CJ Fly

CJ Fly

CJ Fly (left) with Joey Badass at the Under the Influence Tour in Toronto, Canada on August 10, 2013
Background information
Birth name Chaine Downer, Jr.[1]
Also known as
  • The Storyteller
  • The Painter
  • Rap Game Tarantino
  • Master Roshe
Born (1993-07-06) July 6, 1993
Bedford–Stuyvesant, New York City, U.S.
Genres Hip hop
Occupation(s) Rapper
Years active 2011–present
Labels
Associated acts

Chaine Downer, Jr. (born July 6, 1993), better known by his stage name CJ Fly, is an American rapper from Brooklyn, New York City. He is a founding member and the oldest member of the hip-hop collective Pro Era and is signed to Cinematic.[2] Throughout 2012 and 2013, he was featured on many of the collective's projects and towards the end of 2013, he released his critically acclaimed mixtape Thee Way Eye See It.

Early life

CJ Fly was born on July 6, 1993 in Brooklyn, New York City. He is the only child of a Bajan mother and Jamaican father. He began writing poetry by the fourth grade and by the seventh grade he began rapping. He attended Edward R. Murrow High School for communication arts where he met Joey Bada$$, Powers Pleasant and Capital STEEZ. The four of them would spend their school days cyphering in the auditorium.[3] In 2011, Capital STEEZ and Powers Pleasant formed Pro Era,[4][5] with CJ Fly and Joey Bada$$ brought in as its founding members.[6][7]

Music career

In 2012, Pro Era released their debut mixtape The Secc$ Tape, with other members of Pro Era. He later made a breakthrough feature on Joey Bada$$'s debut mixtape 1999, "Hardknock", "Don't Front", and "Suspect" featuring the rest of Pro Era. December 23, 2012, he and Pro Era released their second mixtape PEEP: The Aprocalypse. With production from Pro Era members Chuck Strangers, Kirk Knight, Statik Selektah and others from Brandun DeShay, Thelonious Martin and more, the mixtape received critical acclaims from fans and music critics alike. CJ, along with Joey Bada$$ and Capital STEEZ, were featured on "Swank Sinatra" by close friend and Brooklyn rapper Dyme-A-Duzin. The song was released around the time of the untimely death of Pro Era cofounder, Capital STEEZ, who committed suicide on Christmas Eve of 2012.[8][9][10][11]

In 2013, CJ went on the Beast Coastal Tour with fellow Pro Era members, along with Flatbush Zombies and The Underachievers. He, along with the rest of Pro Era, joined Wiz Khalifa's Under The Influence Tour 2013 with A$AP Rocky, Trinidad James, Chevy Woods, Smoke DZA, and more. He later made an appearance on Joey's second mixtape Summer Knights along with the rest of Pro Era on the song "Sorry Bonita" produced by Oddisee. On October 5, 2013, he released his debut mixtape, Thee Way Eye See It. With features from various Pro Era members, Buckshot, Ab-Soul, Phife Dawg and production from Chuck Strangers, Statik Selektah, Brandun DeShay, and more, the mixtape has received critical acclaims and made him a candidate for XXL's 2014 and 2015 Freshman List.[12][13][14][15]

Influences

CJ is influenced by Notorious B.I.G., Nas, Jay-Z, A Tribe Called Quest, and MF DOOM.

Discography

Solo discography
Pro Era discography

References

  1. ↑ Ham, Robert (7 July 2014). "Flying high: Rapper CJ Fly is ready for take-off". Brooklyn Daily. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  2. ↑ Krishnamurthy, Sowmya (2014-02-15). "CJ Fly - Who Is Pro Era?". Complex. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  3. ↑ "CJ Fly | SXSW 2015 Event Schedule". Schedule.sxsw.com. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  4. ↑ Mahadevan, Tara (July 5, 2016). "Joey Bada$$ and Pro Era Turn Tragedy Into Celebration With Their Annual Steez Day Festival". LA Weekly. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
  5. ↑ Rosenberg, Eli (November 26, 2013). "Capital STEEZ: King Capital". The Fader. Archived from the original on August 31, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
  6. ↑ Isenberg, Daniel (May 9, 2012). "Who Is Joey Bada$$?". Complex. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  7. ↑ Badami, Anthony (June 6, 2012). "Joey Bada$$ Travels Through Astroplanes". Interview. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Joey Bada$ - 1999 Hosted by Pro Era Mixtape - Stream & Download". Datpiff.com. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  9. ↑ "AmeriKKKan Korruption Reloaded". Pro Era. 2012-12-18. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  10. ↑ "Peep The Aprocalypse". Pro Era. 2012-12-20. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  11. ↑ "DYME-A-DUZIN "Swank Sinatra" (feat. Joey BadA$$, Capital STEEZ & CJ Fly) Official Video". YouTube. 2012-12-12. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  12. ↑ "Joey Bada$$ - Sorry Bonita (Ft. PRO ERA) [Prod. By Oddisee] with Lyrics!". YouTube. 2013-08-09. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  13. ↑ "Wiz Khalifa Reveals 'Under The Influence Tour 2013′ Lineup, Dates - XXL". Xxlmag.com. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  14. ↑ "CJ Fly - Thee Way Eye See It Mixtape - Stream & Download". Datpiff.com. 2013-09-27. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
  15. ↑ "XXL Freshman 2014 - CJ Fly Pitch". YouTube. 2014-10-11. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
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