Rhymefest
South Side Chicago rapper, battle MC and songwriter who co-wrote Kanye West’s “Jesus Walks” and “Glory,” released “Blue Collar” in 2006 and became a community activist.
Battle-rap roots
Che Armond Smith was born in Chicago on July 6, 1977, and came up on the city's South Side, where he met a teenage Kanye West. He sharpened his skills on the battle circuit at events such as Scribble Jam and the JumpOff, where his opponents included a pre-fame Eminem.
“Jesus Walks” and “Blue Collar”
Smith co-wrote West's 2004 single “Jesus Walks,” which won the Grammy for Best Rap Song in 2005. Signed to J Records through Mark Ronson's Allido imprint, he released his debut album “Blue Collar” on July 11, 2006, with production from Just Blaze, Kanye West and Ronson. The lead single “Brand New” featured West, and the album also included the singles “Fever” and “Wanted” plus a posthumous vocal from Ol' Dirty Bastard. Earlier singles such as “Dirty Dirty” (2005) had helped build his profile ahead of the album.
Mixtapes and songwriting
He kept releasing music through a string of mixtapes, among them “El Che: The Manual Mixtape,” and the album “El Che” (2010). He later co-wrote “Glory” with Common and John Legend for the 2014 film “Selma”; the song won the Golden Globe and the Academy Award for Best Original Song. In 2024 he returned with the album “James & Nikki: A Conversation.”
Community work
Smith co-founded Donda's House, a youth arts program originally named for West's mother and later renamed Art of Culture, which offers free arts instruction to young people. In 2011 he ran for alderman in Chicago's 20th Ward, forcing the incumbent into a runoff before narrowly losing, and in 2024 he won a seat on the Chicago Board of Education. He remains a prominent voice linking Chicago rap to civic activism.
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