Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr.

Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. (born March 13, 1972 in Chicago), better known by his stage name Common, is an American hip hop artist. Common debuted in 1992 with the album Can I Borrow A Dollar?, and maintained a significant underground following into the late 90s, after which he gained notable mainstream success through his work with the Soulquarians. His first major label album, Like Water for Chocolate, received widespread critical acclaim and moderate commercial success. Its popularity was matched by 2005's Be, which was nominated in the 2006 Grammy Awards for Best Rap Album. Common recently started a burgeoning film career, starting with a role in action thriller, Smokin' Aces, followed by a part in American Gangster.

---

Early life

Common was born on March 13, 1972, and he was raised in Chicago, he is the son of educator Ann Hines and former ABA basketball player turned youth counselor Lonnie Lynn. Common's parents divorced when he was six years old, resulting in his father moving to Denver, Colorado. This left Common to be raised by his mother, but his father remained active in his life and even landed Common a job with the Chicago Bulls during his teen years.While in high school, Common also formed C.D.R., a rap trio that opened for acts such as N.W.A. and Big Daddy Kane. Common later left this group when he attended Florida A&M University to study business administration.

---

Early career

Common dropped out of Louisiana State University (as quoted in the song "Its Your World pt.1") and was featured in the Unsigned Hype column of The Source magazine after a friend sent in a tape of Common rapping. Under the stage name Common Sense, he debuted in 1992 with the single "Take It EZ"followed by the album, Can I Borrow a Dollar?. With the 1994 release of Resurrection, Common achieved a much larger degree of critical acclaim, which extended beyond Chicago natives. The album sold relatively well and received a strong positive reaction among alternative and underground hip-hop fans at the time. Resurrection was Common's last album produced almost entirely by his long-time production partner, No I.D., who was also the then-mentor of a young Kanye West.

---