1st & 15th Entertainment, also known simply as FNF or 1st & 15th, is an American record label founded by Charles "Chilly" Patton and Lupe Fiasco in 2001, the name referring to bi-monthly paychecks. Artists signed to the roster included Fiasco, Sarah Green, Matthew Santos, and GemStones. From 2006-2015, the label was distributed by Atlantic Records; followed by Fiasco's departure from Atlantic, 1st & 15th continues to be marketed on all his releases.
Fiasco occasionally gives a shout-out to 1st & 15th in his songs, including "The Pen and the Needlz," "Outro," "I Gotcha," "The Emperor's Soundtrack," and "Real." He also has his mixtape series, Fahrenheit 1/15, and sometimes wears a jersey with the number 15 on the back (e.g. Red Bull Music Festival).
Background[]
Fiasco was in the hip hop group, Da Pak, where Chilly was one of their managers. The group were briefly signed to Epic Records before being dropped, facing struggles over creative control and mismanagement. Following their disbandment, Fiasco and Chilly created their own label in 2001, with the former as vice president and the latter as CEO. Fiasco recalled to Verbicide, "During that period of time, the first nine months, we were being courted by a lot of people off the reputation that we was building from being on Epic—me as an MC and my partner Chilly's business connections, and stuff like that. And so one of the people that came was [Roc-A-Fella]. Jay-Z was like, 'Yo, I want to sign you to [Roc-A-Fella].' We turned that down because they couldn't give us the situation that we wanted, which was a production situation as opposed to me just being signed as an artist. So we eventually signed to Arista Records as a production company. This is like 2002."[1][2]
In June 2007, Fiasco became the CEO after Patton was convicted on several drug charges. In November 2009, Fiasco announced the defunct of 1st & 15th: "I got rid of the entire First and Fifteenth Record Label. Me and Sarah Green are the only artists on the label, like I got rid of the whole label. It was just such a 'this isn't right for you right now. This isn't gonna work for you right now. You need to be focused on you. Do you really want that, do you really have the capacity to do it?'"[3]
In January 2016, it was revived through updated socials. The following month on February 26, the official website launched.
On July 9, 2024, Verse announced his signing to 1st & 15th.[4]
Roster[]
Artists[]
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In-house producers[]
Managerial[] |
Discography[]
- Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor (2006)
- Lupe Fiasco's The Cool (2007)
- Lasers (2011)
- Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1 (2012)
- Tetsuo & Youth (2015)
- Drogas Light (2017)
- Drogas Wave (2018)
- Drill Music in Zion (2022)
- Samurai (2024)
Lyrics[]
| Song | Lyric |
|---|---|
| "The Pen and the Needlz" | 'Yo, F-N-F' |
| "Ignorant Shit (Freestyle)" | 'I own 1st and 15th' |
| "1st & 15th Is Back" | 'FNF is back / 1st & 15th here, you know what I'm sayin'?' |
| "Conflict Diamonds" | 'Uh, F-N-F, yeah' 'Hollaback, F-N-F up!' |
| "Touch the Sky" | 'So, I represent the first…' |
| "Intro" | '1st and 15th, proudly present' 'Yes, F-N-F, uh-huh' |
| "Real" | 'Yo! F-N-F are real' |
| "Kick, Push" | 'Representing that 1st and 15th' |
| "I Gotcha" | 'So from the runner of the F-N-F crew' 'FNF U-P' |
| "Pressure" | 'And 1st and 15th is just a sewing machine' |
| "The Emperor's Soundtrack" | 'Screaming out "F-N-F!" 'til the world blow up' |
| "Outro" | 'By the good folks, at 1st & 15th, yeah! / Much love to the F-N-F crew' |
| "Tilted" | 'Fresh-to-def F-N-F!' |
| "Carrera Lu" | 'The Fifteenth is me, the First is for Chill' |
| "City Wings" | '1st and 15th, practice Righteous Kung Fu' |
| "Hi-Definition" | 'F-N-F and S-N double O-P' |
| "Dumb It Down" | 'F-N-F, up!' |
| "Hello/Goodbye (Uncool)" | 'F...N...F' |
| "Blackout" | 'But a different team, FNF rules' |
| "Slow Down" | 'F-N-F Up!' |
| "Dirty Rose" | '1st and 15th focused Dirty Roses by the bouquet' |
| "MC Fly" | 'Yeah, F-N-F up' '1st and 15th / Long for F-N-F out shooting at the snakes' |
| "Next to It" | '1st and 15th ENT, F-N-F music' |
Gallery[]
.png "1st & 15th (2).png (178 KB)")
References[]
- ↑ Mitra, Avir (November 7, 2006). "Interview: Lupe Fiasco". Verbicide.
- ↑ Ketchum III, William E. (February 22, 2019). "Lupe Fiasco on New World Water, and Changing the World with His Bars Before Leaving Rap Behind". Vibe.
- ↑ "Lupe Fiasco: Don't Forget'em". Ruby Hornet. November 9, 2009. Archived from the original on February 5, 2010.
- ↑ "Verse (@verse_zverse)". Instagram. July 9, 2024.
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 "1st & 15th (@1stand15th)". Myspace. Retrieved on November 4, 2011.
- ↑ Fruchter, Alexander (March 6, 2009). "RH First Look: Hey Champ". Ruby Hornet.
External links[]
- Official Website
- 1st & 15th Productions on Twitter
- 1st & 15th Productions on Facebook
- FNF Studios on Instagram
- 1st & 15th Productions on Instagram
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