Fat Joe was born under the name Joseph Cartagena on the 19th of August, 1970. In the South Bronx region of New York, he was raised and deeply inspired as a youth by the community of the Zulu Country. His brother, Angel, would carry home recordings of the music performed at those gatherings, and young Joe’s curiosity was piqued by the initial sounds. He also discovered the ways of life on the street through his child, through the exploration of rap.
He became interested with hip-hop music when he grew older, taking a liking not just to rap but also to street art and breakdancing. He was actively interested in the cocaine trade along with it, and from there he received his nickname, Joey Crack. He returned to his younger roots until he delved further into the drug trafficking arena and realized in time that his real passion was music.
Joe started off his music career by starting up his own record company and signing it alongside his fellow independent musicians. “He dropped a debut album “Represent” in 1993 under the pseudonym Fat Joe da Gangsta, then followed it up with another “Jealous One’s Envy” two years later. He stripped da Gangsta from his moniker in the second attempt and formally used just Fat Joe. The album debuted at number 71 on Billboard Hot 200, and by getting a big contract with Atlantic Records, he was soon accepted by the rap world.
“Joe stormed the U.S. albums chart with his third collection, “Don Cartagne,” three years after the release of his sophomore set, which rose to No. 7 on the list and soared to the runner-up spot on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. He was repeatedly slapped by scandals and sharp reviews as his career went to a greater degree. One of them was suspected of neglecting the participants of his own Terror Squad party.
In 2001, in terms of following the momentum of their predecessor, he dropped a sequel to his claim-fame song, “Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.)” He’s been teaming up with R. Kelly, Busta Rhymes, Ashanti, Ja Rule, Ludacris, and Xzibit. In reality, by hitting No. 21, he climbed higher than the 1993 attempt, but he could not match the amazing “Don Cartagne” chart results.
His second “Loyalty” album, which was issued the following year, also charted lower. While the likes of Mashonda, Lil Jon, Nelly, Eminem, and Jennifer Lopez lined up, on the country’s albums list it could only peak at No. 3Joe came back in 2005 with his record “All or Nothing” after being away from the list for a couple years, which increased to No. 6 on Hot 200. He was targeted by fellow rapper 50 Cent during this span of time, and he fought back.
