
Common
Biography
Lonnie Rashid Lynn (born March 13, 1972), known by his stage name Common (formerly Common Sense), is an American rapper and actor. He has received three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award.
He debuted in 1992 with the album Can I Borrow a Dollar?, and gained critical acclaim with his 1994 album Resurrection. He maintained an underground following into the late 1990s. He achieved mainstream success through his work with the Soulquarians.
His first major-label album Like Water for Chocolate (2000), received commercial success. In 2003, he won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song for the Erykah Badu single "Love of My Life". His 2005 album Be was also a commercial success and was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 2006 Grammy Awards. Common received his second Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Southside" (featuring Kanye West), from his 2007 album Finding Forever. His best-of album, Thisisme Then: The Best of Common, was released in late 2007. In 2011, Common launched Think Common Entertainment, his own record label imprint, having previously released music under various other labels including Relativity, Geffen, and GOOD Music.
Common won the 2015 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and the Academy Award for Best Original Song, for his song, co-written and performed with John Legend, "Glory" from the 2014 film Selma, in which he co-starred as Civil Rights Movement leader James Bevel. Common's acting career also includes roles in the films Smokin' Aces, Street Kings, American Gangster, Wanted, Terminator Salvation, Date Night, Just Wright, Happy Feet Two, New Year's Eve, Run All Night, Being Charlie, Rex, John Wick: Chapter 2, Smallfoot and Hunter Killer. He also narrated the documentary Bouncing Cats, about one man's efforts to improve the lives of children in Uganda through hip-hop/b-boy culture. He starred as Elam Ferguson on the AMC western television series Hell on Wheels.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Common (rapper), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Acting (85 movies)

Dave Chappelle's Block Party
2005

Terminator Salvation
2009

Street Kings
2008

Fool's Paradise
2023

American Gangster
2007

Between Riverside and Crazy
2023

Smokin' Aces
2006

Wanted
2008
![Kanye West: College Dropout [Video Anthology]](https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w200/iJoIAh8NaChoVN0GRYVHaa4Yxlq.jpg)
Kanye West: College Dropout [Video Anthology]
2005

Date Night
2010

Just Wright
2010

2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
2021

You're Watching Video Music Box
2021

Happy Feet Two
2011

Beef
2003

Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest
2011

The Odd Life of Timothy Green
2012

LUV
2013

Now You See Me
2013

The Legacy of J Dilla
2023

Movie 43
2013

Pawn
2013

Chamber Check: Evolution of a Fight Scene
2017

Run All Night
2015

Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton: This Is Stones Throw Records
2013

Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap
2012

X/Y
2014

Breathe
2024

Selma
2014

5 Sides of a Coin
2004

Diane Warren: Relentless
2025

Killing Me Softly with His Songs
2022

A GRAMMY Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop
2023

Barbershop: The Next Cut
2016

Every Secret Thing
2014

Suicide Squad
2016

Entourage
2015

Unity
2015

The Wiz Live!
2015

Being Charlie
2015

Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives
2015

Hip-Hop and the White House
2024

Love Beats Rhymes
2017

John Wick: Chapter 2
2017

Two Trains Runnin'
2016

Live from Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central
2024

Hunter Killer
2018

New Year's Eve
2011

Megan Leavey
2017

A Happening of Monumental Proportions
2017

Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise
2016

Chasing Trane
2017

Misdirection: The Real Magic
2017

The Informer
2019

Girls Trip
2017

The Words That Built America
2017

Brown Sugar
2002

Feel Rich: Health Is the New Wealth
2017

All About Nina
2018

The Tale
2018

Here and Now
2018

Smallfoot
2018

The Hate U Give
2018

Black America Again
2016

BET Presents Love & Happiness: An Obama Celebration
2016

Ocean's Eight
2018

The Kitchen
2019

Ava
2020

Saint Judy
2019
![Kanye West: College Dropout [Video Anthology]](https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w200/iJoIAh8NaChoVN0GRYVHaa4Yxlq.jpg)
Kanye West: College Dropout [Video Anthology]
2005

Brave New Voices 2010
2010

Notorious B.I.G.: Bigger Than Life
2007

Music
2010

The Price of Protest
2019

A Most Beautiful Thing
2020

Let's Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute to Prince
2020

Letter to the President
2005

Letter to the Free
2016

Alice
2022

Pete Rock: Soul Survivor
1998

One World: Together at Home
2020

Soundz of Spirit
2005

Bilal: Live at Glasshaus
2024

Wick Is Pain
2025

Godfathers and Sons
2003
| Title | Year | Job |
|---|---|---|
| Two Trains Runnin' | 2016 | Executive Producer |
| Glitter Ain't Gold | 2022 | Executive Producer |
| Alice | 2022 | Executive Producer |
| Alice | 2022 | Original Music Composer |
| SLY LIVES! (aka The Burden of Black Genius) | 2025 | Executive Producer |