Petey Pablo
Moses Barrett III (born July 22, 1973), better known by his stage name Petey Pablo, is an American rapper. He is best known for his 2003 single "Freek-a-Leek," which peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and received platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Prior, he signed with Jive Records to release his 2001 single "Raise Up", which served as a tribute to his native Greenville and peaked at number 25 on the chart.
Also recorded as Moses Barrett III
Petey Pablo

RapKind TV · YouTube: Petey Pablo speaks on new hip hop artists – View/save archived versions on archive.org · CC BY 3.0
- Name
- Petey Pablo
- Birth Name
- Moses Barrett III
- Born
- 22 July 1973
- Birthplace
- Greenville, North Carolina, U.S.
- Occupation
- * Rapper
- Full name
- Moses Barrett.
- Nationality
- United States.
- Fields
- hip-hop, East Coast hip-hop, Southern hip-hop, crunk, dirty rap and dirty south.
- Education
- Junius H. Rose High School.
- Languages
- English.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
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Documentary summary
Moses Barrett III (born July 22, 1973), better known by his stage name Petey Pablo, is an American rapper. He is best known for his 2003 single "Freek-a-Leek," which peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and received platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Prior, he signed with Jive Records to release his 2001 single "Raise Up", which served as a tribute to his native Greenville and peaked at number 25 on the chart.
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Note VALÉORINE
Petey Pablo (born 1973) is an actor, musician and rapper, among other activities, of American nationality. The actor was born Moses Barrett in Greenville.
The work spans crunk, dirty rap and dirty south, among others. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 27 September 2026
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wikidata · Q775938 · wikipedia · Petey Pablo
In this article
Biography
Biography
The label released his first two albums: Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry (2001) and Still Writing in My Diary: 2nd Entry (2004); the former was nominated for Best Rap Album at 45th Annual Grammy Awards, while the latter peaked at number four on the Billboard 200. His following releases have failed to yield any further commercial response.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Petey Pablo • Birth Name — Moses Barrett III • Born — 22 July 1973 • Birthplace — Greenville, North Carolina, U.S. • Genre — Southern hip-hop • Occupation — * Rapper • songwriter • record producer • actor • Years Active — 1998–present • Label — * Jive • Inner Gorilla • Carolina • Website — peteypablo.com
Biography
Biography
Born in Greenville, North Carolina, Barrett spent five years in prison for a 1993 armed robbery and upon his release moved to New York City, where he met Black Rob and Busta Rhymes, and, according to rumor, was signed to Jive Records after the A&R director overheard him rapping in a club bathroom.
2001–2002: First album
2001–2002: First album
After getting signed to Jive Records, Petey Pablo began working on his debut album Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry. The first single "Raise Up", released in summer 2001, was produced by Timbaland; rotation on MTV and heavy airplay on urban radio allowed it to reach number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100. Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry peaked at number 13 on the Billboard 200 and was certified Gold by the RIAA.
2003–2006: Second album, and hiatus
2003–2006: Second album, and hiatus
In early 2003, Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry received a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album. It lost the award to Eminem's The Eminem Show. Petey Pablo's success continued with the release of his second studio album, Still Writing in My Diary: 2nd Entry which he started working on in 2003. The album was a critical and commercial success, peaking at number 4 on the Billboard 200 and was certified Gold by the RIAA. The lead single off the album, "Freek-a-Leek", produced by Lil Jon became Petey Pablo's biggest hit single of his career by reaching number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 2004, Petey Pablo achieved more mainstream success for his feature on Ciara's hit single "Goodies" which topped the Billboard Hot 100. After the release of his second studio album, Petey Pablo went on a hiatus from music.
2010–present: Return to music and third studio album
2010–present: Return to music and third studio album
After his departure from Jive, Petey Pablo founded his own independent label, Carolina Music Group. He released a track in July 2010 entitled "Go", which was produced by Timbaland. In September 2011, Petey Pablo released a single called "Get Low" on iTunes. On January 17, 2016, after the Carolina Panthers' victory over the Seattle Seahawks in the 2016 NFC Divisional playoffs, Pablo released a new single via SoundCloud and YouTube titled "Carolina Colors". The single was used as a hype song for the 2016 NFC Championship Game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Acting career
Acting career
In 2002, Petey Pablo appeared as himself in the film Drumline where he performs "Club Banger", "You Can Find Me", "Raise Up", and "I Told Y'All". Petey Pablo had a guest appearance in "A Thousand Deaths", a 2005 episode of The Shield. In 2009, Pablo appeared in the film Just Another Day where he played B-Bone. In 2015, Petey Pablo played Clyde in the episode "Without a Country" on the show Empire, in which his character performed "Snitch Bitch" with Lucious Lyon (played by Terrence Howard) in jail.
Legal issues
Legal issues
On September 11, 2010, Barrett was arrested at Raleigh-Durham International Airport after trying to carry a stolen 9mm semi-automatic pistol aboard a US Airways flight bound for Los Angeles. On September 26, 2011, he was sentenced to 35 months in prison and entered incarceration at the Federal Correctional Institution (Beckley) on January 4, 2012. He was held at the Federal Correctional Institution at Fort Dix, with a release date of July 17, 2014. He was released early on March 13, 2014. On February 17, 2012, Barrett released a mixtape called Carolina #1 while imprisoned, under the independent newly founded label "Carolina Music Group".
Identity and overview
Identity and overview
The canonical record carries the following identifying particulars.
Origins and background
Origins and background
The following is established of origins and background. Recorded at birth as Moses Barrett. It is also recorded that petey Pablo was born in 1973 at Greenville.
Discography
• Studio albums • 2001: Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry • 2004: Still Writing in My Diary: 2nd Entry • 2018: Keep on Goin • Mixtapes • 2007: Same Eyez on Me • 2008: Life on Death Row • 2012: Carolina #1 • 2013: Enormous
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.North Carolina Department Of Correction. Moses Barrett.
- 2.Baker, Soren. Next: Petey Pablo: Fast Track. Vibe. 9. 10. 86. October 2001.
- 3.contactmusic.com. Petey Pablo Began Three-Year Prison Sentence In January. 26 February 2012.
- 4.Jeffries, David. Freek-A-Leek – Petey Pablo > Overview. AllMusic. Rovi Corporation.
- 5.Shapiro, Peter (2005) The Rough Guide to Reggae, Rough Guides, ISBN, p.295-6
- 6.Birchmeier, Jason. Petey Pablo Biography. Allmusic. Macrovision Corporation.
- 7.RIAA. Gold & Platinum Searchable Database – December 21, 2012.
- 8.Mason, Deniece. Grammy Nominations Announced | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales. HipHop DX. 2003-01-08.
- 9.Billboard.com. Freek-A-Leek – Petey Pablo Song Information.
- 10.Rapfix.mtv.com. Petey Pablo Pleads Guilty To Gun Charges.
- 11.Rap Radar. New Music: Petey Pablo "Go". 2010-07-22.
- 12.iTunes. iTunes – Music – Get Low – Single by Petey Pablo. March 2025.
- 13.Rafferty, Scott. Carolina Panthers Get a New Anthem, Courtesy of Petey Pablo. Rolling Stone. 2016-01-22.
- 14.WATCH: Petey Pablo drops 'Carolina Colors' video before Panthers game - CBSSports.com.
- 15.IMDb.com. Full cast and crew for Drumline (2002).
- 16."The Shield" A Thousand Deaths (TV Episode 2005). IMDb.com.
- 17.Terrence Howard Got Petey Pablo a Guest Spot on Empire Instead of Paying Him the $200 He Owed Him. IMDb.
- 18.Price, Jay. Rapper arrested on gun charges at RDU – Music. NewsObserver.com.
- 19.WRAL.com. Rapper gets 35 months in prison on gun charge. 2011-09-27.
- 20.Kuperstein, Slava. Petey Pablo Reported To Prison In January For Three-Year Sentence | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales. HipHop DX. 2012-02-26.
- 21.Xxlmag.com. Petey Pablo Was Released From Prison – XXL. 2014-03-13.
- 22.Welker, Thomas. Lost Ones: What Happened to Petey Pablo?. Redefined Hype. April 10, 2014.
- 23.Arnold, Paul W. Petey Pablo Talks J. Cole's Respect, Parting From Suge Knight, And Possibly Facing Time | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales. HipHop DX. 2011-09-22.
- 24.The Versed. Petey Pablo Receives Three Year Sentence For Gun Charge. 2011-09-28.
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