On a map of this hip-hop nation, no cities stand out like those in the Southeast.
There is Atlanta, the undisputed mecca of southern rap. There is Houston, the home of Mike Jones, Paul Wall and Scarface. There is Memphis, where it's hard out there for a pimp. And there are towns like Jackson, Miss., and Bowling Green, Ky., the homes of David Banner and the Nappy Roots.
And then there is Tampa, a city still searching for its voice on the mike. " There's not really an identity with the music that's coming out of Tampa," says Orlando Davis, program director and DJ for 98.7 WLLD-FM. "It gets lumped into the 'Dirty South' thing, under the umbrella of Atlanta or Miami. "
Beat by beat, that's starting to change. Today dozens of local rappers with names like Surreal, Tampa Tony and Rated R want to become the next Shock-G, who lived in Tampa before ascending to greatness with Digital Underground, or Khia, a local bartender who scored a national smash with 2002's raunchy My Neck My Back.
"Tampa's flooded with talent," says Darryl Madison Jr., a.k.a. Johnny Kash, an 18-year-old rapper and host of Hip-Hop 411 TV, a late-night show chronicling the local hip-hop scene on UPN 44. "But Tampa's not getting the respect like Miami. Miami's got six platinum artists right now. Tampa has zero. But all that stuff will change."
Kash and other rappers say if just one hip-hop artist breaks big on a national level, it could change the Tampa scene for years.Here's a look at seven local rappers, all hoping to become Tampa's next big thing.
- Jay Cridlin cridlin@tampabay.com. Profiles by Jay Cridlin, Dalia Wheatt and Rachel Moran
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Acafool
Who: In reality, Brandon's Kervens Joseph is an intelligent, multitalented producer, actor and performer, raised as the only boy among nine kids in Miami's Little Haiti. Onstage, he's Acafool, an outsized, crowd-pleasing persona - part Kanye West, part Lil' Jon.
Shady character: For Acafool, the future's so bright he's gotta wear shades. His hit single Hata Blockas is a reference to his large sunglasses, designed to block out the "haters" of the world. (Sample lyric: "I got my hata blockas on/You can step up out my way, 'cause y'all in my zone.") Cleverly, he's ordered more than 2,000 inscribed pairs to sell and hand out in clubs.
Behind the scenes: By day, Joseph teaches audio production at the International Academy of Design and Technology in Tampa. He says it keeps him grounded. "A lot of students are aware that Kervens is Acafool," says the rapper, who has a psychology degree from the University of South Florida. "I just try to separate the two and make my class as fun as possible."
From stage to screen: Joseph has acted in plays at USF and in local theaters, and still hopes to make it as an actor. "The plan is, get in the door with music, and the door for acting will open as well," he said.
Check him out: Hata Blockas has received solid airplay on local radio stations. His Web site is www.acafool.com.
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The Blackjack Boyz
Who: Six Tampa rappers - Lil Kee (shown clockwise from left), Ca$anova, G-Child, John Doe and Jem 3, along with KT - who write, perform, produce and distribute self-aware hip-hop from a brick house on the corner of Busch Boulevard.
How they did it: The Boyz started Blackjack Records in 2002 when they realized they had enough material for a full length-album. Their third album, We Here Reloaded, drops this month.
Road research: After producing their album We Here Now in April 2004, they headed out as a group to explore the progress made by underground artists in other cities. Today they penetrate the market by paying attention, soliciting feedback from fans whenever they do a show. " Self-distribution is basically you," explains KT, a.k.a. Kavin Thomas, 28. "You are responsible for the circulation of your music. You provide quality music to the masses by grinding."
Check them out: The Blackjack Boyz perform regularly at Club 112, Fuel and Diesel. Download some tracks at www.blackjackrecords.net.
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Miss Sassi
Who: Persephanie Singletary, a 25-year-old East Tampa native with disarmingly sage green eyes and beautiful manners. She also writes her own rhymes and has worked with Mike Jones and Gucci Mane.
Whatta man: Miss Sassi's single Find a Friend lists the traits she'd like in a boyfriend - he should be well-muscled and dapper, intelligent and full of machismo - but then she does something unheard since the days of Salt-n-Pepa. She lists what she wants in a partner, someone who will share a good lunch and walk through the mall holding hands.
Whatta woman: Miss Sassi says she laments the lack of industry support for female artists, then almost instantly regrets the complaint, complimenting C-Rena, another Tampa girl with whom she just finished recording. "My biggest challenge right now is respect," she says, " but that only inspires me to flow harder and stronger.
Check her out: You can download Miss Sassi's In Here Ta Nite, a female answer to Rated R's hit of the same name, at www.tampahiphop.com/vinyl.php.
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Strizzo
Who: Jamal Lyles, 28, of Clearwater.
His sound: Jook music. "It's that Tampa sound," he says. " It's bringin' the party back into music. It's that dance music, feel-good music."
Young MC: While other kids were doing paper routes and baby-sitting to make extra cash, Strizzo was already deejaying at house parties and weddings. By the time he graduated from Clearwater High School in 1995, his party chant Not Too Fast was blowing up the mix-tape circuit. That's when he added rap artist to his resume.
What's with the name: A middle-school band teacher nicknamed him mistro, or Stro for short, a name he still uses behind the turntables - DJ Daddy Stro. He goes by Strizzo on the mike to differentiate his DJ persona from himself as a rapper.
Mr. Low Lowww: Over the years, Strizzo's shared a stage with Montell Jordan, C-Note, *NSYNC and Shaggy. Listen for his biggest single, Low Lowww, in clubs and on radio throughout the Southeast including local stations 95.7 FM The Beat and 98.7 WLLD-FM. This summer he heads out on the 16-stop Welcome to Jook City tour.
Check 'em out: Catch Strizzo as DJ Daddy Stro Thursdays at Fuel in Ybor City, Fridays at Club 112 in Tampa, Saturdays at Club Underground and Sundays at 112 on concert nights. He's also online at www.strizzo.com.
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Pantera
Who: Heriberto Santiago, a Puerto-Rican born emcee who partnered with Julio Larreiux, a.k.a. DJ Boricua, to form reggaeton duo Los Makaneros. The Spring Hill resident has a low-key presence but explodes on stage - hence the name Pantera, which is Spanish for panther.
Reggaeton explained: It's a form of hip-hop with Jamaican roots; that's where it gets the reggae-style drumming. "Only change is we add an extra kick to it."
Crossover success: Ask any DJ in Tampa Bay's Spanish-language market for the hottest name on the local reggaeton scene, and you'll hear Pantera again and again. The bilingual rapper got his start in Tampa as a salsa, merengue and batachata backup singer before crossing over to romantic reggaeton in 2003. Now, on their self-titled CD due out this summer, Los Makaneros aim to infiltrate Spanish and mainstream markets with their Spanglish patchwork of reggaeton and traditional hip-hop. Most weekends you'll find Pantera, 31, in the crowd at Club Fuel.
Look for him: Find Pantera's debut solo effort, Pantera Pa'l Party , in the F.Y.E., Circuit City and Best Buy online stores. Watch for Los Makaneros' video Bateria on Univision and Telemundo in the coming months, and keep your ears peeled for them on Rumba 800. Find more information at www.losmakaneros.com.
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Shadcore
Who: St. Petersburg's Rashad Harrell, a deep-voiced, old-school freestyler with a wife, three kids and two day jobs - as well as a talent for positive lyrics.
Prime time player: Shadcore, who once won a car in a radio rap-off, finished second in VH1's Freestyle59 contest, in which rappers from across the nation submitted freestyle rhymes through the Internet. Rappers like Chuck D praised his flow, and he earned a trip to VH1's Hip Hop Honors concert in New York. Shortly thereafter, VH1 producers asked him to voice a character in an upcoming animated DVD review show for the Web; he'll play a hip-hop hummingbird who raps about movies like Munich and Into the Blue.
Keeping it real: Shadcore turned 30 last fall, and still works as a UPS mail sorter and deliveryman for an auto upholstery distributor. But the response he's received since the VH1 contest made him realize there's still an audience for smart, socially conscious hip-hop. "Hitting that point where I got to be recognized on a national level - and never had to compromise the way that I did it - let me know that I was headed in the right direction," he said.
Check him out: Shadcore will release an album, Potent Poetry, this summer. You can hear tracks at www.myspace.com/shadcore1.
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Rated R
Who: Rodney Johnson, a 35-year-old dynamo bursting with the rawness of the Dirty South and best known for 2003’s rap hit In Here Ta Nite. He’s striking out on his own this year after several attempts to redirect a contract he had with Universal; this fall he’ll release Da Ghetto Psychic 2: Listen To Me Now, Believe Me Later On.
In the beginning: Rated began spinning records at 12, winning talent shows easily. By the time he was in high school, he was working gigs for local proms and the Tampa Housing Authority before taking over evenings at local clubs. He still hits block parties when he can.
Love for the 813: Rated’s love for Tampa runs deep. He passed out copies of Da Ghetto Psychic at this year’s Martin Luther King Day parade in Ybor City. He thinks nothing of going to MacFarlane and Riverside parks in West Tampa to give singles to kids. He shops exclusively at Tampa Fashion, an urban lifestyle clothier at Hillsborough and 22nd avenues. “I put the style on Tampa,” he rumbles, showing a glinting row of gold teeth.
Respect for his roots: Rated will drop a single this summer, Boo-yah, paying tribute to College Hill, the housing project where his grandmother raised him. The song is about using music and attitude to do what he wants, despite stultifying odds. Sample lyrics: “Wanna survive, we can try/Wanna die, m-----f-----?/Let’s die right now.” Rated didn’t entirely escape the rough life; he has an extensive criminal record. “I’m out of the life of crime,” he says now.
Check him out: Download several of Rated’s tracks, including In Here Ta Night, as well as an interview with 98.7 WLLD-FM, from his artist page on www.tampahiphop.com.