Mellow Man Ace
Real Name: Ulpiano Sergio Reyes
born April 12, 1967 in Pinar del Río, Pinar del Río Province, Cuba
Did you know this about the Latin Freestyle Legend?
Ulpiano Sergio Reyes is a Cuban-born American rapper that relocated to Los Angeles at the tender of 4. He has been writing rhymes since the age of 15.
This incredible musician is yet another name synonymous with the Latin freestyle genre, and his bilingual and novelty rhymes have captivated rap lovers from the get-go.
Before going solo, Mellow Man Ace was a member of DVX and subsequently hit the Freestyle scene in 1987 with his debut single "Do This," produced by the Delicious Vinyl Label, a favorite among fans but didn't hit the desired notable spots.
His single "Rhyme Fighter" was probably about the most captivating release in 1989, entered the Hot Rap Singles Chart at #24, and stayed on the Billboard for a whopping 13 weeks. Quite uniquely, this single was powered primarily by the B Side.
It wasn't until three years later, in 1990, that his only ever hit, the single "Mentirosa," from the album Escape from Havana, topped the charts at #14 on the Billboard Top Hot 100. In a typical Latino theme, Mentirosa told the story of a man confronting his cheating girlfriend.
Sad fact - he got into trouble for not obtaining permission to sample two of Santanas songs that he used in the recording of Mentirosa.
Fun fact - Mellow Man Ace has a brother that goes by the name of Sen Dog. Should we have expected anything less?
Even more interesting is that Mellow Man Ace is a founding member of popular hip hop group Cypress Hill, of which Sen Dog was a member.
Aces bilingual rap abilities earned him the title of the Godfather of Latin Rap.
Delicious Vinyl offered Mellow Man Ace his first deal through Capitol, where he worked with an incredible crew including The Dust Brothers, Tony G, Def Jef, and Grandmixer Muggs.
After releasing his second album, The Brother with Two tongues, Ace retired from music, only to bounce back in the year 2000 with his album From the Darkness into the Light.
Ace has achieved many firsts for Latino rappers, one being Mentirosa entering the Billboard Top 40 in 1990 ( and staying there for 18 solid weeks). However, his number one stand-out for fans everywhere is that Ace put together the first-ever gold record by a Latino MC.
Most of his recent music is produced by his son, Cazal Organism, and his daughter, Havana Reyes.
Although Mellow Man Ace bridged the English Latino gap, it seemed that most of his music performed better when powered by the B side or Spanish Fly Side as it was commonly known. Even "Do This" was retitled "Mis Pingon."
Mentirosa was RIAA gold-certified in July 1990 and became the sixth best-selling single immediately after this.