Artist Spotlight: One.Be.Lo

One Be Lo is a hip hop artist from Pontiac, Michigan. He is well respected for being one half of the former rap duo Binary Star, and has released a number of well received solo albums. He is also a member of the World Champion B-boy crew, Massive Monkees.

Having grown up listening to the likes of KRS-One and Ice Cube, One Be Lo gained an interest in hip hop from an early age. As a result, he, along with Senim Silla, created Binary Star, although after releasing two albums (Water World and Masters of the Universe), they split up. One Be Lo cited "creative differences" as the main reason for their split.

Having become disillusioned with both the group and the record label (they were never paid by the distributor, despite selling over 20,000 albums), he started focusing more on his solo work. Around this time he converted to Islam, and as a result changed his name to Nahshid Sulaiman. He also changed his stage name to One Be Lo, having been known as OneManArmy for his work with Binary Star. The name change was due to changes within himself and a potential legal dispute between a punk group with the same name.

In January 2000, he established his own independent label called Subterraneous Records. This enabled him to release his own albums more easily, while also promoting a number of Michigan’s most promising producers and emcees. A year later, Subterraneous Records released WaterWorld Too, a compilation featuring a number of artists from the label's roster. In the meantime, he continued to work on his solo material with producer Decompoze. In late 2002, One Be Lo decided to press limited copies of Project F.E.T.U.S. (For Everybody That Under Stands), a collection of songs that were not initially intended for release. This release was aimed to be a segue into One Be Lo’s official solo material, and has since proven to be a successful debut, appearing on the About.com top 10 rap albums of February 2007.

His first official solo album was released on Fat Beats in 2005. This was entitled S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M. (Sounds Of Nahshid Originate Good Rhymes And Music) and featured a number of fellow Michigan rappers such as Abdus Salaam and singer Ka Di. This was generally received well by critics, and many praised One Be Lo for his conscious and intelligent lyrics. This was followed by S.T.I.L.L.B.O.R.N. (Something To Interest Lo Listeners Beyond Original Recorded Networkings and Subterraneous/Trackezoids Invest Lost Lyrics Bringing Old Rhymes New), a mix CD of previously unreleased songs and remixes. His most recent project is R.E.B.I.R.T.H., receiving critical acclaim by many hip hop publications.

All of his solo albums have been leading up to his magnum opus, entitled L.I.F.E. (Lo Is For Everybody). His current project that he's working on, entitled 'B.A.B.Y.' (Being A Black Youth) is scheduled to be released in 2009 featuring Freeway, Devin The Dude, Phonte, Royce Da 5'9", Zion I, Guilty Simpson, Jean Grae and more. One Be Lo has appeared on the Warped Tour as well as toured with artists such as KRS-One and Zion I. He also did a candid interview with The Breakdown TV on Onloq.com where he discussed his life as an independent MC.

One Be Lo has crafted himself into what he describes as "the MC's MC". He is often praised for his clear delivery, precise rapping style and conscious lyrics, especially from fans of alternative hip hop. This was noted by Allmusic in their review of S.O.N.O.G.R.A.M., saying:

"One Be Lo is a deep thinker; the details and complex wordplay within his rhymes often take several plays to fully comprehend and appreciate. Similar in effect to X-Clan's Brother J, his words can be righteous, but they're always delivered with casual assurance, like he's talking to an acquaintance at a bus stop. He observes with the wisdom of a father who's been through prison, raises a lot of issues, has almost as many solutions, and never sounds overbearing or preachy."