John E. Forté

Few understand second chances better than John E. Forté. On November 24, 2008, President George W. Bush granted the petition for commutation submitted by 33-year-old Forté, a classically-trained violinist and Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter and producer from Brooklyn, New York. Famous for his work with the multi-platinum group “The Fugees,” Forté was the quintessential rising star before landing himself in a federal penitentiary. His was one of only eleven commutations granted by President Bush during his eight years in office – a testament to the dedication of those who tirelessly campaigned on his behalf, including iconic singer Carly Simon and noted conservative Senator Orrin Hatch (R) of Utah.

A brilliant young prodigy and dedicated student, Forté was awarded a full scholarship to the prestigious Phillips Exeter Academy and attended New York University until his career took off in the music industry. While working as an A&R executive for Rawkus Entertainment, Forté met Lauryn Hill and began working closely with “The Fugees.” Forté co-wrote and produced two songs on the multi-platinum, Grammy Award winning album, The Score. He went on to record two solo albums, PolySci (Columbia) and I, John (Transparent) which featured industry legends Herbie Hancock, Tricky, Esthero and Carly Simon.

Released from Fort Dix on December 22, 2008, Forté has resumed his career by starting to record in the studio, writing his memoir with Simon and Schuster, and serving as the subject of a feature-length documentary about his life. In July 2009, he released StyleFREE the EP, his first collection of new music in eight years. He is now ready to release his full-length album, Water Light Sound which which features John Legend, Natasha Bedingfield, Talib Kweli, HD Fre, AZ, Colin Munroe, Valerie June and more – and a special production contribution from Dallas Austin. Forté and Austin’s “Your Side” was featured on EA Sports’ World Cup 2010.

Recently, Forté’s work was featured throughout the Sundance Film Festival, where in addition to performing at the ASCAP Music Café, he scored all the opening film trailers, had the end-credit song in the film Night Catches Us (featuring Anthony Mackie, Kerry Washington, and original music by The Roots), and participated in a unique audio and visual collaborative effort with Joe Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer, Inception). Forté also has his music featured in the films Just Wright (starring Queen Latifah and Common) and Stomp the Yard 2. Forté also spent some time reintroducing himself to old fans and new fans as he took to the road touring with K’Naan and Wale.

Forté is also teaching a music course to students aged 12-15 years old with In Arms Reach, a Harlem-based initiative committed to promoting a positive environment for children of incarcerated parents and at-risk youth. Forté is using music as a therapeutic means of addressing anger, stress and pain, and hopes that the catharsis of song composition will help children deal with the stigma of having a family member who is incarcerated. Forté’s historic commutation has also made him an ardent supporter of prison reform. He argues that a sentence need not be unreasonably long to provide just punishment, deter criminal conduct and protect the public from harm.

2 Comments

madcaplaughs April 4, 2011 at 1:33 am24

I like your work and glad to see you back on your music because I think you are a missing gem to hiphop



Valerie Kasaiyian December 26, 2011 at 4:46 pm28

this is what hip hop artists are really like..cultivating a culture of love.