Michael Lawrence Tyler (born September 22, 1970) Mystikal — Американский рэпер и актёр из Нового Орлеана, штат Луизиана

Michael Lawrence Tyler (born September 22, 1970) better known by his stage name Mystikal, is an American rapper and actor from New Orleans, Louisiana. He is known for brash, obstreperous vocal delivery characterized by a Southern rasp. He signed with local record label Big Boy Records to release his self-titled debut studio album (1994), which was re-released by Jive Records as his major label debut, Mind of Mystikal (1995). He then parted ways with the former label in favor of its local competitor, Master P’s No Limit Records; he released Unpredictable (1997) and Ghetto Fabulous (1998) as a solo act for the label, and one Goodfellas (1999) as a member of its then-flagship group, 504 Boyz. Following his departure from No Limit, his 2000 singles, “Shake Ya Ass“ (featuring Pharrell Williams) and “Danger (Been So Long)“ (featuring Nivea) peaked at numbers 13 and 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively. Both preceded the release of his fourth album, Let’s Get Ready (2000), which debuted atop the Billboard 200. Tyler grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana’s 12th Ward. His father, who ran a small neighborhood store, died when Tyler was seven. He attended Cohen High School and afterward joined the United States Army as a combat engineer. As an aspiring rapper, he opened for Run-DMC and Doug E. Fresh at an outdoor concert at the Treme Center. Leroy “Precise“ Edwards, the house producer for Big Boy Records, was in the audience, and granted him a contract. Mystikal’s debut album, Mystikal, was released on New Orleans-based independent record label Big Boy in 1994. The album was one of Big Boy’s most successful albums and gained major success for Mystikal. In 1995, he found himself involved in conflict with fellow New Orleans rappers signed to rival Cash Money, including . and The B.G.’z. They dissed him on tracks like “Drag ’Em in Tha River“ by . and “Fuck Big Boy“ by The B.G.’z. He struck back with “Beware“ and “Here I Go“ which were on his second album, Mind of Mystikal. Mystikal’s sister, Michelle Tyler, sang the chorus on “Not That Nigga“ and her fate became a major influence on Mystikal’s music after her death in September 1994. The songs “Dedicated to Michelle Tyler“, “Murder“ (both on Mind of Mystikal), “Murder 2“, “Shine“ (both on Unpredictable) and “Murder III“ (on Let’s Get Ready) refer to her death. Mystikal and Lil Wayne would eventually squash their feud and become collaborators. Mystikal signed to Jive and released Mind of Mystikal in 1995. He signed to Master P’s No Limit in 1996 and released Unpredictable in November 1997. He appeared on many of the No Limit albums released from 1997 through a chunk of 2000. He also collaborated with Mariah Carey on her Rainbow album on the track ’Did I Do That’. In late 1998, he released Ghetto Fabulous. That was his last album with the label, and he and No Limit parted ways in 2000. Main article: Mystikal discography. Studio albums Mystikal (1994) Mind of Mystikal (1995) Unpredictable (1997) Ghetto Fabulous (1998) Let’s Get Ready (2000) Tarantula (2001)