Aaron Dontez Yates (born November 8, 1971), better known by his stage name Tech N9ne (pronounced "Tech Nine"), is
anAmerican rapperfrom Kansas City, Missouri. In 1999, Yates and Travis O'Guin founded the record label Strange
Music.Throughout his career, Yates has soldover one million albums and has had his music featured in film, television, and
videogames. In 2009, he won the Left Field Woodie award at themtvU Woodie Awards.
His stage name originated from the TEC-9 semi-automatic handgun, given to him by rapper Black Walt due to his fast
rhymingstyle. Yateslater applied a deeper meaning to the name, claiming that it stands for the complete technique of rhyme,
with 'tech'meaning technique and'nine' representing the number of completion.
