Cee Lo Green has done it all – rapper, singer-songwriter, producer, you name it! Starting out as part of Goodie Mob and eventually moving into a stand-out solo career with his hit “Forget You”, this multi-talented performer and musician has written and produced for the very best in the industry. Find out more in his Kidzworld Bio!
The Preacher’s Son
Cee Lo Green is actually a stage name, the famous singer was born Thomas DeCarlo Galloway and comes from Atlanta, Georgia. Thomas was the son of two ordained ministers and started his singing career in the church. He also attended an all boy’s military school. When Thomas was just two years old his father died and later his mother, who was not only a minister but also a volunteer firefighter, was paralyzed in a car crash and died just two years after the accident just as Cee Lo’s career was starting to take off.
Goodie Mob
Cee Lo was the youngest member of the Atlanta hip hop group Goodie Mob, who were associated with another home-grown group that soared to fame – Outkast. They were a fresh sound on the music scene, reflecting a distinct southern style of rap that had yet to make it big on the radio. Goodie Mob were starting to see some success when tragedy struck and Cee Lo’s mother passed away. He sank into depression and used his music as an outlet for his grief. At the time Cee Lo was focused on rapping on Goodie Mob’s first and second albums, but soon after he branched out and explored his other talents.
Solo Cee Lo and Gnarls Barkley
Cee Lo left the group and signed solo to Arista records, which eventually fell through. But in the process he began to work with other big names, like latin rock god Santana and Lauryn Hill. Cee Lo’s first solo effort Cee Lo and His Imperfections didn’t do well commercially, but musicians really loved his style and big names like Pharrell and Ludacris worked with him on his next record. Eventually Cee Lo met up with Danger Mouse, another DJ/hip hop artist and they formed the group Gnarls Barkley and swept the airwaves with pumped-up soul-inspired hit “Crazy.” After massive success with Gnarls Barkley Cee Lo was ready to revamp his solo career and had an instant radio-play winner with “Forget You”. It was so popular it was even used on an episode of Glee!
Check out "Forget You" below!
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