Angie Martinez American Rapper Born 1971 in Brooklyn

Early life

Angie Martinez was born on 9 January 1971 in Brooklyn, New York. Her father is Puerto Rican, and her mother has Puerto Rican, Cuban and Dominican roots. She grew up with her mother in Brooklyn and in Washington Heights, and she attended John Dewey High School. As a teenager she missed a good deal of school, and her mother sent her to live with an aunt in Miami. Her mother followed and took a programming job at the radio station WPOW, where Martinez later landed an internship.

Career

Martinez entered radio in 1986, when she began answering listener phone lines at the New York station WQHT, known as Hot 97. There she met the DJ Funkmaster Flex, who became her mentor. She went on to co-host the weekday afternoon drive-time show with DJ Enuff and interviewed major names in music, among them Jay-Z, DMX and Mariah Carey. She stayed at the station for 28 years and resigned on 18 June 2014. The next day it was announced that she had joined its rival, Power 105.1. In November 2014 she signed a management agreement with Roc Nation.

Her rapping career started in 1996, when the rapper KRS-One encouraged her to try it and she appeared on his track "Heartbeat". Soon after, Lil' Kim invited her to join the "Ladies' Night" remix of "Not Tonight," recorded for the soundtrack of the film Nothing to Lose. The remix also featured Missy Elliott, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes and Da Brat. It reached number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the single sold more than a million copies and went platinum. The five performers played it live at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards, and the track received a Grammy nomination.

After guest spots with artists such as Mary J. Blige and Cuban Link, Martinez released her debut album, Up Close and Personal, on 17 April 2001. It entered the Billboard 200 at number 32 and reached number 7 on the R&B/hip-hop albums chart. Production came from Salaam Remi, Rockwilder and the Neptunes, and guests included Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg and Wyclef Jean. The second album, Animal House, followed on 21 August 2002. Its lead single, "If I Could Go," peaked at number 15 on the Hot 100, and the album opened at number 11 on the Billboard 200. In 2003 she announced that she was leaving music to concentrate on radio and other business ventures.

She also took screen roles, including a small part in Brown Sugar and a cameo in Paper Soldiers, both from 2002, and later appeared in State Property 2 and Video Girl. In 2002 she was hired as a judge for the second season of American Idol but left after a few days of auditions. In 2016 she published an autobiographical book, My Voice: A Memoir. In 2019 she hosted the We TV interview series Untold Stories of Hip-Hop, and in June 2023 she hosted and executive-produced the ABC special Soul of a Nation: Hip Hop at 50. Since 2022 she has also presented the interview podcast IRL, whose guests have included Kim Kardashian, Taraji P. Henson and Kelly Rowland.

Recognition

The National Association of Broadcasters gave Martinez its Marconi Radio Award for Major Market Personality of the Year in 2018. She was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2020. In March 2020 Rutgers University–Newark awarded her an honorary doctorate of fine arts. Her long run on the city's airwaves earned her the nickname "The Voice of New York."

Public roles

In 2014 she ran the New York City Marathon in support of the PitCCh In Foundation, the charity of the baseball pitcher CC Sabathia.

Personal life

Martinez has a son, born in June 2003. Her close friend, the singer Mary J. Blige, is his godmother.