Born and raised in Harlem, ESSO was always very much in tune with the duality of his surroundings. Growing up in the 80’s and 90’s, he was extremely aware of the street activities taking place around him, but he also understood the cultural significance of Harlem from a young age. This same understanding would help shape his musical identity years later. As he puts it, “On one side of Harlem you have the Bumpy Johnson’s and the Frank Lucas’ and AZ’s of the world, and on the other side you have the Langston Hughes’ and Count Basie’s and the Harlem Renaissance. I’ve been exposed to both sides, which makes me look at things differently than a lot of people.”
Since releasing ESSOcentric in October of 2006, and the follow-ups ESSObama: The Champagne Campaign, and E3: E-Day, ESSO has quickly become one of the most well known independent artists in New York City. Named “Unsigned Hype” by The Source Magazine in December of 2006, ESSO has also made appearances on BET’s Rap City and MTV’s Sucker Free: Straight from the Streets, SHADE45 (Sirius Satellite Radio), XM Raw 66 (XM Satellite Radio), various College Radio shows throughout New York State and was featured twice in SCRATCH Magazine to critical acclaim. He has also performed across the country in New York, Las Vegas and Washington DC, played at CMJ in 2008 and played South By Southwest for the first time in 2009.
0 comments:
Post a Comment