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Faheem Rasheed Najm grew up in a modest house on Ridge Road in South Tallahassee, just a short drive from Bragg Stadium and Florida A&M University.

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Najm, who was home-schooled, spent most of his time locked in his bedroom, where he had built a recording studio.

Inspired by Grammy Award winning mentors Craig Bauer and Jaycen Joshua, Ashby always knew he’d collaborate with A-list clients. “I kept growing my mixes, my ear, my tracking engineer ear, my pitch direction ear, my vocal direction ear,” he says.

“(My parents) thought I was going to be an introvert, they had to make me come out of that room,” he said during a recent phone interview. “It consumed my life.”

Eventually, Najm emerged from the bedroom on Ridge Road and assumed the stage name T-Pain, which stands for Tallahassee Pain. Starting in 2005, T-Pain was responsible for a string of hits that includes “I’m Sprung,” “I’m in Luv (Wit a Stripper),” “Bartender” and his signature “Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin’).”

Expect to hear plenty of them when T-Pain joins the Funk Fest concert lineup on Friday night as part of the FAMU Homecoming celebration on campus. T-Pain is sharing the stage with Fantasia, Bell Biv Devoe, Jeremih, Uncle Luke, 69 Boyz and Friends, JT Money, 95 South, Ghosttown DJ’s and more. The big gig means a lot to the Tallahassee native.

“It’s a huge deal for me,” T-Pain, 31, said on Wednesday afternoon from his home in Atlanta. “I wish it was a bigger T-Pain thing, though. I’ve only got 45 minutes (of stage time). But this is my hometown. I want to do a 100%, or 120%”

The FAMU Funk Fest marks the first time the Grammy Award-winning T-Pain has played in front of a large audience on hometurf since a concert at the Tucker Civic Center in June 2007. During FAMU Homecoming festivities in 2014, it was announced T-Pain was going to give an outdoor concert in the parking lot of the Side Bar Theatre but it was canceled at the last minute. Fans were angry.

“A promoter booked me for Homecoming and I wasn’t even informed about it,” T-Pain said. “It was some shady stuff. This time, I don’t want to come back half-a--. I’m going to give it everything.”

That Auto-Tune thing

It is impossible to talk to T-Pain without bringing up Auto-Tune, the pitch-correction studio effect that became his calling card on hit after hit.

“I originally did it to set me apart from the others (singer and rappers) at the time,” T-Pain said. “I didn’t want to sound like everybody else.”

The singer said he became obsessed with the Auto-Tune effect after hearing a blip of it in a pop tune.

“I heard it on a Jennifer Lopez song and it was just for a few seconds,” T-Pain said. “I didn’t know what it was. I sat down and went through every plug-in until I found it.”

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Even though many other artists — everyone from Lil’ Wayne to Britney Spears — followed his lead by jumping on the Auto-Tune train, T-Pain caught a lot of criticism and was written off as a gimmick act. T-Pain played along with it in 2009 when he appeared as himself in a “Saturday Night Live Digital Short” music video with Andy Samberg called “I’m On A Boat.”

“I don’t know why we did this (video) in the winter,” T-Pain said. “It was in the days before drones were everywhere, so all the overhead shots were done by a helicopter. That was kickin’ up the water and the wind. I was freezing my a-- off but I was trying to look cool.”

There are so many ads that i stop playing the game out of annoyance. ,207000000,150,null,null,'9','Teo Niculescu',null,null,2,null,null,null,'Heinrichs',null,2,null,null,null,'game but way too many long and same ads that you have to watch to proceed in game eventhough you buy diamonds the ads get worse instead of better. But having to spend my money every time i need to upgrade something is a huuuge NO for me.' Sara cooking games to download.

Auto toyota cressida tuning. Eventually, though, the Auto-Tune backlash got to him.

“Around the time when people were hating on me about Auto-Tune, I was drinking as much as I could to get away from my problems, crying to myself,” T-Pain said in a Vibe magazine interview in 2014. “I’ve almost lost fingers from punching glass and pictures. I turned into a raging alcoholic. If I could talk to myself then, I would say, ‘Stop trying to get approval from these wack (bleeps) that’s only gonna take your style.’”

T-Pain decided to own it, instead. He developed an app that makes anyone sound like a T-Pain song.

“I’d rather make money off it,” T-Pain said and laughed. “I felt like a businessman when I came up with the idea for that app.”

Return to Ridge Road

During his FAMU Homecoming stop, T-Pain is planning to pay a visit to his old homestead in South Tallahassee. It holds a lot of memories. After all, a song titled “Ridge Road” was included on his first album “Rappa Ternt Sanga” (2005).

“A lot of hits got made in that house,” T-Pain said.

It’s also where, when he was 12, T-Pain took the key’s to his father’s Cadillac and went for a joy ride around the neighborhood.

“Yeah, that was a fun night,” T-Pain said and chuckled. “I went around to all my friends’ houses to show them I was driving but no one was awake at 3 in the morning.”

His father, Shaheed Najm, who was also his primary teacher, was not too pleased. Still, his father was patient with his musically gifted son.

“I saw it in him from a young age, I just had to bring it up and out of him,” said Najm, who was once a member of the Marching 100 at FAMU.

“He was really good, he applied common sense,” T-Pain said of his father’s teaching methods. “It was obvious I wasn’t going to be a scientist so he worked to make me a musician. And he knew I needed math. I need math to count all the checks that were going to be coming in.”

T-Pain said he is planning to turn his childhood home, which he owns now, into a museum and recording studio.

“I want to turn it into a studio for the young guys to use,” T-Pain said. “And there will be an exhibition (of memorabilia). Lots of relics, you know. Hey, it’s a historic landmark.”

The singer laughed out loud and then added that he had one more destination in mind while he’s back in his hometown.

“The first stop when I get to Tallahassee is going to be Lindy’s Fried Chicken,” T-Pain said. “If they shut Lindy’s down, Tallahassee might not ever see me again.”

FAMU Homecoming at a glance

•Grammy-winner T-Pain joins a big bill that includes Fantasia, Bell Biv Devoe, Jeremih, Uncle Luke, 69 Boyz and Friends, JT Money, 95 South, Ghosttown DJ’s and more at 6 p.m. Friday during the Funk Fest show for FAMU Homecoming at the Intramural Field near Bragg Stadium. General admission tickets are $40. Visit www.tallahasee.funkfesttour.com.

•Keep the Rattler vibe alive when the FAMU Homecoming Parade rolls at 8:30 a.m. Saturday starting at the corner of Wahnish Way and Orange Avenue. The kickoff for the big football game against Hampton is at 3 p.m. Saturday in Bragg Stadium.

The Top Ten Singers that Use Autotune but Can Sing Without It

1T-PainFaheem Rashad Najm, better known by his stage name T-Pain, is an American recording artist and music producer from Tallahassee, Florida.

he's great

2Nicole ScherzingerNicole Scherzinger, born Nicole Prescovia Elikolani Valiente on June 29, 1978, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer, and television personality. She first rose to fame as the lead singer of the pop/r&b group The Pussycat Dolls.

Shes great

3R. KellyRobert Sylvester Kelly, known professionally as R. Kelly, is an American recording artist, songwriter, record producer, and former professional basketball player.

He's amazing and one of a kind

The king of r&b don't need no auto-tune! - RnBLover

5Lady GagaStefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. ..read more.

Agreed. She's got a nice powerful voice and it shows in some of her live performances. - cjWriter1997

Her vpice is oncredoble and doesn't need to use all the autotune she uses for her songs, come on have you heard her? She is incredible! - DaisyandRosalina

Shes okay

She is truly an amazing singer. If you've listened to her performance at the Sound of Music celebration, this is an unquestionable fact.
I think that she just wastes her voice singing music that doesn't do her justice.

6Kelly RowlandKelendria Trene 'Kelly' Rowland is a Grammy Award winning American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality.

Shes awesome and better than Beyoncé in my opinion.

8Jason DeruloJason Joel Desrouleaux, better known by his stage name Jason Derulo (an alternate spelling of his surname), is an American singer, songwriter, and dancer. He is best known for his singles such as 'Whatcha Say', 'Ridin' Solo', 'In My Head', 'What If', 'Wiggle', 'Talk Dirty', 'Trumpets' and 'Want To Want ..read more.

He sounds so much better without, his voice actually doesn't sound good with auto-tune. - DaWyteNight

he's okay

9P!nkAlecia Beth Moore known professionally as P!NK, is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress.

Shes okay but hardly ever uses auto-tune

She hardly ever had bad performances. - DaisyandRosalina

She is PERFECTION. literally everything about her, voice, personality, charm. SHE IS AN ABOLUTE LEGEND GODDESS QUEEN. - Twixx

10Zayn MalikZain Javadd Malik, born on 12 January 1993, who records mononymously as ZAYN, is a British singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Bradford, ZAYN aspired to pursue a career in music from a young age leading him to audition as a solo artist for the British reality television music competition The X ..read more.

He's the one of the rarest voices rather than many stupid singers and his highnotes sound much better live.
Thank God he left 1d so he can open up fully.
He's just so underrated and needs to advertise himself more.

The Contenders

11Camila CabelloKarla Camila Cabello Estrabao, or professionally Camila Cabello (born March 3, 1997) is an American-Cuban musician. Camila was best known for being part of the girl group Fifth Harmony. Fifth Harmony are known for songs like Worth It, Work From Home, All In My Head (Flex), Bo$, and Sledgehammer. Camila ..read more.

Can't possibly sing without heavy autotune on everything.

The only song she used autotune on was. And that was for effect! Watch her Fallon performance.

Underrated and overhated by critics and fans. She can sing really well live (her solo X-factor audition got 4 yes-es). Even if she tries a bit too hard with the emotion and high notes, she's still a good singer.

12BeyoncéBeyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, is an American singer and actress, who started out in the popular pop/r&b girl group Destiny's Child. They had multiple top 5 hits such as 'No, No, No', 'Say My Name', 'Bills, Bills, Bills', 'Survivor', 'Independent Women', 'Bootylicious', and 'Jumpin', Jumpin' from ..read more.

Overrated? Yes.
Incredibly talented without autotune? Still yes. - DaisyandRosalina

Overrated? Yes.
Incredibly talented without relying on an army of songwriters, choreographers, costume designers, production managers, PR agents, and auto-tune technicians? No.

13Ariana GrandeAriana Grande-Butera, known professionally as Ariana Grande, is an American singer and actress. She was born on June 26th 1993 in Boca Raton, Florida to Joan Grande and Edward Butera. She is best known for her role as Cat Valentine on the Nickelodeon sitcom Victorious and its spin-off show Sam & Cat. ..read more.

Um she is amazing. She is inspiring and she has amazing vocals. She doesn't need autotune. - Jass1

Her voice isn't anything too amazing or groundbreaking with it or without it to be honest. Her annunciation is horrible, her high notes are shrill and annoying and she sounds (and looks) like a little girl. She's just a Mariah Carey wannabe anyway.

Ariana grande sucks - RnBLover

Her angelic voice does not need any support, she still great without using autotune. - DaisyandRosalina

14Bruno MarsPeter Gene Hernandez, professionally known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and choreographer. ..read more.

He has one of the best voices of our generation - DaisyandRosalina

He doesn't really use auto-tune

17Demi LovatoDemetria Devonne 'Demi' Lovato is an American singer, songwriter and actress. After appearing on the children's television series Barney & Friends as a child, she received her breakthrough role as Mitchie Torres in the Disney Channel television film Camp Rock and its sequel Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. ..read more.

'That's why you use auto-tune and I don't'

Shes a good singer but tends to oversing to the point where it sounds like yelling.

She is talented even if she oversings sometimes. - DaisyandRosalina

18Jojo Siwa

Jojo Siwa sucks at singing, so she just uses autotune.

19Miley CyrusMiley Ray Hemsworth (born Destiny Hope Cyrus), known as Miley Cyrus, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was born on November 23, 1992, in Franklin, Tennessee, to Tish Cyrus and Billy Ray Cyrus. Her voice type is Mezzo-Soprano and has 4 octaves. She became a teen idol starring as the ..read more.

Hate her all you want but she still can sing. - DaisyandRosalina

No, she can't.

20Avril LavigneAvril Ramona Lavigne is a Canadian–French singer-songwriter and actress. By the age of 15, she had appeared on stage with Shania Twain; by 16, she had signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records worth more than $2 million.

As a rock singer, she is good. - DaisyandRosalina

She has a fantastic voice.

22Billie EilishBillie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell, known professionally as Billie Eilish (born December 18, 2001) is an American singer and songwriter, best known for her songs 'When the Party's Over', 'Bury a Friend' and especially 'Bad Guy'.

She doesn't use it on her voice, but rather uses it on background effects that use her voice.

Hate her music all you want, that girl sounds amazing live w/o autotune. Like all artists, she might use it for the effect and to perfect her recordings. She's only 17 and has amazing control of her voice.

25Chris BrownChristopher Maurice 'Chris' Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actor. Born in Tappahannock, Virginia, he was involved in his church choir and several local talent shows from a young age. He is most well known for his physical assault towards the singer Rihanna in ..read more.

I hate him so much. way too much autotune

Yeah.. no.

27RihannaRobyn Rihanna Fenty is a Barbadian-American pop singer. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, she first entered the music industry by recording demo tapes under the direction of record producer Evan Rogers in 2003. She ultimately signed a recording contract with Def Jam Recordings after auditioning ..read more.

She can't sing with or without auto-tune, she's just a bad singer. Just listen to her covering Hero by Mariah Carey and you'll know. She may have improved over the years but she is still not very good and doesn't deserve her fame. It's an insult to actual talented singers to call rihanna a good singer. You can like her catchy pop songs, but a good singer she is not. - RnBLover

Underrated by critics and fans, she can sing some songs nearly like the original, in others she put emotions in. She is lazy but she can sing. - DaisyandRosalina

Rihanna can't sing and auto-tune is her best friend. - DaWyteNight

Look..I love Riri and her pop music but she honestly could use some auto-tune from time to time. Have you heard her song 'Higher? ' Two words..no Bueno.
I don't know who added her, if they did it as a joke or were being serious but from someone who has heard her live I can tell you that she could use auto-tune. She makes amazing pop music though, all her albums are pop perfection.

28Justin BieberJustin Drew Bieber (born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and record producer. He currently resides in Ontario, Canada and is Christian. He is the son of author Pattie Mallette. ..read more.

His singing really isn't anything too special, most people can sing like he can. He's no Usher or anything. - DaWyteNight

He can sing without auto tune.. He is decent singer - Nandani

Trash

I can't belive it.. but he can.. - DaisyandRosalina

29KeshaKesha Rose Sebert (formerly known as Ke$ha) was born on March 1st, 1987 in Los Angeles, United States. She is best known for her hits like Timber, Tik Tok, and We R Who We R. ..read more.

Say what you want about her but the autotune actually sounds pretty good when it's used for effect. And even then she's definitely a better singer live than Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, Katy Perry, and Selena Gomez.

Okay umm..I love Kesha and all but she really does need a bit of autotune now and then. - Twixx

30Selena Gomez

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Selena Marie Gomez is an American actress and singer. She is best known for songs like 'Come & Get It', 'Good For You', 'Same Old Love', and 'It Ain't Me'. Selena Gomez's voice is mezzo-soprano but she usually sings in alto. She is best known for her role as Alex Russo in Wizards of Waverly Place.

She doesn't sing, she just whispers. - DaWyteNight

I'm dead serious, watch her sing Same Old Love live on Ellen. it is GOOD. I'M NOT ON DRUGS, Then you can whine to me about how she 'can't sing.' Because then you'll be wrong. She has improved A LOT. A LOT. She even lowered the autotune in Same Old Love.

33Lata Mangeshkar

Who Won The Grammy Awards

Lata Mangeshkar is an Indian playback singer and music director. She is one of the best-known and most respected playback singers in India.

Lata doesn't use auto tune because in her era auto tune was not invented - Nandani

34HalseyAshley Nicolette Frangipane, known by her stage name Halsey, is an American singer and songwriter. She was born on September 29, 1994 in New Jersey. She started her career by releasing songs on SoundCloud, and now she is a well-known pop singer with hits like Bad at Love, and Now or Never. She had originated ..read more.

I listen to her stripped songs and they’re so much better than the studio versions, that’s why I can’t wait to see her in concert!

Related Lists

Top Ten Pop Singers that Sound Better Without AutotuneTop 10 Songs With the Most Obvious Use of AutotuneWorst Songs That Use AutotuneTop Ten Worst Music Genreswhich Use AutotuneTop Ten Singers with Too Much Autotune

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