Charles Hamilton's Greatest Fails: A Retrospective

The upcoming Harlem MC has been going through it lately. Take a look back at his most notable L's.

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Complex Original

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Around this time last year Charles Hamilton was a relatively unknown Harlem MC that became one of the most talked about upcoming hip-hop acts in a matter of weeks. Blogs were showing love and early mixtapes signaled promise. Hell, the first time we saw this guy spit was in a cipher with Kanye West and The Game. Not a bad first impression. But what a difference a year makes.

It's not like we think the Sonic-obsessed rapper's music has gotten wack (it's still pretty consistently dope), but even his diehard fans would be hard-pressed to overlook this guy's bizarre career missteps over the past 12 months. The latest Charles Hamilton controversy surrounds his decision to list the late James Yancey, better known as J. Dilla, as the executive producer of his debut album, This Perfect Life. The explanation? What he describes as a "paranormal relationship" with Dilla. Huh?

We give the kid some credit for keeping his name in the news in an era where fans are more fickle than ever, but unfortunately it's become less about his music, and more about his public failures. Some of these are just normal growing pains of a new artist, but a lot of them could've been avoided if Charles would just take a take deep breath and log off every once in awhile. With that said, here's a full breakdown of Charles Hamilton's greatest fails as rated by our Rick Ross Fail Scale. Sorry Sonic...

THE PUNCH HEARD 'ROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
WHEN: May 2009
• We give Charles Hamilton credit for not going the Chris Brown route and retaliating, but that doesn't exempt him from scrutiny. Think about the last time you got punched in the face by a girl. Anything cool about that? Didn't think so. Unfortunately for Charles, Briana Latrise's right hook became entertainment for millions and spawned even more jokes. The Pink Panther doll attached to his arm significantly increased the fail factor too. Sonic definitely lost his rings with this one. And those corny couples therapy sessions after the fact? Not a good look.

Rick Ross Fail Scale:

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CHARLES HAMILTON IMAGINES WORKING WITH DILLA
WHEN: June 2009
• Earlier this week, Charles Hamilton posted cover art for his debut album, This Perfect Life, on his blog. Aside from the failure that is being signed to a major and having your glorified mixtape "debut" released for free online, Charles caused an uproar by crediting the deceased legend, J. Dilla, as the executive producer of the album. Charles said that proceeds (from a free album?) will go to the J. Dilla Foundation, which apparently doesn't exist. Ma Dukes doesn't even know who the kid is. Now he's saying that he worked with Dilla through a "strictly paranormal relationship." FOH.

Rick Ross Fail Scale:

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RIHANNA OBSESSION GOES NOWHERE
WHEN: 2008 - Present
• We all love Rihanna in one way or another, but when you blog about her regularly and fabricate an imaginary relationship with her ("Cuz word on the street is I only hear boo when Rihanna's referring to me.") while another young rapper is rumored to be getting it in with her, you lose. That loser in this situation would be Charles Hamilton. May the fail be with you.

Rick Ross Fail Scale:

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