Tech N9ne is one of the big names in American hip-hop music history. Tech N9ne is an American singer-songwriter and rapper. He founded the Strange Music record label with Travis O’Guin, a business associate.
If you want to know more about Tech N9ne’s biography and net worth, this is the best post for you. Tech N9ne’s net worth is reported to be over $20 million. This post will provide further details on how N9ne made his money.
| Full Name | Aaron Dontez Yates |
| Stage Name | Tech N9ne |
| Place of Birth | Kansas City, Missouri |
| Date of Birth | November 8, 1971 |
| Age | 53 (2023) |
| Gender | Male |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Rapper, Artist, Music Executive, Entrepreneur |
| Net Worth | $20 Million |
Early Life and Biography
Aaron Dontez Yates (Tech N9ne) was born on the 8th day of November 1971 in Kansas City, Missouri. His father, Carlton Cook, was estranged from the family and parted ways with his mother.
His mother raised him in Kansas City. His mother reportedly suffered from epilepsy lupus. Aaron took an interest in rapping at a young age and could already rap before he could read or spell his name. In pre-school, he would rap the letters of his first name to master and remember its spelling.
According to Aaron, his mother’s medical situation affected him emotionally but inspired him to seek God for solace.
Music became a route for him to escape from his pains and early struggles in life. Tech N9ne learned new words and integrated them into his rap music.
Aside from spelling, Yates used his rapping skills to master ways to solve maths and arithmetic problems. This turned out to be a turning point for him as his flair for rapping paved the way for him later.
Yates attended and graduated from Southwest High School in Kansas City. There, he explored abandoned buildings and apartments with his friends after school, hoping to capture a ghost on film.
While in school, his teachers quickly discovered his rap ability and encouraged him to join a choir, where his musical prowess could be harnessed.
Soon, Tech N9ne joined his local church choir and began singing in services. However, the negative influences of his environment took a toll on him as he joined Bloods, a popular street gang when he was 17 years old.
Tech N9ne learned how to write catchy rap lyrics while in the Bloods. At the age of 20, he joined a rap grand named the Black Mafia. He tasted success during his time with the group and later, he associated with several groups such as Rogue Dog, 57th Street, and others.
Career
In 1991, Tech N9ne joined a group named Black Mafia. The name “Tech N9ne” was formed from the tec-9 semi-automatic handgun. His rapping style and delivery and his bars sounded like bullets dropping from an Uzi.
Tech N9ne’s professional music career began in 1993 when he formed a music group known as “Nnutthowze” with his childhood friend. The group performed in a couple of shows in their neighborhood to raise awareness around their music.
In 1997, Tech N9ne joined a group known as The Regime, formed by rapper Yukmouth. In 1998, he made a guest appearance as a featured artist on the soundtrack for Gang Related. Some of the artists featured on the song include Xzibi, RZA, and Eminem.
In 1999, Tech N9ne did what most musicians at that time couldn’t do; he launched a record label. His company “Strange Music” was founded alongside Travis O’Guin. The same year, he released a 15-track album entitled “The Calm Before The Storm.”
The album was his debut album and one of the notable songs on it was “Questions.” Down the line, he released another album “The Worst.”
Eventually, he received offers from several record labels and companies, He signed a deal with Qwest Records before joining JCOR Records.
In 2001, he released an album entitled “Anghellic“, which was his first project with the label. Tech N9ne’s popularity increased as he released more tracks and appeared on the songs of other artists. However, his management team had several disputes with JCOR Records, which ended their partnership. JCOR Records retained rights to Tech N9ne Anghellic album.
In 2002, he released another album “Absolute Power,” which peaked at number #3 on the US Indie chart. His album “Everready (The Religion)” released in 2006 peaked at #2 on the US Indie Chart. Another album titled “Misery Loves Kompany” released in 2007 reached the third spot on the US Indie chart.
In 2008, Tech N9ne dropped his 7th studio album “Killer,” which debuted at #12 on the Billboard 200. The album reportedly sold over 36,199 units within the first week of release. Eventually, he sold more million album copies from his entire catalog in the same year.
In 2009, Tech N9ne released three albums “Sickology 101,””Collabos,” and “K.O.D“, with the latter debuted #14 on the US Billboard 200 chart. He released another album titled “The Gates Mixed Plate” in 2010. The album sold over 17,000 copies within the first week of release.
Tech N9ne got his first acting role in the same year after appearing in the “Big Money Rustlas” movie. He also appeared in other films such as “Night of the Living Dead: Origins 3D” and “Vengeance“.
Tech N9ne is renowned for his rapid and consistent album deliveries. He released the following albums “All 6’s and 7’s” (2011), “Strangeulation” (2014), “Special Effects” (2015), and “Strangeulation Vol. II” (2015), with all reaching the number #1 spot on the United States Indie chart.
Some of the best Tech N9ne’s songs are “Hood Go Crazy” featuring B.o.B and 2 Chainz, and “Fragile” featuring Kendall Morgan, !Mayday!, and Kendrick Lamar.
Tech N9ne’s “Strangeulation Vol. II” was his 16th album in his music career as well as the 6th album in his “Collabos” series. The album features the likes of Tyler Lyon, JL, and Ryan Bradley.
Tech N9ne made a remix of Marilyn Manson’s “The Beautiful People” song for Dr. Dre’s “The Pharmacy“. His version of Manson’s song was released in January 2016.
He took Strange Music members to the Independent Powerhouse Tour in the spring of that year. Later, he released his 20th album project “The Storm” as a follow-up to his debut album “The Calm Before the Storm” released in 2017.
On June 20, 2017, N9ne earned the first platinum record for his song “Caribou Lou.” In March 2018, he released his 20th overall album “Planet” and in April 2019, he released his 21st studio album titled “N9na.”
Tech N9ne released his 22nd studio album dubbed “Enterfear” on April 10, 2020. In July of the same year, he was featured on Slipknot’s single “CMFT Must Be Stopped.” In October 2020, he released a new music project called “Fear Exodus.”
Tech N9ne’s music has been used in several films like “Born 2 Race,” “Alpha Dog,” “Our Heroes,” and “Gang Related.” His track “Let’s Go” was used in a promotional clip for AXE body spray, which was aired online.
Similarly, his music has been featured in many video games like “The Crew,” “25 to Life,” “Madden NFL 2006,” and others.
His song “Earthquake” was featured in one of the episodes of MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew.
Tech N9ne has performed in several shows and concerts. Some of the notable TV shows Tech N9ne has been featured in include – “The Hills,” “My Super Sweet 16,” “Warren the Ape,” “Spike Guys Choice Awards,” “Dark Angel,” and “I’m From Rolling Stone.”
Remarkably, Tech N9ne received the Left Field Woodie at the 2009 Woodie Awards.
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Endorsements
In May 2018, it was revealed that Tech N9ne had teamed up with the Boulevard Brewing Company to create a new beer. The brewing company is based in Kansas City, Tech N9ne’s birthplace.
The beer named “Bou Lou” was released on June 18, 2018, in Denver, Wichita, Oklahoma City, and Kansas City. The beer’s name, Bou Lou is a reference to one of Tech N9ne’s songs ‘Caribou Lou.’
Bou Loi is a wheat beer made with pineapple and coconut flavors.
Personal Life
Tech N9ne got married to Lecoya LeJeune in 1995 but the couple split in 2005. He filed for divorce in 2015 but the divorce was finalized in November 2017. Their divorce was completed twelve years after their separation.
Away from the music, Tech N9ne is a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals. He released a tribute song “Red Kingdom” for the Kansas City Chiefs ahead of their AFC Championship match in 2019.
He made references to many Chiefs players such as the Late linebacker Derrick Thomas and other players who featured in that season in the song. Other players references in the song include Justin Houston, Tyreek Hill, Eric Berry, Patrick Mahomes, Dee Ford, Chris Jones, Harrison Buktur, and Travis Kelce.
Tech N9ne Net Worth
Tech N9ne is one of the most consistent rappers in America. His resilience and hardworking attitude have seen him release over 22 studio albums. The inspiration behind his stage name came from his fast-rapping style, which shares similarities to the TEC-9 semi-automatic handgun.
Tech N9ne is a successful rapper and music artist but today’s standards. He has released several tracks and albums, bringing him much publicity and income. His songs have been used in various video games, films, TV shows, and online promotional videos.
Tech N9ne is one of the highest-paid rappers in the United States. He has a net worth of $20 million. His earnings come from his music albums, as he has performed in more than a thousand shows since 1999.
His albums have sold more than a million copies and his songs still receive tons of streams from millions of listeners over the world.