In today’s state of the music industry, individuality and uniqueness in the quality of sound is hard to come by. More times than often, you find a selfish approach relating to the journey one takes to get noticed. Joseph Smith AKA Coca-Kazi is here to change that stigmatism.
Growing up in Camden & Little Rock Arkansas, which has been compared to the struggles and hard knocks of Compton, and being born and raised by a politician and head of the DTF, Coca-Kazi always felt he had something to prove. Through his child life he battled death threats, survived a shoot out and the woes of gang banging and drug dealing.
In 1997, Coca-Kazi (then Kamikazi) was with the group KOD (Kings of Destruction) which is when he started his rap career, song writing and conceptualizing of song ideas. They were the first group in Camden to release a fully recorded album titled “Arkageddon†in 2000. His musical path would lead him throughout Arkansas, Dallas, Houston, Shreveport, Baton Rouge and other parts of the South West Region. It wasn’t until late 2006 that Coca-Kazi met Grammy nominated, ASCAP Award Winning Producer Gabriel Wonder Arillo that would ultimately lead him to the music Mecca of the world, Atlanta, GA. “I met Wonder on MySpace and he sent me some of his “throw away beats†he states. I recorded to the tracks and sent my finished work back to him the very next day, he proceeded. Wonder liked my work ethic so much and the relationship just began from there so I decided to move to Atlantaâ€.
After being in Atlanta for 4 months, Wonder decided to sign Coca-Kazi to his production company, Wonderful Music. The chemistry between Coca-Kazi and Wonder can be related to the likes of the magic that is created between Snoop Dogg & Dr. Dre. The immediate goal with Coca-Kazi is to put out a number of mixtapes to introduce his lyrical stamina to music lovers and to gain the fans and recognition needed to make an impact on an industry that only lets a few in at a time. Collaborations is a must with him because he believes in team work and “coming up†together. In 2008 will be the year in which his album “May I Take Your Order†will be released under Wonderful Music. He will be serving the industry a tasty diversified album that will be nearly impossible to not take notice of from beginning to end. With his current lead single “So Sorryâ€, Coca-Kazi has created the next anthem for all the haters in the world to remind them to stay on course with their own and not worry about everyone else, something that many can relate to.
When asked where he sees himself in the next two years, Coca-Kazi states that he just wants to continue to create great music and bring that “feel good†back to music so that the industry and music lovers across the world can be proud to support him.
For booking, drops, collaborations, etc. contact : General @ [email protected] or 404.503.0504
