THE URBAN LEGEND IS BACK!!!! THE ORIGINAL OPTIMUS PRYME IS BACK IN THE BUILDING!!! ONCE AGAIN, DESTROYING THE WHEELS OF STEEL!!!
BIOGRAPHY OF A MYTH:
OPTIMUS PRYME is the larger-than-life ALTER-EGO of the mild mannered, nationally acclaimed, INFAMOUS NYC Artist & Photographer LUCHO... After a devistating back injury forced him into retirement in 2003, at what seemed to be a PIVOTAL point in his carreer, most thought he would NEVER return. BUT Optimus sightings at various clubs, underground music studios, record pools & Promotional events along the east coast have lead to a BUZZ building up in recent months about his RETURN to the WHEELS OF STEEL! One sighting placed him coming out of a business meeting at ABC Studios...
Born in Queens-NY. DJ Optimus Pryme was the product of a turbulent love affair between a DISCO DJ & a Manhattan Seamstress. He was born into a family of LATIN DJs, MUSICIANS & RECORD DISTRIBUTORS. Coming from such a musical family proved to be a MAJOR influence on OPTIMUS’s path in life. HOUSE PARTIES were a WEEKLY event. At a young age, he would spend endless hours listening to vinyl records from his family’s IMMENSE & ever growing collection of Latin Jazz, Afro-Cuban, African & Dancehall Reggae music. At the age of 6 began a strange habit of needing Funk & Soul music to go to sleep! By age 14 he was given the name OPTIMUS PRYME because of his signature "TRANSFORMER-CUT Battle Scratch" & because his music collection RIVALED most DJs 3 times his age! He found solace in the friendship of a quiet kid who the industry now knows as DJ Spiktacular- ALLIES Crew (producer: Graph, Lil Wayne, Young Jeezy, etc...) Spiktacular shared PRYME’s passion for music & aspirations of one day becoming a successful DJ. He would adopt him as his cousin & thought of him as the younger brother he never had. "Beats & Bitches" were the only thing these two could ever talk about!
By High School, this BACKPACKING, VINYL ABUSING group of friends now included: DJ OPTIMUS PRYME & CAPO DUNN aka DUNNY BLANKNUTZ (Dungeon Beat Prod.), DJ JON DOE, DJ SPICTAKULAR / DJ DEVELOP / DJ INFAMOUS (Doe Boys, Allies, Turntable Crash Dummies), OPTIX (Grand Scale Ent.), DJ J-SMOKE (Allies), DJ CHINO, DJ TONY TREMOR, DJ GLAZE KNUCKLES & DJ CAM-ONE! MOST of which were household names in national DMC Turtable Battle competitions as well as the NEW YORK/NJ Club & the College Party scene
INFLUENCES WERE PLENTY: DJ PREMIER, DIAMOND D, PETE ROCK, LARGE PROFESSOR, THE BEATNUTS, 9TH WONDER, THE ALCHEMIST, THE BEAT MINERS, THE BEAT JUNKIES, THE INVISIBLE SCRATCH PICKLES, THE X-MEN aka THE EXOCUTIONERS, 5TH PLATOON, THE NEPTUNES, DJ RON G, DJ RED ALERT, DJ MARLEY MARL, DJ FUNK MASTER FLEX, DJ FIRST KLASS, DJ NELLY NEL, DJ RIZ, BOBBITO THE BARBER, STRETCH ARMSTRONG, MR. MAYHEM, DJ SPINBAD, DJ RIP-ONE & countless others. "...In most cases many of these guys were our neighbors & close accociates.", states OPTIMUS.
With a laundry list of influences like that, PRACTICE & PERFECTION were a way of life for these young DJs! It was not uncommon to see any combination of these guys (if not ALL) cutting school in the middle of the week to shop for records all over NYC.THE SIGHT of this small ARMY of young DJ’s filing into a record store & fanning out across the store, "...was a bit BREATHTAKING!", quotes one NYC shop attendant at ROCK & SOUL RECORDS/NYC.Then heading back to Jersey City to either SPICTAKULARs house or OPTIMUS PRYMEs house to engage in sometimes 14 HOUR practice sessions! "ALL THE LOCAL TAKE-OUT SPOTS ALREADY KNEW THE ADDRESSES, & WHO WAS CALLING, LOL!"
Although Optimus was a strong part of his crew & blessed with many friends & aquantances in the industry, he has always remained the LONER of the group & chose early on not to participate as an OFFICIAL member of the TURNTABLE CRASH DUMMIES & ALLIES. At the age of 18, with MULTIPLE Art School Scholarships beating at his door, Optimus remained TORN between his TWO loves ART & MUSIC. Choosing INSTEAD to pursue a Career as an ARTIST & PHOTOGRAPHER. He continued BANGING OUT multiple venues in NYC, but faded, as his Art career began to take off...
By 2003 his stature as an NYC Underground Artist was UNQUESTIONABLE & Optimus Pryme began to concentrate once again on reviving his DJ career. But a DEVISTATING & PARYLIZING BACK INJURY brought ALL to a GRINDING HAULT!!! RUMORS of his injury being caused by his ALLEGED involvement with Chinese Gangsters & African Bootleggers out of Brooklyn were fueled by his disapearance. Since then, ONLY his close circle of friends & family have known much about his activity. And most thought he just disappeared along with other hip-hop "has-beens"...
... UNTIL NOW!!!
(THANK YOU to MY MOTHER & ALL the SUPPORTIVE parents & single MOMS who put up with our ENDLESS hours of SCRATCHING, music BLASTING & apartments full of unknown neighborhood teenagers! PARENTS that would wake up at 6am to STILL find the SAME group of kids in their house! I became VERY FAMILIAR with: "Don’t these people have HOMES OR PARENTS!?" And to ALL the NYC/JERSEY & other clubs across the country that let us DJ while we were still TOO YOUNG to LEGALLY be in your establishments!)