Shade Sheist performed from 1994 to 1999 as Shady Montage, signed to
Hollywood Records. Two singles he released under this moniker, "Shake You Down" and "Leaving You Again" were well received and aired on major market radio stations nationally. At one point during this period he became label mates and recorded with
The Notorious B.I.G. As a teen, he appeared in several music videos including
2Pac's "
So Many Tears" and
South Circle's "Attitudes". Shade Sheist graduated from
Alexander Hamilton High School in 1997. He first performed commercially as Shade Sheist in 2000 on the song "If You Were My Bitch" from the compilation
Irv Gotti Presents: The Murderers. That year, he also appeared on the song "It's Your Life" from
Ja Rule's triple Platinum-selling album
Rule 3:36. Additionally, Shade Sheist met
Los Angeles-based producer
Damizza, who worked as senior director for artist relations at Los Angeles
hip hop station
Power 106 and released a various-artists compilation titled
Where I Wanna Be. Shade Sheist,
Kurupt and
Nate Dogg performed the title single, which peaked at No. 60 on the
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart but at No. 1 on the
Hot Rap Singles. Shade Sheist and
Nate Dogg collaborated again on the track "Cali Diseaz" on the soundtrack to the 2001 film
The Fast and the Furious. Damizza recorded the track "Bad News" with Shade Sheist and N.U.N.E. for the soundtrack to the
Fox television drama
Dark Angel. In 2002, Shade Sheist released his debut album
Informal Introduction through a deal between
MCA Records and his own Baby Ree label.
Informal Introduction featured production by
Timbaland,
DJ Quik, Damizza and
KayGee of
Naughty by Nature. The singles included "Money Owners", "Wake Up", and "John Doe". The "Where I Wanna Be" music video featured cameos from N.U.N.E.,
TQ,
Irv Gotti,
Ja Rule and
The D.O.C. The "Money Owners" music video featured a special appearance from
Dr. Dre, who worked in the studio room next door to Shade Sheist during the recording of the
Informal Introduction album. Shade Sheist stated that Dr. Dre was a big help during the creation of his debut album. The
Los Angeles Times asserted that Power 106 played Shade Sheist's singles more than any other
urban radio station in the U.S. and reported that Peter Hart of
Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting brought up
conflict of interest issues given that
Emmis Communications funded both the radio station and Shade Sheist's label Baby Ree, which is owned by Damizza. Power 106 decided to disclose its ties to Shade Sheist after the
LA Times brought up the issue. Emmis president Rick Cummings stated that his station played Shade Sheist's music based on listener tastes. Shade Sheist returned in 2004 with the single "What Would You Do" featuring
Nate Dogg and
Mariah Carey. The track appeared on Shade Sheist's second album ''Before the Waitin' Before the Hatin''' which originally released in 2005 and re-released in late 2006 with new tracks included. In 2008, Shade Sheist and N.U.N.E. set off on an international tour that would cover two years and several continents. In 2010, Shade Sheist released a new album with N.U.N.E.,
Movin Units which was his first original studio release in four years. The album featured the single "Movin Like a Boss" which spawned several international remixes. On August 1, 2013, Shade Sheist released a brand-new seven-track EP titled
Blackops: Lite, which featured himself on production as well as vocals. The EP served as a preview of his upcoming full-length LP of the same title. Shade Sheist simultaneously unveiled his Gfunkisforever label with the release of the EP. ==Discography==