Felix Delgado(I)
- Transportation Department
Born Felix Delgado in Havana, Cuba, rapper Cuban Link left his
home country for the United States in 1980 when his father was exiled
from Castro's Cuba. Cuban settled in New York's South Bronx
neighborhood at the same time when hip-hop was still in its nascent
stages and soon was immersed in the local hip-hop scene and writing
lyrics. After forming a group with local rappers Triple Seis and the
late Big Punisher, the trio began rhyming under different group names
such as the Caribbean Connection (Big Pun was Puerto Rican and Triple
Seis, Dominican) and the Full-A-Clips crew. The crew would eventually
merge with Fat Joe and his Terror Squad when Joe recruited the gifted
Big Pun as his protégé. First heard alongside Pun on the Beatnuts smash
"Off the Books" in 1997, Cuban subsequently cultivated buzz with
memorable appearances on Pun's platinum Capital Punishment ("Glamour
Life"), Fat Joe's Don Cartagena ("Bet Ya Man Can't (Triz)") and the
eponymous Terror Squad LP ("Tell Me What You Want"). His raw lyricism,
edges rough enough for the streets, and good looks landed him a deal
with Atlantic Records.
But when Pun died suddenly on February 7, 2000, everything fell apart.
"Flowers for the Dead", Cuban's premier solo single and tribute to his
immense partner, couldn't begin to relate the loss. Without Pun to
mediate, Cuban began butting heads with Joe over managerial decisions
and his Atlantic Records debut, 24K, was shelved. Ultimately he bought
his way out from under both, and retreated to relaunch his solo career.
But once again, Cuban ran into another roadblock. While at out at a
nightclub in New York City, he was involved in an nightclub altercation
and his face was cut. After healing and regrouping, he resurfaced in
2005, with independent MOB Records (Men of Business), and finally
released his revamped debut, Chain Reaction. The album featured guest
appearances from sexy songstress Mya ("Sugar Daddy"), hardcore rap
stalwart Jadakiss ("Talk About It") and production from Jay-Z and DMX
collaborator Swizz Beats ("Coming Home With Me" Shakedown," and "Talk
About It").
home country for the United States in 1980 when his father was exiled
from Castro's Cuba. Cuban settled in New York's South Bronx
neighborhood at the same time when hip-hop was still in its nascent
stages and soon was immersed in the local hip-hop scene and writing
lyrics. After forming a group with local rappers Triple Seis and the
late Big Punisher, the trio began rhyming under different group names
such as the Caribbean Connection (Big Pun was Puerto Rican and Triple
Seis, Dominican) and the Full-A-Clips crew. The crew would eventually
merge with Fat Joe and his Terror Squad when Joe recruited the gifted
Big Pun as his protégé. First heard alongside Pun on the Beatnuts smash
"Off the Books" in 1997, Cuban subsequently cultivated buzz with
memorable appearances on Pun's platinum Capital Punishment ("Glamour
Life"), Fat Joe's Don Cartagena ("Bet Ya Man Can't (Triz)") and the
eponymous Terror Squad LP ("Tell Me What You Want"). His raw lyricism,
edges rough enough for the streets, and good looks landed him a deal
with Atlantic Records.
But when Pun died suddenly on February 7, 2000, everything fell apart.
"Flowers for the Dead", Cuban's premier solo single and tribute to his
immense partner, couldn't begin to relate the loss. Without Pun to
mediate, Cuban began butting heads with Joe over managerial decisions
and his Atlantic Records debut, 24K, was shelved. Ultimately he bought
his way out from under both, and retreated to relaunch his solo career.
But once again, Cuban ran into another roadblock. While at out at a
nightclub in New York City, he was involved in an nightclub altercation
and his face was cut. After healing and regrouping, he resurfaced in
2005, with independent MOB Records (Men of Business), and finally
released his revamped debut, Chain Reaction. The album featured guest
appearances from sexy songstress Mya ("Sugar Daddy"), hardcore rap
stalwart Jadakiss ("Talk About It") and production from Jay-Z and DMX
collaborator Swizz Beats ("Coming Home With Me" Shakedown," and "Talk
About It").