P. A. Flex a.k.a. Albert L. Matthews III"Im just a poet who fell in love with Hip-Hop in the 80s". Born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, P. A. Flex has always had a love for music, period. Music was the thing that helped him survive his Saturday morning chores without really stressing over them. It was the same music that helped him escape the world that he sometimes didnt want to be a part of. You could always find him in his room with headphones and sunglasses wishing that his voice was the one coming through the speaker. (Jackson 5, Anita Baker, Stephanie Mills, The Winans, The Whispers, etc.) But there werent to many famous artists that he knew of from Columbus, so music as a career choice didnt seem realistic.
It wasnt until the 3rd grade when P.A. found his gift through a homework assignment. He had to write a poem that had a specific structure and length to it. This came so easy to him that his teacher wasnt the only one surprised at his gift. This empowered him to write down his thoughts more than he ever had before, just to get rid of energy, but when he heard Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince, it was official.
Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince was one of the first Hip-Hop groups that P.A. heard that he was inspired by. Other groups were good, but this duo was very similar to him--they made good music, and had a hell of a good time doing it. From there P.A. would listen to music from Too Short, D.J. Quik, EPMD, N.W.A., Public Enemy, and many more. This was far different from the soulful sound of the 70s, but it was the music of his generation, and he loved it.
P. A. Flex went to Monroe Traditional during his middle school years. This is where he met his first rap crew(C.M.K.) and laid the foundation for the group that he is in now.(The 3rd) C.M.K. were just a group of friends who were in the same class and had the same interests. The biggest similarity was that they all liked to write raps for fun. One person would write a verse and then pass it like a note throughout the crew to finish the song. They would go through the song after class.
Only a few C.M.K. members took their craft seriously once they all started high school. Three of the members (Rashad, Blaksmif, and P. A. Flex) are still working together in The 3rd. (along with Shakes and Co-City) These five M.C.s, who represent their own label-Elevator Music, have done countless shows all throughout Ohio, at universities, expos, and even holiday events. The "SUPA SOUL SOUND" has spread from Alabama to Detroit, Pittsburgh, New York, and even Los Angeles. Their self-titled first album was independently released in 2000. They followed this in 2001 with a compilation entitled Dat Duki, which was also independently released.In November of 2005 P.A. Flexs song Shine was named a grand prize winner in the Hip-Hop category of the John Lennon songwriting competetion.The 3rd is currently working on a follow up album entitled 1979. While working on this project, P.A. started working on his solo debut, The Lions Den. Both albums should be complete in 2008 and will definitely please old and new fans alike.
