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Biography
Infobox musical artist|name = CunninLynguists|caption = L-R Kno, Natti, Deacon The Villain|image =|background = group_or_band|origin = Lexington, Kentucky , U.S.|genre = Hip hop music|hip hop , alternative hip hop |occupation = Rapping , hip hop production|production |years_active = 2000–present|label = Freshchest (2001-2005) LA Underground (2005-2006) APOS Music (2006-present) QN5 Music (2006-present)|associated_acts = QN5 Music , Tonedeff , Freddie Gibbs |website = http://www.myspace.com/CunninLynguists CunninLynguists Myspace|current_members = Kno (Ryan Wisler) Deacon the Villain (Willis Polk II) Natti (Garrett Bush)|past_members = Mr. SOS (David Diaz)|notable_instruments = CunninLynguists are a hip hop music|hip hop trio from Lexington, KentuckyHess, Mickey (2009) Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide: Volume 1: East Coast and West Coast , Greenwood Press, ISBN 978-0-313-34323-0, p. x and Atlanta, Georgia. The group currently consists of Deacon the Villain, Kno, and Natti.
History
The group's debut LP, Will Rap for Food , was released in October 2001, and was described by Pitchfork Media as "a solid, accessible debut, filled with clever rhymes and tremendously consistent production".Jeffries, David "Allmusic|class=artist|id=p558287|pure_url=yes CunninLynguists Biography", Allmusic , retrieved 2010-04-12Kallman (2003) " http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/1689-southernunderground/ CunninLynguists Southernunderground", Pitchfork Media , May 18, 2003, retrieved 2010-04-12 Their second LP, SouthernUnderground , was independently released April 1, 2003 on Freshchest Records. The album saw Mr. SOS join the group and featured guests including Masta Ace , Supastition and others, with production from Domingo, RJD2 and Kno. M.F. DiBella of Allmusic commented on "a lyrical deftness and genuine feel for the music rarely seen in the bling-conscious rap of the latter-day era".DiBella, M.F. "Allmusic|class=album|id=r638177|pure_url=yes Southernunderground Review", Allmusic , retrieved 2010-04-12
The group landed a distribution contract with Caroline Distribution in 2004, and SouthernUnderground was the first project re-released after inking the deal with Will Rap For Food being re-released shortly thereafter in 2005.
The group toured throughout the U.S. and Canada in 2003, 2004 and 2005, appearing onstage alongside acts like Nappy Roots , Cee-Lo Green of Goodie Mob and touring extensively with People Under the Stairs , Raekwon of Wu-Tang Clan and Brand Nubian . In 2003, Kno created his own remixed version of Jay-Z 's The Black Album (Jay-Z album)|The Black Album with The White Albulum .Johnson, T. Hasan: "The Black Album Remix Phenomenon", in Hess, Mickey (2007) Icons of hip hop: an encyclopedia of the movement, music, and culture, Volume 2 , Greenwood Press, ISBN 978-0-313-33904-2, p. 535-6
CunninLynguists released their third LP, A Piece of Strange , worldwide on January 24, 2006 via Caroline Records and Groove Attack Distribution. With Mr. SOS now having left the group and Natti joining,Strock, Owen (2005) " http://books.google.com/books? id=gCoEAAAAMBAJ& pg=PA43& dq=%22CunninLynguists%22+-inpublisher:icon& as_brr=0& cd=1#v=onepage& q=%22CunninLynguists%22%20-inpublisher%3Aicon& f=false CunninLynguists A Piece of Strange ", CMJ New Music Monthly , retrieved 2010-04-12 it featured guest spots from Cee-Lo Green, Immortal Technique and Tonedeff and is entirely produced by Kno.Walker, Verbal (2005) " http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.3298 Cunninlynguists new projects", HipHopDX, June 3, 2005, retrieved 2010-04-12 The release of A Piece of Strange saw the profile for the group rise, as they toured abroad multiple timesqn5.com, http://www.qn5music.com/html/cal_0606.htm Retrieved on November, 2006 in support of the release appearing live alongside such acts as Kanye West ,qn5.com, http://www.qn5music.com/html/cal_0706.htm Retrieved on November, 2006 Pharrell Williams , The Strokes and more. Hype gave the album a five star review describing it as "the best album of the last 12 months"."CunninLynguists A Piece of Strange ", Hype , 2006 URB (magazine)|URB gave the album four stars, describing it as "a piece of beauty, a soulful and sweeping assemblage of cuts that ride a steady wave of infectious momentum",Polowy, Kevin (2006) "Cunninlynguists - A Piece of Strange", URB while The A.V. Club commented on Kno's "masterful, adventurous production".Rabin, Nathan (2005) " http://www.avclub.com/articles/cunninlynguists-supastition,9794/ A Piece Of Strange / Chain Letters", The A.V. Club , October 26, 2005, retrieved 2010-04-12
CunninLynguists released their fourth LP, Dirty Acres on November 27, 2007 through a joint venture between their own label APOS Music and Swedish-based label Bad Taste Records .badtasterecords.se, http://www.badtasterecords.se Retrieved on November, 2007 Produced entirely by Kno, it features artists such as Devin the Dude , Phonte of Little Brother (group)|Little Brother and Witchdoctor (rapper)|Witchdoctor , http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=dZKxboCM7S0 YouTube – CunninLynguists – Dirty Acres and was described by CMJ New Music Monthly as "a defiant album that questions everything, even the assumed standards of hip hop".Youssef, Emily (2007) " http://books.google.com/books? id=Dy0EAAAAMBAJ& pg=PA43& dq=%22CunninLynguists%22+-inpublisher:icon& as_brr=0& cd=3#v=onepage& q=%22CunninLynguists%22%20-inpublisher%3Aicon& f=false CunninLynguists Dirty Acres ", CMJ New Music Monthly , December 2007, retrieved 2010-04-12 It was lauded by Michael Kabran of PopMatters as "easily one of the best hip-hop albums of 2007 and arguably one of the best albums of the past decade".Kabran, Michael (2009) " http://www.popmatters.com/pm/post/73041-cunninlynguists-alliteration-and-a-strange-journey/ CunninLynguists, Alliteration, and a Strange Journey", PopMatters , April 15, 2009, retrieved 2010-04-12 CunninLynguists made their way across the United States, Europe and Canada in support of the album, headlining the Dirty Acres Tour in 3 parts over the course of 2008.qn5.com, http://qn5.com/forums/viewtopic.php? t=12175 Retrieved on November, 2008
CunninLynguists have been covered in various media outlets including The Source (magazine)|The Source , URB (magazine)|URB , Spin magazine|Spin , XLR8R , Import Tuner, and The Onion .
In 2010, producer Kno released his album Death Is Silent . On December 21, the group released the artwork and March 22 release date of their upcoming album Oneirology on their Facebook page.
Members
Kno (born Ryan Wisler)Wigney, Allan " http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/C/CunninLynguists/2008/10/08/7014121-sun.html CunninLynguists serve up southern rap", Canadian Online Explorer , retrieved 2010-04-13 and Deacon the Villain are the founding and current members of CunninLynguists and have been found on every CunninLynguists album thus far since the group's inception in March 2000. Deacon and Kno met at Club Kaya in Atlanta, Georgia at an event for the now defunct Blaze Magazine that included various members of Atlanta's own Dungeon Family .wers.org, http://www.wers.org/articles/? id=60 Retrieved on March 27, 2006 CunninLynguists would later go on to work with various Dungeon Family members such as Cee-Lo Green,last.fm, http://www.last.fm/music/CunninLynguists Retrieved on November, 2007 Big Rube, Khujo Goodie,youtube.com, http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=d8d0QZs7DWE Retrieved on November, 2008 EJ The Witchdoctor and Psycho Mike, with the latter comparing CunninLynguists' sound to Dungeon Family "in its heyday".
Kno, hailing from Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia and currently residing in Atlanta , has been described as "one of the top loop-miners east of the Mississippi River|Mississippi " by URB (magazine)|URB . He produced the majority of Will Rap For Food , SouthernUnderground , A Piece of Strange , Sloppy Seconds 2 and Dirty Acres and has also received acclaim in The New York Times , Rolling Stone , and other magazines for his remix of Jay-Z 's The Black Album (Jay-Z album)|Black Album , entitled Kno vs. Hov "The White Albulum" .
Hailing from Versailles, Kentucky , Deacon the Villain is also an established producer. His beats have been used by the likes of KRS-One ,Michael, John (2008) " http://www.sixshot.com/interviews/9533/ Cunninlynguists - Extraordinary Gentlemen", Sixshot.com, January 1, 2008, retrieved 2010-04-12King Tee , and J-Ro from Tha Liks , as well as local Kentucky artists such as Rob Jackson and Bonafide Circle.
Kentucky-based emcee Natti has been involved in the group from November 2004 until the present (appearing on all material since Sloppy Seconds Volume 2 ).
As of January 2006, the duo of Kno and Deacon have begun work as a production duo under the banner A Piece of Strange Music, currently producing for Devin the Dude , Lil' Scrappy , Immortal Technique and others.
Florida-based emcee Mr. SOS was a part of CunninLynguists from July 2002 to October 2004 (appearing mainly on SouthernUnderground and Sloppy Seconds Volume 1 ).
"Don't Leave (When Winter Comes)" b/w "Nothing But Strangeness"
"Running Wild"
"To Be for Real"
"Imperial"
"Stars Shine Brightest (In The Darkest Of Night)"
"Hard As They Come (Act I)"
"Darkness (Dream On)"
References
Reflist|2
External links
official website| http://qn5.com/artists/cunninlynguists
myspace|cunninlynguists
CunninLynguists DEFAULTSORT:Cunninlynguists Category:Alternative hip hop groups Category:Musical groups from Kentucky Category:American hip hop record producers Category:Underground rappers Category:People from Lexington, Kentucky Category:American hip hop groups
