He grew up in Málaga until his family moved to Düsseldorf, Germany when Farid was eight years old. Inspired by his friend Tekken, Bang started to rap at the age of 19 and met fellow rapper Eko Fresh, who signed him to his label German Dream Entertainment. Using the pseudonym Farin Urlaub, Bang appeared on three tracks of Eko Fresh's mixtape Fick Noch Immer Deine Story in 2005. He was supposed to release his first album, Ghetto Kodex, in 2006, but it was never recorded -- instead, Bang issued his proper debut album Asphalt Massaka in 2008, followed in 2009 by a collaboration with Kollegah titled Jung Brutal Gutaussehend (which reached number 30 on the German album charts). With each successive album, Bang's popularity grew: his second solo album, 2010's Asphalt Massaka 2, reached number 56, while his 2011 release Banger Leben Kürzer managed to reach number 11 (the record was "indexed" by Germany's BPjM in early 2012, meaning it could no longer be legally sold to minors due to its violent and misogynistic lyrics). Bang's fourth album, 2012's Der Letzte Tag Deines Lebens, fared even better, entering the charts at number three. ~ Christian Genzel