Blessed with the chameleon-like ability to flip from a booty-shakin' party starter to head-bussin' hooligan to insightful educator, Miami bad boy Trick Daddy has been one of the most prolific southern talents since his introduction on Uncle Luke's timeless 1996 dance floor staple, “Scarred”. Born and raised in poverty as one of twenty-seven children, Maurice Young exploded onto America's pop culture landscape as one of the pioneers of Dirty South rap. Considered by many as a thoughtful thug, his unsparing portrayal of life in the southern ghetto and club banger hits has earned him a legion of fans. Over a twelve-year career, he's released two platinum selling albums and a number of Billboard chart toppers. The former convicted felon and ex-drug dealer has engaged listeners worldwide by making the “thug life” relevant to audiences across racial and economic lines.
Trick scored a regional hit with “Nann” which made it to the national airwaves and MTV and platinum sales. In 2001 he recorded “I'm A Thug”. The song catapulted him to the status of hip hop superstar, whose witty and thought-provoking rhymes made him a “down south 2pac” in the eyes of some hip hop historians. In 2004 he released Thug Matrimony: Married To The Streets, described as his most inventive work, which debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200. In 2006, he released Back By Thug Demand, a more classic Trick album that brought relevance back to the Southern underground where he began. His music has been featured on hit movie soundtracks including: Training Day, On Any Given Sunday and 2 Fast 2 Furious.
In recent years Trick has focused on reforming his community, primarily the youngest among them through his “Trick Luvs Da Kids” foundation. He's lashed out against racism on the Miami-Dade school board and rallied to restore ex-felons' rights to vote. “When I look back at my childhood there really wasn't much for me to really smile about. Too many of our kids are having their childhood stolen,'' laments Trick. “Kids deserve to laugh in the sun, live out their dreams and not suffer because they live in a world we as adults messed up.'' In 2007, he reminded listeners of his devotion to thug living on the first verse of the smash hit “I'm So Hood”. His current street anthem F--- The Otha Side features a collection of young and upcoming artists on his newly minted Dunk Ryder Records. Trick's eight-studio album, Finally Famous, is slated for a highly anticipated September 15 release through a distribution deal with Fontana/Universal. The project will be Trick's first independent release. In hip hop's often scripted and clichéd ghetto narrative, Trick Daddy is a man apart.
PETER BAILEY - Biography
Peter Bailey is the co-author of Miami hip hop legend Trick Daddy’s memoir, Magic City: Trials of a Native Son, to be published by MTV/Pocket Books in spring 2010. Bailey is also featured on a song which he co-wrote on Trick Daddy’s upcoming album. He is currently covers celebrities for NBC Miami’s “The Niteside”. Before that Bailey worked as a staff writer for the Miami Herald covering pop culture and urban affairs. In 2008 he won an Associated Press Sports Editors award for investigative writing. His ongoing series, On the Margins, won multiple awards in 2006 from the Society of Professional Journalists, including “best education coverage” in the state of Florida. He also won for best criminal law reporting for the series, Dying Young, detailing black on black violence. His provocative series on incarcerated students, Shackled Education, was awarded “best enterprising reporting” by the National Association of Black Journalists.
Before joining The Herald, Bailey worked as a staff reporter for Time magazine in New York City where he covered entertainment and national affairs. His work included a controversial feature on Kweisi Mfume’s departure from the NAACP and the iconic group’s struggle to remain relevant, the Ron Artest brawl and homophobia in dancehall reggae. Bailey joined the magazine after working as a reporter at Newsweek magazine, where he wrote features on Whiteness Studies and minority retention at America’s colleges. His work also has appeared in the Village Voice, Army Times and Wilmington News Journal.
Bailey graduated from the University of Delaware with a bachelor’s degree in English. He’s an avid astronomer and jazz enthusiast.
Trick scored a regional hit with “Nann” which made it to the national airwaves and MTV and platinum sales. In 2001 he recorded “I'm A Thug”. The song catapulted him to the status of hip hop superstar, whose witty and thought-provoking rhymes made him a “down south 2pac” in the eyes of some hip hop historians. In 2004 he released Thug Matrimony: Married To The Streets, described as his most inventive work, which debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200. In 2006, he released Back By Thug Demand, a more classic Trick album that brought relevance back to the Southern underground where he began. His music has been featured on hit movie soundtracks including: Training Day, On Any Given Sunday and 2 Fast 2 Furious.
In recent years Trick has focused on reforming his community, primarily the youngest among them through his “Trick Luvs Da Kids” foundation. He's lashed out against racism on the Miami-Dade school board and rallied to restore ex-felons' rights to vote. “When I look back at my childhood there really wasn't much for me to really smile about. Too many of our kids are having their childhood stolen,'' laments Trick. “Kids deserve to laugh in the sun, live out their dreams and not suffer because they live in a world we as adults messed up.'' In 2007, he reminded listeners of his devotion to thug living on the first verse of the smash hit “I'm So Hood”. His current street anthem F--- The Otha Side features a collection of young and upcoming artists on his newly minted Dunk Ryder Records. Trick's eight-studio album, Finally Famous, is slated for a highly anticipated September 15 release through a distribution deal with Fontana/Universal. The project will be Trick's first independent release. In hip hop's often scripted and clichéd ghetto narrative, Trick Daddy is a man apart.
PETER BAILEY - Biography
Peter Bailey is the co-author of Miami hip hop legend Trick Daddy’s memoir, Magic City: Trials of a Native Son, to be published by MTV/Pocket Books in spring 2010. Bailey is also featured on a song which he co-wrote on Trick Daddy’s upcoming album. He is currently covers celebrities for NBC Miami’s “The Niteside”. Before that Bailey worked as a staff writer for the Miami Herald covering pop culture and urban affairs. In 2008 he won an Associated Press Sports Editors award for investigative writing. His ongoing series, On the Margins, won multiple awards in 2006 from the Society of Professional Journalists, including “best education coverage” in the state of Florida. He also won for best criminal law reporting for the series, Dying Young, detailing black on black violence. His provocative series on incarcerated students, Shackled Education, was awarded “best enterprising reporting” by the National Association of Black Journalists.
Before joining The Herald, Bailey worked as a staff reporter for Time magazine in New York City where he covered entertainment and national affairs. His work included a controversial feature on Kweisi Mfume’s departure from the NAACP and the iconic group’s struggle to remain relevant, the Ron Artest brawl and homophobia in dancehall reggae. Bailey joined the magazine after working as a reporter at Newsweek magazine, where he wrote features on Whiteness Studies and minority retention at America’s colleges. His work also has appeared in the Village Voice, Army Times and Wilmington News Journal.
Bailey graduated from the University of Delaware with a bachelor’s degree in English. He’s an avid astronomer and jazz enthusiast.