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Riley "Special" Wallace

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Special
Background information
Birth nameRiley Wallace
Born (1983-01-20) January 20, 1983 (age 41)
OriginToronto, Ontario
GenresHip hop
OccupationRapper,
Years active2007-present
LabelsJersey Sound Lab, Universal/EMI, Above Average Hip Hop
Websitetoronto.hiphop twitter.com/special

Riley Wallace, known by the stage name Special, is a Canadian music artist from Toronto, Ontario. He reached 2 million views on YouTube for his Jersey Shore-influenced song "T-Shirt Time". He has released commercial projects in the US, Germany and Italy. His diverse body of music includes works with hip-hop artists Craig G (Juice Crew), El Da Sensei (The Artifacts) and Sadat X (Brand Nubian) and others.

CWA

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In 2009, Special wrote the song "Get Ready To Strike"[1] which was originally intended to inspire the Communications Workers (CWA) Union members during a Local 6222 rally, but word of it spread to other chapters, who shared it on the internet.[2] The song garnered thousands of views and downloads and was featured in the Wall Street Journal.[3]

Group/solo career

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As a music artist, Special released two official music videos as part of the E-Team. One, "The Bar Ain't Far Away", was in rotation on Much Music.[4] The other, "A Rapper's Motivation", was praised by industry insiders and urban bloggers.[5] Special, along with his crew, the E-Team, released two mixtapes (BAFA: The Art of The Remix and Art is Life: The Mixtape) and an album (Art is Life: The Album), before they signed a major label deal with Universal/EMI Canada. They released the song "T-Shirt Time" in 2011, which has over two million plays. Their subsequent release, Get Right, featuring Tasha The Amazon, was released later that same year.

As a solo artist, Special has numerous projects and has worked with artists including: Sadat X, Craig G, Money B (Digital Underground), El Da Sensei and more. He is also closely affiliated with Jersey Sound Lab and has released a collaborative project with Internal Quest. He currently works with a live band called The Boom Bap Trio, and an LP is due out late 2015.

Discography

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Official Singles

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T-Shirt Time (2011)
Get Right featuring Tasha The Amazon] (2012)
Never Know Me feat. Lilly Mason (2014)

Collaborative Projects

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Special and Internal Quest — Engineered To Win (2012)
Special and Tony Blount — Special & Tony Blount EP (2014)

EP's

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Mind's Eye (2013)
Oakland Masters (2014)

References

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  1. ^ "Get Ready to Strike". Labor Notes. July 15, 2009. Archived from the original on February 13, 2010.
  2. ^ Mohny, Doug (April 10, 2009). "CWA "Ready to Strike" ringtone ready for action". Fierce Telecom.
  3. ^ LaVallee, Andrew (April 10, 2009). "AT&T Workers Create "Ready to Strike" Ringtone". The Wall Street Journal.
  4. ^ "Bar Ain't Far Away Video". Much Music.
  5. ^ "Special - A Rapper's Motivation". Peace Magazine. Archived from the original on 2011-07-15.
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