History Music / LupeFiasco

* BigBad: His concept album character The Game, who is a large man in a suit with a skull for a head, glowing red dice for eyes, and crack smoke that billows from his mouth.

* BigBad: His concept album character The Game, who is a large man in a suit with a skull for a head, glowing red dice for eyes, and crack smoke that comes from his mouth.

* BlackAndNerdy: From dropping references to Lupin III on [[Music/KanyeWest "Touch the Sky"]] to being a huge gamer, Lupe is one of the finest examples of a nerd from the hip-hop world. The [[NerdGlasses glasses]] help too.

* AngryBlackMan: Seemed to be veering into this territory for a number of reasons since 2010. This tone is reflected in his interviews and music.

* ''Skulls'' (?)

When he burst onto the scene in the mid [[TurnOfTheMillennium 2000s,]] Lupe Fiasco (real name Wasalu Muhammad Jaco, born February 16, 1982) was called a breath of fresh air into what had been becoming an overly commercialized genre. By Music/JayZ, [[{{Irony}} no less]]. His first early success came when he appeared on Music/KanyeWest's "Touch the Sky". Not long after that, his debut album ''Food & Liquor'' dropped and the lead single "Kick, Push", a homage to skateboarding [[DualMeaningChorus among other things]], started to reveal the talent the young rapper had. The album was critically acclaimed and got him three Grammy nods.

* TakeThat: Occasionally, usually to more mainstream rap. Lupe may be clever with his meanings and rhymes, but his insults are usually not as subtle. A fairly direct one is made about 22 seconds from the end of "Gotta Eat", aimed at Music/SouljaBoy. It's barely audible upon the first few listenings.

** To the chagrin of rappers and their loyal, teenaged fans who love music videos with guns, drugs and boobs in slow motion and think it's incredible and creative, "Daydreamin'" fires back by pointing out that they're played out and they were never really that cool.

** Food And Liquor II's cover is a VisualPun and CallBack to the song "All Black Everything"

* DarkerAndEdgier {{Deconstruction}}: "Kick, Push II". It continues where "Kick, Push" left off, but paints a depressing picture of the lives of The Skater and his crew. The original is romantic, idealized fantasy about leaving the world behind with your TrueCompanions and the one you love, while "Kick Push II" reflects on how awful their lives would need to be to desire that kind of escapism.

Atlantic has promised to keep their hands off of The Great American Rap Album, and Lupe himself said it would appeal to some of his oldest fans. He also has an impressive arsenal of mixtapes that have become popular in their own right, notably the Fahrenheit 1/15 trilogy, and more recently Enemy of the State. Friend of the People, previously cancelled, was released on Thanksgiving 2011, like it was supposed the previous year, before he cancelled it due to people leaking his songs.

* WorldOfCardboardSpeech: A rare rap example, but "The Show Goes On" has a rather impressive example in lyrical form. The whole point of the message is that he will continue to be the artist who tries to direct the youth into a more positive direction than most mainstream rap.
-->"One in the air for the people in here. Two in the air for the father that's there. \\
Three in the air for the kids in the ghetto. Four for the kids that don't wanna be there. \\
None for the niggas tryna hold them back. Five in the air for the teacher not scared \\
To tell those kids that's living in the ghetto that the niggas holdin' back that the world is theirs. \\
Yeah, yeah the world is yours! I was once that little boy, \\
Terrified of the world. Now I'm on a World Tour. \\
I will give up everything, even start a world war, \\
For these ghetto girls and boys I'm rappin' 'round the world for."
** And "Words I Never Said" comes with yet another one as the third verse.
-->"I think that all the silence is worse than all the violence. \\
Fear is such a weak emotion; that's why I despise it. \\
We scared of almost everything, afraid to even tell the truth. \\
So scared of what you think of me I'm scared of even telling you. \\
Sometimes I'm like the only person I feel safe to tell it to. \\
I'm locked inside a cell in me. I know that there's a jail in you. \\
Consider this your bailing out, so take a breath, inhale a few. \\
My screams is finally getting free. My thoughts is finally yelling through!"

* FreestyleVersion: One, ''Friend of the People'' features him subverting the trope slightly, as he freestyles over obscure dance and dubstep instrumentals on it (and also over Music/JohnColtrane's OneOfTheseThingsIsNotLikeTheOthers ''Music/ALoveSupreme''. He also freestyled Que's "OG Bobby Johnson" as [[AuthorTract "THOT 97"]].

When he burst onto the scene in the mid [[The00s 2000s,]] Lupe Fiasco (real name Wasalu Muhammad Jaco, born February 16, 1982) was called a breath of fresh air into what had been becoming an overly commercialized genre. By Music/JayZ, [[{{Irony}} no less]]. His first early success came when he appeared on Music/KanyeWest's "Touch the Sky". Not long after that, his debut album ''Food & Liquor'' dropped and the lead single "Kick, Push", a homage to skateboarding [[DualMeaningChorus among other things]], started to reveal the talent the young rapper had. The album was critically acclaimed and got him three Grammy nods.

One of the best and still relatively new HipHop artists out there, Lupe Fiasco (real name Wasalu Muhammad Jaco, born February 16, 1982) has been called a breath of fresh air into what is becoming an overly commercialized genre. By Music/JayZ, [[{{Irony}} no less]]. His first early success came when he appeared on Music/KanyeWest's "Touch the Sky". Not long after that, his debut album ''Food & Liquor'' dropped and the lead single "Kick, Push", a homage to skateboarding [[DualMeaningChorus among other things]], started to reveal the talent the young rapper had. The album was critically acclaimed and got him three Grammy nods.

On September 25th, ''Food and Liquor 2'' was released. While the album was generally well liked and earned him (yet another) Grammy Nomination, a lot of criticism came in the form of accusing Lupe Fiasco being a bit too {{Anvilicious}} and one critic accused his self-regard being greater than his actual skill. Fans, on the other hand, loved it.

In December 2016, he announced that he was "retiring" from rapping after releasing a single known as "N.E.R.D." and then cancelled three planned albums for 2017 under the name ''DROGAS'', ''DROGAS Light'', and ''Skulls''. He later on surprised people by releasing ''DROGAS Light'', but it's unknown if he really is going to retire.

** And even better, after Music/KendrickLamar set the world alight with [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome his verse]] on Big Sean's "Control", Lupe returned to this and released "SLR 2" and "SLR 3: Round of Applause".

* ''Skull'' (?)

In December 2016, he announced that he was "retiring" from rapping after releasing a single known as "N.E.R.D." and then cancelled three planned albums for 2017 under the name ''DROGAS'', ''DROGAS Light'', and ''Skull''. He later on surprised people by releasing ''DROGAS Light'', but it's unknown if he really is going to retire.

* ''DROGAS'' (?)

-->--'''"Super" Lupe Fiasco''', "SLR"

--> Game over, [[MortalKombat body parts]].

One of the best and still relatively new HipHop artists out there, Lupe Fiasco (real name Wasalu Muhammad Jaco) has been called a breath of fresh air into what is becoming an overly commercialized genre. By Music/JayZ, [[{{Irony}} no less]]. His first early success came when he appeared on Music/KanyeWest's "Touch the Sky". Not long after that, his debut album ''Food & Liquor'' dropped and the lead single "Kick, Push", a homage to skateboarding [[DualMeaningChorus among other things]], started to reveal the talent the young rapper had. The album was critically acclaimed and got him three Grammy nods.

In December 2016, he announced that he was retiring from rapping.

Funnily enough, the genre that his Friend of the People mixtape is classified under is "Unclassifiable."

On September 25th, ''Food and Liquor 2'' was released. While the album was generally well liked and earned him (yet another) Grammy Nomination, a lot of criticism came in the form of accusing Lupe Fiasco being a bit too {{Anvilicious}} and one critic accused his self-regard being greater than his actual skill. Fans, on the other hand, loved it.

** The entire first verse of "The Show Goes On" is spent telling Atlantic to collectively fuck themselves.

* EpicRocking: Tetuso and Youth features many songs that go over five minutes but special mention goes to Mural (8:48), Prisoner 1 & 2 (8:36), and especially Chopper (9:32). The last one is especially notable for being a result of seven rappers all making 32 bar verses because no one was given a length cap.

** "And He Gets the Girl" mentions Thelonious Monk, Franchise/FinalFantasy, and LinkinPark.

** And even better, after KendrickLamar set the world alight with [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome his verse]] on Big Sean's "Control", Lupe returned to this and released "SLR 2" and "SLR 3: Round of Applause".
* TakeThat: Occasionally, usually to more mainstream rap. Lupe may be clever with his meanings and rhymes, but his insults are usually not as subtle. A fairly direct one is made about 22 seconds from the end of "Gotta Eat", aimed at SouljaBoy. It's barely audible upon the first few listenings.

** KendrickLamar, amongst others, is targeted in "SLR 2" and "SLR 3: Round of Applause".

* WithLyrics: "Hello/Goodbye (Uncool)" for [[{{UNKLE}} "Chemistry"]].

His third album, ''Lasers'', [[DevelopmentHell was shelved in 2008 by his label]] because [[ExecutiveMeddling they thought it wasn't "pop" enough]]. A combination of Lupe caving to pressure and rewriting some songs (something he has said [[CreatorBacklash will forever taint his own opinion of the album]]) and [[InternetBacklash general fan outrage]] led to the record finally being released in 2011.