Anyone that knows me, knows I’m all about knowledge. I say that shit all the time, “It’s just a lack of knowledge”. I don’t even care what it is… I just wanna know. See, I come from humble beginnings, so I’ve had to teach myself a lot of shit. But while that definitely plays a part, I’m a firm believer that everyone can learn if they truly want to (December 15, 2015).
Personal problems can really stunt a person’s growth, though. Factors like race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexuality, geographic location, mental and physical health, social and economic status – all play a role in shaping one’s journey. So what does one do from the struggle, make excuses? No – no excuses.
I’ve been to jail more times than I can count. Never for longer than a few weeks, but I was getting locked up for bullshit since I was 16-years-old. That, the lack of money, the drug addiction and the chronic depression really made this a tougher road than I was expecting… but look at how well spoken I am. They gave me a 22 on the ACT reading portion. That’s far below the average for incoming UW-Madison freshman. Now, I’m one of the most influential Hip Hop journalists in America, and one of the most popular Hip Hop artists out of Wisconsin.
Without me telling you this, you probably thought I was from a completely different life. But when one comes from extraordinary circumstances, one must do extraordinary things. I’ll admit I had to lie about my criminal background to get jobs, I had to cover up my accent to appear more mainstream, and I had to take constant degradation from my community in order to get by.
I graduated from UW-Madison in the Spring of 2013 and got “Off Papers” at the top of 2014. I didn’t have my shit together until a few months ago, though. Then HipHopDX gave me the opportunity, so I flew out on 2 weeks notice and killed it. God bless them for that. Now it’s just a matter of time. Do you want what I have? Do you want what I will have? Ya better handle that Double Major, or you’ll never get there. Make them power moves and stay true to yourself, and someday you’ll get a shot. And when you get that chance, you better smoke it or they’ll move on faster than you can say, “Hey bro, I got a question for you”.
The first EP from the album – called Chapter 2: The Hustle – is dropping on January 15th. Listen to the full story, and contribute to the BASEMENT MADE CAMPAIGN!
“I’m building Basement Made til it’s a house name Jack
I’ll never sell my frame”