A rapper's rapper. It s a phrase that has been used to describe
the best of them. This respect that Ryan Montgomery, aka Royce Da
5 9, has earned amongst his peers has been ten years in the
making. Though he began his career at a time when these qualities
were still abundant in the rap game, Royce is the last of a dying
breed in 2009. He is one of the few artists today to put the
quality of his music above everything else, choosing to opt for
perfection over conforming to an overcrowded genre of mediocrity.
Now, in an age where hip-hop s drought has forced the audience to
weed out the nonsense and search for the answer to a dull and
uneventful art form, Royce returns with Street Hop, his
full-length rescue mission to show MCs how it is supposed to be
done. Executive produced by DJ Premier, Street Hop is Royce s
most personal project to date. Though it is chock full of
creative ingenuity and picturesque stories that have wildly
astonishing twists, Royce shows his versatility by mixing in
songs like I Gotta Shake This, which recounts the turmoil and
stress Royce felt as not only an artist, but also a husband and a
her, while being incarcerated for a year. Growing up on the
West Side of Detroit, music was a constant companion for Royce.
His her played guitar and made sure to expose him to Jimi
Hendrix, The Beatles, and Bootsy Collins, while his mother
favored pop stars like Janet Jackson. However, as timing would
have it, it was hip-hop that caught Royce s attention. Memorizing
songs from Run-DMC and LL Cool J, and getting immersed in artists
like D.O.C., Steady B, and N.W.A., Royce became inspired to make
a name for himself around the D as a ferocious battle MC tearing
up open mics at Maurice Malone s famed Hip Hop Shop, Ebony
Showcase, Napoleon s Retreat, and C-Note Lounge. It wasn't long
before his buzz caught the attention of the then up-and-coming
Eminem, whom Royce s manager arranged a meeting with in 1997. The
two clicked and began songs as the duo Bad Meets Evil.
One of these songs, Bad Meets Evil , made it s way onto Eminem s
debut, The Slim Shady LP. Through his relationship with Em, Royce
began his famed ghostwriting career, writing Dr. Dre s heartfelt,
The Message , on 2001. His hard work led to a deal with Columbia
Records, who partnered with EI records to release his debut, Rock
City (2.0), in 2002. A ste in the underground rap scene, the
album spawned the DJ Premier-produced classic, Boom. With a
proven track record as a superb lyricist, Royce has always
delivered on his early promise to make music that his fans, and
even his fellow MC-s have always come to expect.
In 2004, he released his sopre album, Death Is Certain, and
followed it with the independently released, Independent s Day.
Although the project was originally supposed to be a mix-tape,
his distributor insisted it be released as an album. Royce then
quickly added the superior mix-tapes, Bar Exam and Bar Exam 2,
hosted by DJ Premier and DJ Green Lantern, to his catalog. With
Street Hop, Royce will finally cement his hip-hop legacy above
ground, by introducing the masses to the same MC that so many
rappers have grown to respect. Realizing that there is strength
in numbers, Royce joined forces with three other MC's to form the
hip-hop super-group, Slaughterhouse. Joe Budden, Crooked I and
Joell Ortiz all have the skill to impress even the toughest
hip-hop critic. And together, they have decided to set off a
massive hip-hop takeover. With Slaughterhouse s upcoming
appearance on the Rock The Bells tour, a growing list of writing
credits (Royce has already contributed to Diddy's next album),
and popular video blogging that has the internet on lock
(ImNaShitFoolTV), Royce Da 5 9 is poised to make his biggest
splash yet. Rappers, get ready.