Kudzu Biography
In the deep south, where summers boil with slow, insistent heat, and winters breeze by on autumn winds… there is a vine that grows and grows. Foot by foot, it climbs over trees, fields, telephone poles, and occasionally through the open windows of unsuspecting country homes. Virtually impossible to destroy, kudzu actually grows better when subjected to chemicals that would normally kill a plant of similar size. Inspired by this persistent, unstoppable force, a young rapper identified himself with the “vine that ate the south,†and proved, similarly, that he could take over the Georgia hip-hop scene with his signature sound. Having already conquered everything south of the Mason-Dixon, 2007 is the year Kudzu will truly take root, and reach out to the international urban scene.
Born in Miami to a multi-cultural household, Kudzu moved to Atlanta at the age of five, quickly embracing the relaxed attitudes and tightly-knit communities of the deep south. His mother, half-Caucasian and half Puerto-Rican made sure that Kudzu was exposed to hearty doses of jazz and salsa growing up, and his African-American father provided hundreds of records devoted to rock n roll, R&B, and Motown. The music of his youth – from Billie Holiday to Tito Puente to Bob Dylan – heavily influenced Kudzu’s colorful, multi-faceted approach to hip hop. Described as, “a little bit of dirty south, doused in a shot of tequila and set aflame with fierce, unstoppable hooks,†Kudzu travels the gamut from light-hearted narrator of the daily urban grind, to angry politico, to relaxed innovator of spaced-outs beats and rhymes.
After years of performing at small venues around Atlanta, Kudzu stumbled upon his big break in 2003. He was asked to perform at the NOPI National Supershow – a legendary annual event that showcases specialty cars, beautiful girls, and live musical entertainment to a crowd in excess of 100,000. The reality of performing to a sea of new faces filling the Atlanta Motor Speedway, though overwhelming, was the push Kudzu realized he needed to have his music heard. After wowing the thousands in attendance and selling out of his demo CDs, Kudzu was asked to continue performing with NOPI, and was selected to tour with the mega-event throughout the south. As he quickly became a household name, Kudzu found himself performing alongside the likes of Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz, Bubba Sparxxx, Bone Crusher, Jin of Ruff Ryders, Grand Puba of Brand Nubian, and The D.O.C. of N.W.A and Fila Fresh Crew fame.
Thanks to a new level of visibility, Kudzu has recorded his latest tracks with Mr. Collipark, formerly DJ Smurf, the multi-platinum producer and songwriter behind Ying Yang twins. Collaborating with everyone from Mike Jones to Britney Spears to Lil Jon, Collipark has fine-tuned Kudzu’s prolific collection of hip hop tracks without losing his distinctive edge.
