Wasalu Muhammad Jaco (born February 17, 1982), better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco, is an American recording artist. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his critically acclaimed debut album, Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor. Prominent hip hop mogul Jay-Z describes him as a "breath of fresh air" in a new hip hop world characterized by mainstream pop and glamor, a sharp contrast with the widespread lyricism-focused rap of the 1990s, and critics have called him a "hip-hop Generation Next vanguard."

Fiasco was born Wasalu Muhammad Jaco on February 17, 1982, in Chicago, Illinois. He was born to a gourmet chef mother and an engineer father. He was raised Muslim in an African American family living on the West side of Chicago. His father was an engineer, a prolific African drummer, karate teacher and owner of karate schools and army surplus stores. He went to high school at Thornton Township High School in Harvey, Illinois. He initially "hated" hip hop music for its use of vulgarity. He began rapping when he was in the eighth grade, and upon hearing Nas' 1996 album, It Was Written, began to pursue hip hop.

Growing up, Fiasco was given the nickname "Lu", the last part of his first name, by his mother. "Lupe" is an extension of this nickname, which he borrowed from a friend from high school. "Fiasco," he says, "came from the Firm album. They had the song, 'Firm Fiasco'. I just liked the way it looked on paper."