Stop Asking Why, Use Your Common Sense
Lonnie Rashid Lynn Jr., popularly known as Common, or a.k.a. Common Sense has gone a long way since his 1992 debut rap album, Can I Borrow a Dollar? After years of hard work and committing to right opportunities, Common’s not borrowing any more dollars from anyone.
Born and raised in Chicago, Common was already into music at a young age. He formed a rap trio during his high school years called C.D.R. and opened for various hip hop acts such as Big Daddy Kane. While juggling studies and a struggling music career, Common worked for the Chicago Bulls as an assistant trainer and went to college where he majored in Business Administration. Realizing that his dreams of becoming a rap superstar seemed light years away from the corporate path of studying business, he dropped out.
Common probably owes his success to a friend, who passed his demo tape to The Source Magazine, a monthly magazine that features hip-hop music and culture. The magazine featured him on the Unsigned Hype section and after a short while, opportunities arose as he released his first single Take It EZ under the name Common Sense. In 1994, his second album Resurrection was released and became a huge hit, especially in the Chicago area. He quickly gained respect from aspiring and underground rappers wherever his record was played. His third album One Day it’ll All Make Sense took some time to finish, it wasn’t out until 1997. But the wait for this album was definitely worth it, having collaborations with The Fugees’ Lauryn Hill and equally talented rapper Q-Tip among others. Album sales grew higher every week, and it’s only the beginning of Common’s success. Still under the name Common Sense in 2000, he released his fourth studio album Like Water for Chocolate which became the pinnacle album for his astounding career. He followed with four other records, including an electronic-inspired album and Finding Forever, his most famous yet. The critics loved his unique beats and straight up lyrics. In the rap music industry, it’s all about how rappers deliver and present themselves in a distinct way, and Common has definitely offered versatility in sound and words. He won his first Grammy Award for Love of my Life, his duet with ex-girlfriend Erykah Badu. Common now has 11 Grammy awards to date. He has also walked away with awards from MTV-VMAs (Video Music Awards), Soultrain awards and many others. He changed his name from Common Sense to Common, after a conflict with a Jamaican band that had the same name.
Aside from being a famous rapper, Common also had masculine features fit for a movie star, and several acting jobs landed on his lap. His acting debut on the comedy series Girlfriends, and upon seeing his natural acting skills, casting directors quickly tried to get a hold of him. His first major acting role was as a mobster alongside actors Ben Afleck, Jeremy Piven and fellow singer Alicia Keys in the movie Smokin’ Aces which was released in 2007. A few months later, many Hollywood opportunities came, and he chose to appear in the hit 2007 movie American Gangster, a thriller which also featured Russel Crowe and Denzel Washington. He also appears in the film Street Kings, which is currently showing, with Keannu Reeves and Oscar Awardee Forest Whitaker. It was announced that Common will also appear in the much-awaited cinematic adaptation of Wanted, with Hollywood A-listers Morgan Freeman and Angelina Jolie. It is also said that this Chicago-born superstar was chosen to play the role of the Green Lantern for the 2009 film version of the Justice League.
So much has happened in the successful career of Common, but what brought him there was not only his unencumbered talent, but also his willingness to explore new career paths. Aside from these, the most important factor that bridged his success was his determination to never cease a good career opportunity.
