Born in the Bronx, NY. Product of Hip-Hop, and youngest of 3 boys, I remember my oldest brother Prince Magic Dee rocking shows when he was 16 in 1980. His crew (The Chilly 3) would come over to the apartment and rehearse and then hit the house parties in the Valley by Gun Hill Road, and community center parties in Co-Op City and do their thing. That was my first exposure.
Then my other older brother then Cool LaRue, then Cool Ski, then Verbal Asaszin, then Kaos, then La La the Lyrical Lyricist, now simply LaRue, rocked the parties and All Star Talent Shows since 1987. Back when Machai Phifer was his competition (LOL). Needless to say I can feel comfortable saying I grew up in the belly of Hip-Hop.
More recently, in 1999 somewhere between Malik Yusef on Common's album, Jessica Care Moore on Nas' album, and whatever subliminal influences I may have had in between (Wordz, etc.), I began writing spoken word. In 2000, Saul Williams sparked an almost obsessive interest in the derivitive Hip-Hop art form of Spoken Word poetry (although some may say that it was the other way around) and in 2002 I hit the scene.
My spoken word experiences grass rooted in the Nuyorican Poets Cafe on Wednesday nights with Nathan P., gave me my first welcome into the scene with an affectionate "Virgin" shriek from the audience. My journey was on, and from there I ventured to every spot I could find. Smokin' Word Mondays with Flo Mentals, where I met Gemineye, Jive Poetic, Flo, George McKibbins and others regulars at the NYC spots. On to Urbana @ the Bowery Poetry Club, where Celena Glenn, Big George McKibbens, Shappy, Taylor Mali, R.A.C., Cristen O'keefe Aptowicz and the major love of Shawn Randall and Dawn Saylor kept me writing and feeling love on the scene.
After hitting up other local spots like Ebony Washington's Kay's Cafe in the Bronx, where RL, Nocturnal, IsRealLight and others would rep, I finally landed and subsequently hung my hat @ Bar 13! Although I only remained in the State of New York for the next 6 months before moving to Richmond, VA, Roger Bonair-Agard, Marty McConnell, Oscar Bermeo, Youlanda Barber, Sabrina Hayeem-Ladani, Seve Maher, Bassey Ikpi, Edward Garcia, Al Be Back, Fish Vargas, Chance, Farbeon, Rob Neil, Diane Wah, Patricia Smith, Guy LeCharles Gonzalez, Tai Freedom Ford, GinaKarla Nicolas, Lynne Procope, and the list goes on and on invited me in, and made me feel like family. Every Monday, I left more than inspired than the last, picked up vital lessons on Slam and my writing, and took what I learned with me to Richmond.
There my desire only grew as I got settled in and met my new poetry family in Lorna Pickney's spot "Versus" @ Tropical Soul, and there, Craig Watson, Bluefirefly, Dyore, Fittz, Jamilla J., Korri, among others, humbled my experience with their truth. Along with meeting the pass-through in the spot like Samantha Raheem-Thornhill, Talaam Acey, Lamar Hill, Queen Sheba, Olu Butterfly, Sekou tha Misfit, and others. But I landed with my eternal family Lyric Ave, where Craig Watson, and Tron took from the ground up, along with myself and the other Lyric Ave Family and after 4 years, we have been staying true to poetry and selling out the now 600 person venue. Meeting other poets in Lyric Ave such as my girlfriend Rachael Bailey, Narrator, Dyore, J-Got, Beloved, T.S., Julia McCauley, Jann Catton, Iman Shabazz, and the pass-throughs like Komplex, 13 of Nazareth, Chris Slaughter, GodChild, Woman Storm, and a plethora of other poets.
To say the least, it has been an experience like none other, and I wouldn't take it back for the world. Now knowing hundreds of poets all over the country that I can call family is a feeling that I can't describe but I know that will only grow and add to everything Hip-Hop. Much love to people I didn't mention in my journey like Benjamin Hughes, Mo Browne, Rachelle Claiborne, Ayo, Taheem Jamaal, Georgia Me, Lemon, Abyss, Rives, Will Da Real One, Big Mike, Kayo, Jamaal St. John, Marxman, Tshaka, Tamara Blue, Amelia Ortiz, Carlos Gomez, Oveous Maximus, and others that make it that much more exciting and makes me feel proud to be a member of the community.
But it's not all poetry that I'm a part of, from Private Corporations like McCann-Erickson, Governmental Agencies like The City of Richmond, and Nonprofit Organizations like The Balm In Gilead, I have honed my accounting foundation to give me a broad background that most accountants don't have. So what else would I do but take it completely out of the box with my tax and bookkeeping business Marlow Finanacial Services. It just doesn't stop.
$650k in Real Estate in 2004 and now along with M & M Real Estate Inc. a family business we are doing Million Dollar deals!.
If that's not all, my girlfriend, the beautiful, the enlightened, Rachael Bailey, is having my baby! Wow. (only people reading to the end of this will now that LOL) so, with that... enough about poetry, accounting, and real estate, I guess this should be a blog entry. I'll guess I'll continue that now!
