Fantastic Negrito

Fantastic Negrito

Fantastic Negrito is the stage name of Xavier Amin Dphrepaulezz, an African-American singer-songwriter born in 1968 and associated with Massachusetts and Oakland. His music spans blues, rock, R&B and roots music, and he is also described as working in blues, soul, funk, blues rock and psychedelic Americana.

Early career

He records first under the name Xavier and makes a deal with Prince’s former manager before signing another deal with Interscope Records in 1993. His first album, The X Factor, appears in 1996 on Lexington House Records and is distributed by Interscope. In 1999, he is in a near-fatal car crash and spends three weeks in a coma. Afterward, Interscope ends the contract, and he later says the crash effectively releases him from that situation.

Return to music and later work

He stops making music in 2007, then returns in 2014 and describes his new style as “black roots music for everyone”. In 2015, he wins NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest. The following year, he releases The Last Days of Oakland on Blackball Universe. In 2017, that album wins the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album, giving him his first Grammy.