Happy Birthday, Chali 2na!

(Chali 2na in center)

Today, June 26, is the birthday of California rapper and Jurassic 5, Dino 5 and Ozomatli member Chali 2na.

Born Charles Stewart and raised in Los Angeles, Calif., the young rhymer derived his rap name from Charlie the Tuna, the cartoon mascot of StarKist Tuna. Chali 2na helped found alternative hip-hop group Jurassic 5 in 1993. Other than Chali, Akil, Zaakir, Marc 7, DJ Nu-Mark and Cut Chemist made up the six man crew of eclectic wordsmiths. Together, the guys put out four studio albums under TVT and Interscope Records, including their self titled debut which went on to be certified Gold. The group broke up briefly in 2007 but recently got back together in 2013.

Over the years, Chali has dabbled in other rap groups like Dino 5, on offset of Jurassic, and Ozomatli, his own salsa funk rap collective. As a soloist, Chali put out his first mixtape, Fish Market, in 2004 and his first studio album, Fish Outta Water in 2009. He is undoubtedly sharing his deep voiced, reliable rhymes with new generations as Jurassic 5 tours once again.

Happy Birthday, Chali 2na!