http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.5185455&variant=artist-playlists&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rssAs a member of Minneapolis' Rhymesayers collective (alongside Atmosphere, Eyedea & Abilities, and others), Brother Ali perfectly encapsulates that heralded crew's aesthetic. He has a knack for insightful lyrics, but he tempers these emo tendencies with tough-guy bravado and a stinging litany of battle-ready insults. Inspired by pioneering emcees like Slick Rick and KRS-One, he began rapping at the age of 15. In 2000, he released his cassette-only debut, <i>Rites of Passage</i>, followed by the excellent <i>Shadows on the Sun</i> in 2003. Though that album was well received by critics and the Rhymesayers faithful, it failed to catch on with the general public, and Ali spent the next two years fighting poverty and engaged in a bitter custody battle with his ex-wife, whom he claims was both mentally and physically abusive toward him and his son. The blood and tears were on full display on his next disc, <i>The Undisputed Truth</i>. For that record, Ali scaled back some of the bravado and explored his inner emotional fissures. Once again, the album gained critical praise and a cult following, but failed to make an impression on the wider listening audience. - Sam ChennaultThe Midwestern Basementen720Thu, 7 Jan 2010 12:15:12 -0800 http://static.realone.com/rotw/images/logo_rhapsody_113x22.gif http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.5185455&variant=artist-playlists&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss As a member of Minneapolis' Rhymesayers collective (alongside Atmosphere, Eyedea & Abilities, and others), Brother Ali perfectly encapsulates that heralded crew's aesthetic. He has a knack for insightful lyrics, but he tempers these emo tendencies with tough-guy bravado and a stinging litany of battle-ready insults. Inspired by pioneering emcees like Slick Rick and KRS-One, he began rapping at the age of 15. In 2000, he released his cassette-only debut, <i>Rites of Passage</i>, followed by the excellent <i>Shadows on the Sun</i> in 2003. Though that album was well received by critics and the Rhymesayers faithful, it failed to catch on with the general public, and Ali spent the next two years fighting poverty and engaged in a bitter custody battle with his ex-wife, whom he claims was both mentally and physically abusive toward him and his son. The blood and tears were on full display on his next disc, <i>The Undisputed Truth</i>. For that record, Ali scaled back some of the bravado and explored his inner emotional fissures. Once again, the album gained critical praise and a cult following, but failed to make an impression on the wider listening audience. - Sam Chennault http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30493211&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Sun, 3 Jan 2010 09:48:11 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 30493211 ply.30493211 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30493211&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30344569&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:08:21 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 30344569 ply.30344569 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30344569&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30341945&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:08:21 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 30341945 ply.30341945 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30341945&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30321911&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Sat, 3 Oct 2009 10:43:57 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 30321911 ply.30321911 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.30321911&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.28955147&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rock/Pop Sat, 4 Jul 2009 12:38:40 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 28955147 ply.28955147 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.28955147&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.23210232&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Tue, 5 Jan 2010 10:38:03 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 23210232 ply.23210232 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.23210232&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.22728149&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Fri, 4 Sep 2009 10:44:42 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 22728149 ply.22728149 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.22728149&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.22662004&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:06:53 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 22662004 ply.22662004 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.22662004&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.20632952&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Thu, 1 May 2008 18:28:36 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 20632952 ply.20632952 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.20632952&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.18117750&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Sat, 5 Sep 2009 11:18:26 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 18117750 ply.18117750 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.18117750&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.17811209&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Thu, 21 May 2009 12:57:36 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 17811209 ply.17811209 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.17811209&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.17758797&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Tue, 10 Feb 2009 12:02:53 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 17758797 ply.17758797 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.17758797&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.17448389&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Tue, 24 Feb 2009 11:20:18 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 17448389 ply.17448389 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.17448389&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.16230386&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:38:31 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 16230386 ply.16230386 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.16230386&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.14979389&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Fri, 16 Oct 2009 10:59:40 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 14979389 ply.14979389 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.14979389&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.14162165&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Tue, 5 Jan 2010 10:38:17 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 14162165 ply.14162165 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.14162165&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.14137155&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Fri, 12 Jun 2009 09:55:40 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 14137155 ply.14137155 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.14137155&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.14083874&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Rap/Hip-Hop Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:38:52 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 14083874 ply.14083874 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.14083874&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13911508&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:11:53 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 13911508 ply.13911508 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13911508&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13779704&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:48:22 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 13779704 ply.13779704 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13779704&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13683799&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Mon, 4 Jan 2010 09:31:24 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 13683799 ply.13683799 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13683799&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13683848&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Sat, 1 Mar 2008 12:08:37 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 13683848 ply.13683848 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13683848&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13683850&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Mon, 31 Aug 2009 09:49:35 -0700 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 13683850 ply.13683850 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13683850&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13530404&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Sun, 3 Jan 2010 09:48:28 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 13530404 ply.13530404 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13530404&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13382186&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss Alt/Punk Wed, 6 Jan 2010 12:55:20 -0800 Playlists Featuring Brother Ali on Rhapsody Online 13382186 ply.13382186 http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=ply.13382186&variant=play&rws=%2Fbrother-ali%2Fplaylists.rss