking, nobody saying anything about uptempo songs. I really wanted to make the exact record that I wanted to make." He went into the studio to record a "final" album, which inadvertently began his life as a king of the East Coast underground.
The resulting Disposable Arts was a masterclass in satirical hip hop for the thinking man. For example, 'Hold U' is on a first listen about a man's love for a woman. However, it's really about a rapper's love for the mic, but the mic, in a woman's voice, talks back! How dare she. In its entirety, the record is about a wannabe rapper attending a training school for MC's. It features scathing, mock advertisements such as: "You can embark on careers such as A&R b***h n***a, shiesty label guy, street promotions vandal or half-assed producer." The uncompromising approach struck a chord with the genre's core fans who demanded more. Ace was happy to oblige.
Introspective storytelling became a hallmark of his future albums such as My Long Hot Summer (a prequel to Disposable Arts), Son of Yvonne (where he says everything he didn't get a chance to say to his mother), The Falling Season (about his high school years), and A Breukelen Story (about trying to make it in the big city).
The rapper's ability to conjure characters, share intimate experiences from his personal life, and tell stories in intense detail earned him the lasting respect of fans and high-profile figures such as MF Doom, who produced the whole of Son of Yvonne, and Eminem, who wrote in his 2008 autobiography The Way I Am: "Masta Ace had amazing storytelling skills – his thoughts were so vivid."
If you are someone who admires intelligence, authenticity, and storytelling in hip hop then you shouldn't ignore the fertile discography of Masta Ace.
Skills
*This is a work in progress. Values are subjective.Emotional Impact
70
Mental Impact
75
Originality
80
Artistry
55
Authenticity
95
Live
85
Production
85
Musicianship
65
Rapping
85
Songwriting
90
Danceability
60
Fun
55
Consistency
75
Range
55
Cool
70
Charisma
55
