Blackalicious

Blackalicious is an American hip-hop duo from Sacramento, California, made up of rapper Gift of Gab and DJ/producer Chief Xcel. They are noted for Gift of Gab's often tongue-twisting, multisyllabic, complex rhymes and Chief Xcel's "classic" beats. The duo have released four full-length albums (2000's Nia, 2002's Blazing Arrow, 2005's The Craft, and 2015's Imani Vol. 1). Gift of Gab has stated that Imani Vol. 1 will be the first in a three-volume series to be released over the next two years.

History

1992-1999: Formation of Blackalicious, Quannum Projects

While Gift of Gab and Chief Xcel spent their early childhood years in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area respectively, the two first met while attending John F. Kenndedy High School in Sacramento, California. At the time, Gift of Gab was known as Gabby T, while Chief Xcel went by the stage name of DJ IceSki. After graduating from Kennedy High in 1989, the two went their separate ways.

In 1992, during a time when Xcel was attending the University of California, Davis, Gift of Gab joined him in Davis, California to form Blackalicious. At UC Davis, Xcel had been working with a hip-hop group named Solesides, whose members included DJ Shadow, Lateef the Truthspeaker, and Lyrics Born. Solesides Records was the name of the collective's Northern California record company, and in 1994 the label released Blackalicious' debut single "Swan Lake", which garnered acclaim within the independent music scene. In 1995, Blackalicious released an EP titled Melodica under Solesides Records. By 1997, Solesides Records had transformed into the now acclaimed Quannum Projects, and under this label, the group released an EP titled A2G in 1999.

Chief

Chief may refer to:

Title or rank

Aircraft

Media

Literature

Galen Tyrol

Galen Tyrol (commonly referred to as The Chief) is a character on the television series Battlestar Galactica. Tyrol is responsible for the maintenance of the Vipers and Raptors aboard Battlestar Galactica. After the events of the miniseries, he was the ship's highest-ranking non-commissioned officer at rank of Senior Chief Petty Officer.

Galen Tyrol is played by Aaron Douglas, who originally auditioned for the role of Lee Adama before that role went to English actor Jamie Bamber.

Character history

At the start of the series, Tyrol is romantically involved with Lieutenant Sharon "Boomer" Valerii aboard Galactica, who is, unbeknownst to either Tyrol or herself, a Cylon. Once Sharon's true nature is revealed when she attempts to assassinate then-Commander Adama, Tyrol is accused of being a Cylon and is thrown into the brig with Sharon. He claims he hates her and orders her to keep her distance, but when Sharon is shot and killed by Cally, he mourns her and reveals his true affection for her. Tyrol is "proven" not to be a Cylon - for the time being - and resumes his job. Discovering the existence of Caprica-Valerii (who is pregnant and in love with Helo) confuses him, especially with Galactica-Valerii's death still haunting him.

Chief (heraldry)

In heraldic blazon, a chief is a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running horizontally across the top edge of the shield. Writers disagree in how much of the shield's surface is to be covered by the chief, ranging from one-fourth to one-third. The former is more likely if the chief is uncharged, that is, if it does not have other objects placed on it. If charged, the chief is typically wider to allow room for the objects drawn there.

The chief is one of the ordinaries in heraldry, along with the bend, chevron, fess, and pale. There are several other ordinaries and sub-ordinaries.

Variations of chief

The chief may bear charges and may also be subject to variations of the partition lines. The chief may be combined with another ordinary, such as a pale or a saltire, but is almost never surmounted by another ordinary. The chief will normally be superimposed over a bordure, orle and tressure, if they share the same shield.

A chief combined with a pale.

Xcel Energy

Xcel Energy Inc. is a utility holding company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serving more than 3.3 million electric customers and 1.8 million natural gas customers in Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Texas and New Mexico. It consists of four operating subsidiaries: Northern States Power-Minnesota, Northern States Power-Wisconsin, Public Service Company of Colorado, and Southwestern Public Service Co. Ben Fowke is the Chairman, CEO, and President.

History

Xcel Energy was built on three companies: Minneapolis-based Northern States Power Company (NSP), Denver-based Public Service Company of Colorado (PSCo), and Amarillo-based Southwestern Public Service (SPS).

Southwestern Public Service Co. (SPS) dates its origins to 1904 and the Pecos Valley in New Mexico when Maynard Gunsell received an electricity franchise for the city of Roswell, New Mexico and its 2,000 residents. The financial strain of creating this new enterprise soon overwhelmed him and he sold the franchise to W.H. Gillenwater, who named his utility the Roswell Electric Light Co. He later sold the company to an investment firm in Cleveland, Ohio, which already owned the Roswell Gas Co.