Fat Joe

Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper. He began recording as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.) in 1992, and pursued a solo career with the release of his debut studio album, Represent (1993) the following year. Cartegena formed the hip hop group Terror Squad and its namesake record label in the late 1990s, through which he has signed fellow New York artists including Big Pun, Remy Ma, Tony Sunshine, Cuban Link, Triple Seis, as well as then-unknown producers DJ Khaled and Cool & Dre.

Represent was preceded by his debut single "Flow Joe", which entered the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked atop the Hot Rap Songs chart. The album was followed by Jealous One's Envy (1995), Don Cartagena (1998), and Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.) (2001)—the latter received platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and yielded the hit single, "What's Luv?" (featuring Ja Rule and Ashanti). The song peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, while his 2004 single "Lean Back" (with Terror Squad) peaked atop the chart and remains his most commercially successful release. Cartagena has also released the top 40 singles "Make It Rain" (featuring Lil Wayne) in 2006, and "All the Way Up" (with Remy Ma featuring French Montana and Infared) a decade later.

Cartagena has appeared in several films, including Scary Movie 3 and Happy Feet, as well as Spike Lee's Netflix series She's Gotta Have It.

Joseph Antonio Cartagena was born on August 19, 1970 in the Bronx, New York City, where he was raised by parents of Puerto Rican and Cuban descent. Living in the Forest Houses, a public housing project in the Morrisania neighborhood, Cartagena began stealing at a young age to support his family. He also admits that he was a bully in his childhood. His older brother, Angel (d. 2024), introduced him to hip hop music. At the time, Cartagena had been kicked out of his family's apartment following a fight with his father and began dealing drugs.

Cartagena began performing music under the alias, Fat Joe da Gangsta, and became part of the rap group D.I.T.C., formed by producer Diamond D. After performing at the Apollo Theater's Amateur Night even in 1991, Cartagena was represented by music executive Chris Lighty of Violator and then, signed to Relativity Records in the early 1990s, recording material for his debut studio album and working with many artists whom he would later sign to his own label.

On July 27, 1993, his debut album Represent was released, featuring production from The Beatnuts, Diamond D, Lord Finesse, and others. Its lead single, "Flow Joe", peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart. Other singles from the album included "Watch the Sound" and "This Shit Is Real".

On October 24, 1995, Cartagena released his second studio album, Jealous One's Envy, which peaked at number 71 on the Billboard 200 and at number seven on the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart. The album featured a guest appearance from KRS-One and production from Diamond D. The lead single was "Success", which failed to chart. His second single, "Envy" peaked at number eight on the Hot Rap Tracks chart.^{[citation needed]}

One day while writing for the album at Chung King Studios, Cartagena happened to find that his rap idol and friend, LL Cool J, was in another room with Poke and Tone, known together as the production duo, the Trackmasters. They were working on the remix version of LL's single, "I Shot Ya". After being welcomed to contribute a verse, Cartagena appeared on the remix, along with Foxy Brown, Keith Murray, and Prodigy of Mobb Deep. The track is considered by Cartagena to be one of his career highlights. A video, directed by Hype Williams, was shot for the remix.