Common

Career overview

Lonnie Rashid Lynn, known by his stage name Common and formerly as Common Sense, is an American rapper and actor born on March 13, 1972, in Chicago, Illinois. He debuted in 1992 with the album Can I Borrow a Dollar? and earned critical acclaim with his 1994 album Resurrection. He maintained an underground following through the late 1990s before achieving mainstream success through his work with the Soulquarians. His first major-label album, Like Water for Chocolate, was released in 2000 and achieved commercial success. In 2003, he won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song for the Erykah Badu single Love of My Life, and he later released the album Be in 2005.

Throughout his career, Common has received three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He later became known as a prominent voice in hip-hop's new millennium renaissance before transitioning into acting, accumulating 157 known credits across movies and television shows. In May 2019, he released his second memoir titled Let Love Have The Last Word, which highlights his relationships.