HANNIBAL

It is known that an artist expresses the sorrows and joys of the world through his paintbrush; a musical poet through his pen and melody. Hannibal, born Atiim Samori Patterson, is a 23-year-old intellectual lyricist known for spewing truths formulated in tongue-twisting metaphors. Hannibal was born and raised in Mount Vernon, New York, with music being an active member of his home. He was constantly intrigued by the melodies of soul singers like Marvin Gaye, Al Green and The Jackson Five and soon became devoted to music when he was just ten years old, creating lyrics of his own as if he were a seasoned composer. In 1994, during his fifth grade year, he began to rap as a hobby. Among his inspirations were Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z. But it was after Biggie’s demise and the release of his Life After Death album did Hannibal take writing seriously. Tempted by the malevolent influences of the streets around him, Hannibal found solace in a skill that would do nothing but grow over the years. It started as something to pass the time but soon developed into a lesson in great concentration and self-discipline. During the Summer of 2003, he began recording his first, yet-to-be-released album The Silence is Broken. Fueled by the cruel realities and the social injustices plaguing today’s society, Hannibal hopes that fans of hip-hop who come across his record will do more than lose themselves in the innovated beats. At a time when the importance of lyrical content in rap music has fallen by the wayside, Hannibal brings us back to the day when the words that were said on a track were more important that the music they were sung over. He manages to entertain with a maturity that has long been replaced by references to the superficial and is expected to break that mold by breathing fresh air into the dying lungs of a genre that used to mean something.
1 World Hip Hop Championship
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