About Me
Well, really what more can I say? Music is one of the most fruitful expressions in my life. It has followed me for years and has never really lost its spark to me. Like most, the passion for music originates from listening to a number of talented people from all over the world, implanting that "groove" into my everyday life. Also, having pretty chill parents helped me out a lot. My Pops introduced me to the Blues and my Moms introduced me to Prince. With this wide range, I was able to fill in all the in-betweens, with people like Jimi Hendrix, Run DMC, Marvin Gaye and Led Zeppelin. Growing up, I was surrounded by Much Music but ironically not musicians. I give it credit in the sole fact that it gave me a reason to sing or dance but didn’t quite meet my standard of musical talent.I was still trying to scratch Michael Jackson records on my pops’ band-driven turntable when I borrowed a friend’s copy of DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, "He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper". I think that is what pushed me to start writing little rhymes......I don't care....This album is SICK!!!! and it saved me from all the weird retro shit!!!! I was completely amazed by they way they came together on tracks, plus all the scratching was pretty new to me but I found my new passion. I would just dabble around with word play on pieces of paper, and reiterate it back to myself. Then I learned to channel it to the things going on in my life or those that surrounded me. By the time I was a young teen, the pad and pen was put down, and my natural intellect carried the flow of freestyling. Man, I loved those years. It didn't matter if we were downtown at the bus terminal or in the boys bathroom at high school, there was always a number of dudes rhyming in a circle!! Shit, it was probably the same cats who were in the dance circles a couple of years prior. Basically, rhymes would jump off anywhere in KW, clubs, schools, buses, parties, skateboard parks etc. It became a very social part of my life and brought me to new levels.I began to link with a sound crew called "Beatbandit". We would hold local jams, host parties, make mixed CDs, and do radio shows (Illmatic Radio). This part of my life really introduced me to the turntables. During this time, I was on a little hiatus from rhyming in the booth due to past experiences gone sour on the KW Compilation, Beat Down Invasion. Mixing and scratching filled that void perfectly, so no harm done;). It was also around this time that I moved to Victoria, Texas. I met up with many kids out there who inspired me. My boy Nate (DJ Supastar) and I would make madd mixed joints and hold parties wherever possible. LOL! Down there was the first time I ever got booed off stage!!!! It was at a Lil'KeKe concert, the MC held a little freestyle competition for like $300!!! Yeah that's right, 3 bills son! I went up there and rapped my ass off, but with everyone knowing that I was from Canada really didn't help me out that much, especially in the middle of the South's Hip Hop Revolution. The dude who actually won the comp. just repeated "Southside, the south, southside" It was still a good experience, random heads showed me love in the crowd, and some of Keke's boys were pretty stoked, plus I had a blast!In 2004, I put together a project entitled, "The Free Agents EP", with fellow Emcee/Producer, Adamant. This album was definitely ill, during it's time. It was a blend of two dope artists, with different but complimenting styles that eventually ended in personal differences later on in the year. By this time, I was putting everything together from rhyming to DJing, to producing, to graphic design, to marketing and finally performing. In spring of 2005, I was invited to Host Kitchener Waterloo’s DMC's. It was a great honour, to be recognized, as a model figure in the local music community. Later on in the year, I also released my first vinyl single, "C'mon Baby", which would be featured on my upcoming album, as well as the song entitled "The Light", featuring Frac & Pro.The last year and a half of my life has been dedicated to releasing my first solo album, "Better Late Then Never". This album is my pride and joy. I definitely did a lot of growing putting this project together. Basically, it's a collage of inspirational events that took place along my journey. With a title like "Better Late Then Never" where could I go wrong? Plus, my man Pro got beats for days!!! We've got a lot of local support from (Kitchener Waterloo) Boardzone, Encore Records, Orange Monkey, Cadence, X-Disc, to Waterloo Records(Austin, TX), Cheepo's (Austin, TX), (KW)88.3fm CJIQ, 100.3fm CKMS and the list keeps on growing. The album release party was ill, it was the first jam, in a while, that I put on myself and everything ran pretty smooth. I gotta give a shout out to everyone who was there at the Lancaster on Dec 1st 2006!!! Much love! And for those who didn't make it, there will always be next time!! Well the next level of all this is soon to come. In the meantime I'm steady building on the next project, so keep your eyes peeled for the next release or show. Hope you enjoy the music!Peace.
Shua J
