John David Jackson (born November 18, 1977), better known by his stage name Fabolous, is an American rapper. Raised in Brooklyn, he first gained recognition while still a senior in high school, when he performed live on American music executive DJ Clue's radio show, then on Hot 97. Jackson subsequently signed to DJ Clue's Desert Storm imprint, and later secured a distribution deal with major-label, Elektra. Jackson gained prominence with his first release, Ghetto Fabolous (2001), which spawned the hit singles "Can't Deny It" (featuring Nate Dogg) and "Young'n (Holla Back)". His second release was 2003's Street Dreams, which was supported by two US top 10 singles, "Can't Let You Go" (featuring Lil' Mo) and "Into You" (featuring Tamia or Ashanti).

Including the aforementioned songs, Jackson's series of hit singles extended throughout the 2000s, including "Trade It All, Pt. 2" (featuring Diddy and Jagged Edge), "Breathe", "Make Me Better" (featuring Ne-Yo), "Baby Don't Go" (featuring T-Pain), "Throw It in the Bag" (featuring The-Dream) and "You Be Killin' Em". He is also known for his appearances on several R&B singles, including "Superwoman Pt. II" by Lil' Mo, "Shawty Is a 10" by The-Dream, "Addiction" by Ryan Leslie, "She Got Her Own" by Jamie Foxx, and "Say Aah" by Trey Songz, among others.

In 2004, Jackson signed to Atlantic Records (another subsidiary of Warner Music Group), after leaving Elektra, where he released Real Talk, his first and only album under Atlantic. In 2006, Jackson was let out of his contract with Atlantic and officially signed with Def Jam Recordings (owned by Warner competitor Universal Music Group). Also in 2006, Jackson founded his own record label,

Jackson attended High School of Art & Design and City-As-School High School in Manhattan, and eventually Boys and Girls High School in Bed-Stuy.[5] While in his senior year of high school, Jackson began to pursue a career in hip hop music.[6] In the early years of his career, he rapped under the name Fabolous Sport, in reference to Ralph Lauren's Polo Sport line,[7] however this was later shortened to simply Fabolous. The misspelling was unintentional; Jackson originally intended to be simply called "Fabulous" but incorrectly spelled it during a freestyle and it stuck.[8] He was invited to rap live on American record producer and music executive DJ Clue's radio show, then on New York City radio station Hot 97. Fabolous and N.O.R.E. rapped over the instrumental to The Lox's Money, Power & Respect, and DJ Clue subsequently signed Fabolous to his record label, Desert Storm Records.[6][9] Fabolous was then featured on several DJ Clue mixtapes, as well as mixtapes with Roc-A-Fella artists.[citation needed] This earned Fabolous and Desert Storm a distribution deal with Elektra Records.[2] In a September 6, 2001, interview with Hot104.com, Fabolous said he never planned on becoming a rapper and told the website: "I was just trying to make some money, ya know? I got tired of being broke. This was something where I could make some money. It just happened for me."[10]

2001–2003: Ghetto Fabolous and Street Dreams
Fabolous released his debut album, Ghetto Fabolous, on September 11, 2001. It debuted at number four on the Billboard 200, selling over 140,000 copies in its first week.[11][12] The album's first single, "Can't Deny It", was produced by Rick Rock and features a chorus by Nate Dogg interpolating Tupac Shakur's song "Ambitionz Az a Ridah".[13] It charted on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, along with two of the subsequent singles.[14] The other charting singles were "Young'n (Holla Back)", which was produced by The Neptunes and "Trade It All", which features vocals from Jagged Edge and was produced by DJ Clue and Duro.

Fabolous released his second album Street Dreams on March 4, 2003. Powered by a Just Blaze beat and guest vocals from Lil' Mo and Mike Shorey, "Can't Let You Go" reached number one on the Rhythmic Top 40 chart and number four on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Into You" with Tamia also reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100. Also released on Street Dreams was the lead single club banger "This Is My Party" and "Trade It All Pt. 2" which featured Jagged Edge as it did on the Ghetto Fabolous version, as well as Diddy.

Exactly seven months later, on November 4, 2003, Fabolous dropped his official mixtape, More Street Dreams, Pt. 2: The Mixtape. It was an official release by his record label, Elektra. The album featured remixes and tracks not originally on Street Dreams. This album was also an outlet for his three-man crew, known as the Triangle Offense, consisting of himself, Paul Cain, and Joe Budden. The album actually features a remix to song Fire, which was originally on Joe Budden's self-titled debut album.[15]

2004–2008: Real Talk and From Nothin' to Somethin'

Fabolous at Sirius Satellite Radio in June 2007
Fabolous' third album Real Talk was released on November 5, 2004. It debuted at number 6