Yasiin Bey ake Mos Def is an influential American rapper, singer, and actor. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Bey developed a love for acting as a teenager, starring in the film You Take the Kids during highschool. After dropping out, Bey continued acting through jobs with Off-Off-Broadway and other arts programs. His experienced growing amidst the crack epidemic led to him tiring towards music.

Bey began his music career with the group forming the group Urban Thermo Dynamics (UDT) in 1994. Two years later Bey began working on solo music, releasing his first single, Universal Magnetic, in 1997.

After that Bey released an album Talib Kweli under the rap group Black Star with Rawkus Records a year later..Bey continued releasing solo music including his debut album Black on Both Sides in 1999. 

Bey’s second album The New Danger in 2004 became his most successful album, reaching the no.5 spot on the Billboard 200. Bey continued releasing music through two more studio albums and other collaborative works until his retirement from the music industry in 2016. However, his retirement was called into question after the release of his fifth album Negus and the new Black Star albums No Fear of Time in 2022.