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The story of Mellow Man Ace begins
in Cuba…
Born under communism in Cuba, Mellow
Man Ace became his families’ ticket to freedom and passport to
the United States. At that time in Cuba, having a child meant a
family became eligible for an exit visa. “I was the third born
and my number hit the lotto, although we didn’t get to leave
until four years later due to politics. My family gives me the
credit for being here enjoying our freedom in the U.S.” Upon
arriving in America, the family was greeted in Miami, moved to
New Jersey and ended up in South Gate, California on Cypress
Avenue where it all began. “At 15 years old, it hit me that I
was put here in the U.S. for a reason, I had a purpose,” says
Mellow Man.
Mellow Man first got into rap music
in 1983 after hearing The Treacherous Three for the first time.
As he says, “It wasn’t really happening out here yet, we were
still pop locking and break dancing. When I first heard rap, I
knew I had found my calling.” Writing as many rhymes as he could
and cutting demos with his brother Sen Dog and B-Real, he still
hadn’t found his exact niche within Hip-Hop. From then on he
began his journey of creating and perfecting bilingual songs. “I
was ecstatic to realize I could fulfill my dreams and represent
for my Latino people all in one!”
Havana-born Ulpiano Sergio Reyes
(Mellow Man Ace) and older brother Senen Reyes (Sen Dog) formed
a rap quartet DVX (Devastating Vocal Xcellence) with Lawrence
Muggerud (DJ Muggs) and Louis Freese (B-Real). After a few years
Mellow Man was signed by Delicious Vinyl and then Capitol
Records to launch a solo career. The remaining three members
formed the group Cypress Hill, named after Cypress Avenue, the
street in South Gate where they all grew up.
With the debut of his first LP
entitled Escape From Havana on Capitol Records, Mellow Man
created a unique style of rap that traded off between his native
tongue Spanish and English, he called it “Spanglish”. Mellow
would not only be the creator of “Spanglish” on wax and Spanish
rap, but also the first Latin rap artist to reach Gold and
Platinum sales in the U.S. and Latin America. This achievement
would open a non-existent door for a host of other groups such
as Control Machete, Big Pun, Fat Joe and The Beatnuts to name a
few.
A #1 hit; “Mentírosa” (Liar) became
the recipe to follow for Latin artists who wanted to rap in
Spanish. The best in the business were brought in from the likes
of The Dust Brothers, DJ Muggs and Tony G. working with such
sample wizardry as Santana, War and James Brown. A rigorous
touring schedule through the U.S., all over Latin America,
Europe and Japan brought him together with musical giants Celia
Cruz, En Vogue, A Tribe Called Quest and others. Countries like
Columbia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Argentina and Chile had never
experienced anything like a Hip-Hop show let alone a rapper who
spoke in their native tongue.
As success grew, songs like “En La
Casa” and “Welcome to My Groove” were featured in the motion
picture, Marked For Death, as well as writing “Real Estate” for
Cypress Hill’s first album Cypress Hill which went on to
Platinum sales. Soon after the follow up LP entitled The Brother
With Two Tongues was also released on Capitol Records. The LP
proved that Mellow Man Ace had matured not only lyrically but
musically as well by bringing something different to the Hip-Hop
table.
The next few years Mellow Man took a
partial hiatus from the limelight. “I felt I needed time to
refocus myself and rebuild my energy”. During this “hiatus” he
appeared on various compilations, motion picture appearances,
motion picture soundtracks, television appearances, commercials,
public service announcements and various charity events
including the MTV Red Hot and Latin album. Soon Mellow Man was
centered and ready to go back to his first love.
Mellow Man Ace reunited with his
Cypress Hill family on his third LP From The Darkness Into The
Light. Mellow Man started with DJ Muggs overseeing the
production of the album and finished with his brother Sen Dog
and B-Real for guest appearances. Some of the songs included
“Guillotine Tactics” which was featured on an episode of NBC’s
hit television series ER. “Ten La Fe” (Keep The Faith) was
featured in the motion picture and soundtrack for Crazy
Beautiful, starring actress Kirsten Dunst, and on the Fox
television show Fastlane.
Mellow Man went on to write six
songs and guest appear on the Cypress Hill Spanish album Los
Grandes Exitos de Cypress Hill which received Billboard’s Latin
Rap Album of the Year 2000 and a Gold Album in Mexico. He then
looked to expand his horizons on brother Sen Dog’s solo project
SX-10 Mad Dog American. This rock-meets-rap album featured
Mellow, Everlast, Eric Bobo, Cottonmouth Kings and DJ Muggs, an
explosive combination of rap giants. When Cypress Hill released
their most recent album Stoned Raiders, Mellow Man was called in
to drop a catchy hook on the debut single “Lowrider”.
In 2002, Mellow Man Ace received one
of the most important accolades of his career. Along with fallen
rappers Eazy-E and Mausberg, Mellow Man was inducted into the
Hip-Hop Hall of Fame. “This has to be one the greatest
highlights of my career yet.”
In 2004, Mellow Man Ace reunited
with former producer Bronek to release Vengo A Cobrar. Together
they started their own production team known as Stealth Bombas.
With Vengo A Cobrar (I Came To Get Paid), the two seasoned
veterans combined radio-friendly tracks with mass appeal hooks
and well planned lyrics. The moderately successful CD has
spawned several TV and Soundtrack hits.
Bringing us to today…
"The Reyes Brothers" new album is
scheduled to be released summer 2005. Mellow Man has teamed up
with his brother Sen Dog of Cypress Hill to create one of the
most anticipated albums ever. Featured artists include B-Real
of Cypress Hill, Nate Dogg, Warren G, and production from Fred
Wreck and DJ Muggs. Latin Thug Records expects great things for
these two extremely talented brothers. |
