Steph Pockets

Music producer and rap MC Steph Pockets just “Can’t Give Up”. Known for writing smart and meaningful lyrics, blending musical genres, and recording and performing with live musicians, this Philadelphia native’s intensity and fundamental honesty are paying off bigtime. Although still based in the City of Brotherly Love, Steph’s following now extends to lands far, far away.Steph began rapping for family and friends at the tender age of nine, and soon focused on learning how to program beats as well as write lyrics. As she developed her skills, she would often look to her neighbor, Will Smith, for inspiration (Smith even accompanied Steph to her fifth grade career day!). Later, while a student at Philadelphia’s Temple University (she graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree cum laude in Mechanical Engineering), Steph began performing at local clubs and at music conferences around the country - SXSW in Austin, Texas; NEMO in Boston, Massachusetts; the PMC in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and the Route 1 Music Conference in Richmond, Virginia. In 2001 the song "Bum Bum Bum", written and produced by Steph Pockets, was included in the soundtrack album for the critically acclaimed film “O”, starring Julia Stiles and Josh Harnett.Steph’s career blossomed after she licensed two albums for release in Japan - “My Crew Deep” in 2004 (Handcuts Records/Media Factory), and “Flowers” in 2005 (Handcuts Records/Universal Music). “Flowers” was ranked #5 on the Tower Records Japan Top 10 Hip-Hop list for albums sold in 2005, and both albums made the weekly charts in multiple categories at Tower Records as well as HMV in Japan. Steph’s popularity was cemented by two major tours of Japan, where she performed at the world famous Blue Note in Osaka and Nagoya, and sold out clubs in Tokyo, Nagasaki and Fukuoka.The success of these two albums also led to numerous producing opportunities for Steph in Japan. She produced two tracks for Universal Music Japan's female R&B recording artist AI, whose most recent album, containing the Steph Pockets track “Party”, sold over 500,000 copies in Japan. Steph also produced tracks for pop artist Aya Ueto (star of the “Azumi” movies and various other films and TV shows), and collaborated with reggae artist Karukaya Makoto, J-pop artist Can'no, and reggae artist Minao.Next up - Steph’s just-completed album, “Can’t Give Up”, will soon be released in Japan by JVC. The title track features Speech from Arrested Development. Steph is also currently at work scoring her first U.S. TV commercials.At home in Philly, Steph and her engineer husband, Michael “Bump” Fountain, work out of their own fully-automated digital recording facility, which contains everything from the latest gear to vintage microphones and keyboards. Steph’s preferred MO is to take a melody, lay down a beat, and build an arrangement, not limiting herself or restricting the music in terms of genre – her music has combined rap with reggae, rock, folk and R&B. As a female in a male-dominated industry, Steph is committed to pushing the envelope of music. Look for this artist/producer to keep on giving never giving up. ............