Al Fatz

Born Aljaray Gaston, rapper Al Fatz was raised by his grandmother in Cleveland, OH. In high school he began rapping and performing at local talent shows; at one of these, the reception to one of his songs, "Hold Up Hold Up Mane," was so strong that Al, who at this point was going under Fat Al, decided to record it. From those sessions "Came Down" was also produced, and the rapper began selling the track at his high school. Soon, thanks to its catchy hook and beat, it could be found in cities across Ohio. After hooking up with Cavaliers forward LeBron James to help record the basketball star's theme song along with Paul Wall, Al was signed to Atlantic Records. He was unable to keep his moniker, however, due to copyright problems with Bill Cosby's character Fat Albert, so, changing his name to Al Fatz, he re-released "Came Down" nationwide in early 2007, with plans for a full-length to follow.