Prior, Mase performed as a member of the hip hop group Children of the Corn, which he formed in 1993 with fellow New York City-based rappers including Cam'ron and Big L Two years later, he founded the hip hop group Harlem World, who signed with Jermaine Dupri's So So Def Recordings.
27 Facts About Mase
1.
2.
Mase grew up with two brothers and three sisters, including his twin sister, Stason, born a few minutes after him.
3.
In 1980, his mother moved with her children to Harlem, New York, where Mase spent the majority of his childhood.
4.
Mase had hopes of joining the National Basketball Association, but was unable to make it into a Division I College due to his poor academic scores.
5.
Mase attended State University of New York at Purchase, where he grew to realize he was unlikely to make the NBA and instead began focusing more on writing music, producing demo tapes, and regularly performing at local nightclubs.
6.
Shortly after meeting and rapping for Puff Daddy at the Hard Rock Cafe, Mase signed a $250,000 deal with Bad Boy Records.
7.
In 1998, Mase formed his own record label, All Out Records.
8.
Mase signed his group Harlem World, which included his twin sister, Stason, to the label while they were under So So Def Recordings.
9.
Mase claimed he was "leading people, friends, kids and others down a path to hell", stating that he left to find God in his heart and follow him.
10.
Mase said it was time for him to serve God in "his" way, saying rap was not real, and that he wanted to deal with reality and had become unhappy with what he did, no matter how much money it had made him.
11.
Unlike other freshmen, Mase was permitted to live off campus and commute, but he is said to have downplayed his past as a rapper and stayed fairly low-key while on campus.
12.
Mase dubbed himself "a Bad Boy gone clean" on the lead single.
13.
Mase has since said that working with the group was not something he regrets, but that the message he was sending was a mistake.
14.
Mase joined G-Unit to appeal to a different audience so they could see that they could change just as he did, thinking that "in order to get people where I'm at, I have to go back to where I once was".
15.
Weeks later, Mase appeared on a street remix for Drake's "Best I Ever Had".
16.
Mase stated that Michael Jackson's death influenced him to make a comeback.
17.
Mase appeared on Power 105.1 to discuss his comeback with "The Prince of New York" DJ Self.
18.
Mase used that radio show as his outlet to release new music throughout the rest of the summer, with a new song or feature premiere every Friday on DJ Self's show.
19.
Mase makes reference to his new Batman-esque logo, and hints at himself as hip-hop's superhero.
20.
In October 2009, Mase made an impromptu appearance on a live radio interview with Diddy-Dirty Money on V-103.
21.
Mase told the studio staff he brought documentation that would release him from the Bad Boy label and gave the forms to Diddy during the interview.
22.
The picture sparked speculation that Mase would be making his third return to music since his announced retirement to become a pastor in April 1999 and leaving again in 2007.
23.
In December 2012, Mase announced that he was no longer signed to Bad Boy, saying he would not likely sign with a major label anytime soon.
24.
Mase told MTV the only two labels he would consider signing with were Kanye West's GOOD Music or Drake's OVO Sound.
25.
On October 18,2013, Mase announced his next album would be titled Now We Even.
26.
Mase said his wish list for guest appearances would include Jay-Z, Diddy, Beyonce, Drake, 2 Chainz, Lauryn Hill, Meek Mill, Fabolous, Ariana Grande, Dipset, Eric Bellinger, Seal and CeeLo Green.
27.
On November 24,2017, Mase released "The Oracle", a diss track at friend-turned-rival Cam'ron in response to the lyrical jabs Cam'ron aimed at him on his mixtape The Program.