Vado (rapper)
Vado | |
|---|---|
| Born | Teyon Isiah Winfree March 13, 1985 Harlem, New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Hip hop artist |
| Years active | 2008–present |
| Known for | Member of hip hop duo U.N., solo career under We the Best Music Group |
Teyon Isiah Winfree (born March 13, 1985), professionally recognized as Vado—an acronym for Violence And Drugs Only—is an American hip hop artist. In 2009, he partnered with fellow Manhattan native Cam'ron to establish the East Coast rap duo U.N.. Together, they produced two albums: Heat in Here Vol. 1 (2010) and Gunz n' Butta (2011), as well as the mixtape series titled Boss of All Bosses.
As a solo performer, Vado inked a deal in 2013 with DJ Khaled’s label, We the Best Music Group, which is associated with Cash Money Records and Republic Records. His first commercial single, "My Bae" featuring Jeremih, was released in 2014 but did not appear on music charts. Despite this, Vado contributed to DJ Khaled’s albums We the Best Forever (2011), Suffering from Success (2013), and I Changed a Lot (2015), while continuing to drop mixtapes under We the Best until his departure from the label in 2017.
Early life
Winfree was born and grew up in Harlem near 144th Street and Lenox Avenue, with roots tracing back to Ghanaian and African American descent. Inspired by artists such as Ma$e, Cam'ron, and Big L, he began crafting music at age sixteen. By nineteen, he appeared on the public access program Mad Ciphas and collaborated with longtime friend Jae Millz in 2008. Initially performing under the name MOVADO, he eventually shortened it to VADO.
Career
In March 2009, through a mutual acquaintance, Vado connected with New York rapper and Dipset leader Cam'ron, which led to forming the hip hop duo U.N., standing for "Us Now." Their first mixtape, Bosses of All Bosses, was released in August to favorable reviews. The following year saw their debut album Heat in Here Vol. 1 launched via Asylum Records, a Warner Music Group imprint. Vado’s solo debut mixtape, Slime Flu, came out in October 2010 through Cam'ron’s Diplomat Records with distribution handled by E1 Music. That same year, Cam'ron introduced him to Damon Dash, co-founder of Roc-A-Fella Records; Vado subsequently signed with Dash’s BluRoc label. U.N. also joined BluRoc and released a five-track EP titled Blu Tops in February 2012. During this time frame, Vado was frequently identified as Cam'ron’s protégé or hype man.
In March 2011, Vado secured a solo contract with Interscope Records but did not release any projects under that deal. The duo independently issued their second album, Gunz n' Butta, in April; it achieved greater commercial success by reaching number 78 on the Billboard 200 chart and featured singles like "Speaking in Tungs" and "Hey Muma." That same month, Vado appeared on Fabolous’ mixtape The S.O.U.L. Tape. In July, he was featured on DJ Khaled’s track "Future" alongside Ace Hood, Wale, and Meek Mill from Khaled’s album We the Best Forever. November marked the release of his mixtape Slime Flu 2. By 2012, Vado parted ways with Interscope to concentrate on cultivating a regional fan base.
On January 22, 2013, he dropped Slime Flu 3. Shortly thereafter, he joined DJ Khaled’s We the Best Music Group (under Republic/Cash Money) and released his first major label mixtape titled V-Day. Throughout that year, Vado made appearances on VH1 shows such as Love & Hip Hop and Black Ink Crew, and featured on Lil Wayne’s Dedication 5 as well as DJ Khaled’s Suffering from Success.
In March 2014, Vado unveiled his official commercial single "My Bae" featuring Jeremih with production by Lee on the Beats. December followed with another single "Look Me In My Eyes", featuring Rick Ross and French Montana from his sixth solo mixtape Sinatra, released earlier that February. Neither track charted on the Billboard Hot 100. He later appeared on Khaled’s album I Changed a Lot in 2015. After releasing eleven mixtapes under We the Best and taking a two-year break from music, Vado independently issued LongRun: Vol. 2 in January 2022 via his own label LongRun.
In October 2023, Vado was featured on Mary J. Blige's single "Still Believe In Love." On May 1, 2024, he publicly announced signing with Blige's Beautiful Life Records through a distribution agreement with Larry Jackson’s gamma imprint. Mary J. Blige also confirmed this signing during an interview with Big Tigger.
On April 29, 2025, fashion stylist and entrepreneur Misa Hylton filed a $5 million lawsuit against Mary J. Blige alleging breach of contract and interference concerning Vado’s management. Hylton claims she founded a management company representing Vado since February 2023 prior to his signing with Beautiful Life Records. She further alleges that Blige pressured Vado to terminate his agreement with Hylton’s firm and halted an album project after he refused to dismiss Hylton.
Joint Albums
| Album Title | Release Information | Chart Rankings | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B | US Rap | ||
| Heat In Here Vol. 1
(collaboration with U.N.) |
|
146 | 30 | 16 |
| Gunz n' Butta
(in partnership with Cam'ron) |
|
78 | 15 | 7 |
Mixtapes
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Boss of All Bosses (with Cam'ron) |
|
| Slime Flu |
|
| Boss of All Bosses 2 (with Cam'ron) |
|
| Boss of All Bosses 2.5 (with Cam'ron) |
|
| Boss of All Bosses 2.8 (with Cam'ron) |
|
| Boss of All Bosses 3 (with Cam'ron) |
|
| Slime Flu 2 |
|
| UNLostFiles (with Cam'ron) |
|
| Slime Flu 3 |
|
| V-Day |
|
| Slime Flu 4 |
|
| Sinatra |
|
| V-Day II |
|
| Slime Flu 5 |
|
| Sinatra 2 |
|
| Sinatra 2.5 |
|
| Sinatra 3 |
|
| V-Day 3 |
|
| Crime Square |
|
| Long Run Vol. 1 |
|
| Long Run Vol. 2 |
|
| Long Run Vol. 3 |
|
| V-Day 4 |
|
Singles
| Title | Release Year | Chart Rankings | Associated Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B | US Rap | |||
| "Speaking in Tungs" (collaboration with Cam'ron as part of U.N.) |
2010 | — | 82 | — | Slime Flu and Gunz n' Butta |
| "Hey Muma" (with Cam'ron under U.N.) |
2011 | — | 84 | — | Gunz n' Butta |
| "My Bae" (featuring Jeremih) |
2014 | — | — | — | Single release, not part of an album |
| "Look Me In My Eyes" (featuring Rick Ross and French Montana) |
— | — | — | Sinatra | |
| "Talk To Me" (featuring DreamDoll) |
2019 | — | — | — | V-Day 3 |
| "Respect My Jux" (featuring Lloyd Banks and Dave East) |
2021 | — | — | — | Single release, non-album track |
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Highest Chart Positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B | |||
| "Christmas in Harlem" (Kanye West featuring CyHi the Prynce, Teyana Taylor, Cam'ron, Jim Jones, Vado, Pusha T, Musiq Soulchild, & Big Sean) |
2010 | — | — | |
| "Livin' Dreams" (Akini Blake featuring Maino, Vado & Fred the Godson) |
2012 | — | — | |
| "Walk In New York" (Grafh featuring Raekwon and Vado) |
2014 | — | — | '88 Crack Era' |
| "Blue Bandana" (Ms.Choppa featuring Vado) |
2020 | — | — | |
| "Still Believe In Love" (Mary J. Blige featuring Vado) |
2023 | — | — | |
Guest appearances
| Track Title | Year Recorded | Collaborating Artist(s) | Source Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "That Work" | 2010 | DJ Suss One, Uncle Murda, Cassidy, Joell Ortiz, French Montana | The Feature Presentation Album |
| "Mo Brooklyn, Mo Harlem, Mo Southside" | 2011 | Fabolous, Lloyd Banks | 'The S.O.U.L. Tape' |
| "Future" | "DJ Khaled, Wale, Ace Hood, Meek Mill" | 'We the Best Forever' | |
| "We Run The Town" | "2012" | "Lloyd Banks" | 'V.6: The Gift' |
| "Shut The City Down" | "2012" | "CashFlow" | 'The Enterprise' |
| "Clap, Clap, Clap (Remix)" | "2012" | "J-Star, Twista" | 'N/A' |
| "Something Else" | "2012" | "Fred The Godson, Face49" | 'Gordo Frederico' |
| "Excuse Me" | "2012" | "DJ Kay Slay, Gunplay, Uncle Murda, Sauce Money" | 'The Return Of The Gatekeeper' |
| "Make It Back" | "2012" | "Bizzy Crook" | 'P.S. I'm Sorry 2' |
| "Out Here" | "2012" | "Smoke DZA, ASAP Twelvy" | 'K.O.N.Y.' |
| "5:46 A.M." | "2012" | "Al-Doe, Boldy James" | 'Nose Candy.' |
| "Violent Music" | "2012" | "DJ Kay Slay, Busta Rhymes, DJ Paul" | 'Grown Man Hip-Hop' |
| "Count Your Blessings" | "2013" | "DJ Kay Slay, Torch, Uncle Murda" | 'Grown Man Hip Hop Part 2 (Sleepin' With The Enemy)' |
| "I Gotta Eat" | "2013" | "Jae Millz, Fred The Godson" | 'Dead Presidents 2' |
| "I Came" | "2013" | "Funkmaster Flex, Reek da Villian" | 'Who You Mad At? Me Or Yourself?' |
| "The Sound Of NYC" | "2013" | "DJ Kay Slay, Sheek Louch, Styles P" | 'The Last Champion' |
| "New York City" | "2013" | "Uncle Murda, Waka Flocka Flame" | 'N/A' |
| "Levels" | "2013" | "Lil Wayne" | 'Dedication 5' |
| "Black Ghost" | "2013" | "DJ Khaled" | 'Suffering from Success' |
| "Take That Off" | "2013" | "DJ Khaled, Jeremih" | 'Suffering from Success' |
| "Paint The Sky" | "2013" | "Lloyd Banks" | 'A.O.N. (All Or Nothing) Series Vol. 1: F.N.O. (Failure's No Option)' |
| 2014 | Ace Hood | Starvation 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| DJ Kay Slay, Young Chris, Papoose, Nathaniel | The Rise of a City | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| DJ Kay Slay, Papoose, Ransom | The Last Hip Hop Disciple | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boogz Boogetz | C.O.O.L. 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | Cassidy, Fred Money, J.R. Writer, Red Café, Papoose, Maino, Uncle Murda, Fat Trel, Fred the Godson, Chubby Jag, Drag-On, Dave East, Compton Menace | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| DJ Khaled, French Montana, Jadakiss, Ace Hood | I Changed a Lot | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Maino, Uncle Murda | K.O.B. 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Lloyd Banks, Prodigy | All or Nothing: Live It Up | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| rowspan=3 | 2017 | DJ Kay Slay, Dave East, Ms Hussle | The Big Brother |- ! scope ="row"| "A Million Bucks" | DJ Kay Slay, Fatman Scoop, Nipsey Hussle, Troy Ave, Rocko |- ! scope ="row"| "Different Scenario" | Fred The Godson, Jim Jones, Jaquae | - ! scope ="row"| "God Bless The Summer" | rowspan=6 | 2018 | Dave East | - ! scope ="row"| "Da Hated" | Dave East | - ! scope ="row"| "Blue Hundreds" | Dave East | - ! scope ="row"| "Nice For What" | Dave East | - ! scope ="row"| "Once Upon A Time" | Dave East | - ! scope ="row"| "Boo'd Up" | Dave East | - ! scope ="row"| "Back To The Bars" | 2019 | DJ Kay Slay, Ninoman, Mysonne, Fred The Godson, Locksmith, Jon Connor, Joell Ortiz | - ! scope ="row"| "Back To The Bars Pt. 2" | 2020 | DJ Kay Slay, Ninoman, RJ Payne, Sauce Money, Sheek Louch, Jon Connor, Styles P |
} References |
- Living people
- 21st-century African-American male rappers
- 21st-century American male rappers
- 20th-century American male rappers
- MNRK Music Group artists
- East Coast hip-hop musicians
- 1985 births
- American rappers of Jamaican heritage
- Individuals from Harlem
- Rappers originating from Manhattan
- Cash Money Records artists
- Gangsta rap artists
- 21st-century American rappers
- 21st-century American male musicians
- 21st-century African-American rappers