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Big Koon and Hollywood
dy s just ridin’. Everybo says. “My dawg wa on Ko t.” Big ,” tha e on s lik same shit I wa y.’ So we ran it d good together, bo was like, ‘Ya’ll soun 2002, ver materialized. In himself boration almost ne lla nd co fou od on Wo Ko d t, an jec The Koon ng on their first pro ns. “You rki pla wo n rap ga his be l up rai when the gro uld indefinitely de wo t und tha aro n it tio n ua tur sit n you trying to caught in a legal s in your life and the ass,” Koon says. “Soon as a ke sta mi ny ma so make u in the to do comes and bites yo fittin’ to get ready and some old shit for the better and ge an ch a g kin ma nigga feels he s along.“ , some bullshit come something positive on he was nor setback and so years, ded up being a mi o en tw es t nc las sta the cum Big er o cir Ov But Koon’s park for rap du his rap partner. d ’t been a walk in the nt (a small town eets recording with is Is The Life hoste sn str Th ha e the lik te s on sta pe e ck xta ba hin mi ns ir ide the ing res th FL tur wi , fea ife in the Gu ts ala ee e” Oc str Lif an d, FL (near od. Hollywood, the pair has flooded n Bigga Rankin. And songs like “Good Koon and Hollywo attention to Big Koon, from Delan tita “Rap or play have helped bring d Gainesville) and : an od do by Florida mixtape ho an the Orl of n t ee ou tw and “So Focused” it be e” Affiliated, ke Lif b ma e Mo Th to pe Is ys is xta .” wa mi o “Th elo w rm ly know tw Lil Boosie, Records. With a ne ain’t as good as Ca g Do ga od & Koon’s o nig Wo Tw Daytona Beach) on d ts, ery an ee ev od str it, od says. “Sh Koon, Hollywo ma, circulating the Dra DJ d an in basketball,” Hollywo nk rson’s levels, hosted by Bigga Ra isn’t on Melo and Ive Dog Re wing. o Tw wood’s b-ball game buzz is steadily gro el lly Ho lab d nt an de on lity en Ko ep ind Since the r n, de usi un co rd od says. “We do rea UGK, ’s streets ha . s co-CEO and Koon real, man,” Hollywo ds el’ it’s en , lab leg sic the the FLA duo hit the mu the r by to ou in lo d to ht “If you listen on was broug dy being compare label’s led artist Wil ea alr the // . ’re gh all ou we er t, thr aft g cords. While Big Ko tha d Do ba of beginning stages Florida isn’t that nnected with Two music. And on top red.” Maybe life in 1 Lee, Hollywood co an artist. During the no o ho int I’m y od it, wo the Sh lly ry G. Ho ist & em Ball mold label decided the ch Da Don, who help o new additions, the combination and the best move for of work with the tw ct onandhollywood rfe pe the a ordings was myspace.com/bigko ywood] was on exhibited during rec to package the two as a duo. “[Holl be lik Abdul both of them would per // Photo by Ma Words by Randy Ro
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Da r a t s Gem nChild Golde
LEXINGTON, sc 90 // OZONE MAG
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o say that South Carolina emcee Gemstar Da Goldenchild has put the state on his back wouldn’t be an exaggeration. He’s released five mixtapes in less than a year and a half — including works with some of the biggest DJs in Hip Hop. From a Gangsta Grillz with DJ Drama to outings with Big Mike, P-Cutta, DJ Jelly and his latest release World Champions with South Carlina’s own DJ Frosty, Gem has flooded the streets with close to 50,000 copies of his work. But he still isn’t satisfied. The Lexington native (located about 15 minutes outside of Columbia) won’t stop until he sees SC on top of the rap game. “We’re on deck right now, because there’s so many different types of style here,” the rapper says, adding that every artist there is determined to be the first to break nationally. “We’re the last Southern state left [to blow] but we ready. When we break through it’s gonna be an impact like when the other states hit hard.” While the rapper is concerned about making sure his home state gets its just due, he says it took a while for listeners there to warm up to his musical style. Garnering comparisons to Cassidy and other East Coast spitters, Gem’s cadence is different from most new millennium Southern emcees. “My rap style is more based on emceeing, the roots of Hip Hop,” he elaborates. “I was influenced by the scene in the 80s and
90s.” Though his flow has East Coast flavor, Gem made sure World Champions was full of material that everyone could ride to, no matter what their preference. “It’s covering everything that’s going on in the world,” he says, mentioning that he’s influenced by many genres of music, not just Hip Hop. Aside from making sure that he had all of his bases covered musically, he was intent on ensuring people from SC know he’s fully committed to representing for them. “It was my idea to release a mixtape with a South Carolina DJ because people were saying I wasn’t linking up with the home team,” he insists. “Frosty’s name is real big out here so I figured I’d go with the best.” So far, his mixtapes have gotten a significant buzz, earning him a few visits from some major labels. But Gem says the numbers weren’t right. “They were giving out single deals,” he says. “That’s really what the labels are doing right now.” Not one to settle, Gem will continue pushing his projects through Street Gallery Entertainment, the label he runs with his brother, Rayco. At the end of the day, he just wants to see his hard work pay off. “It’s just the passion [of rhyming] that’s my motivation,” he says. “It’s my passion to prove to myself that I can do this.” // myspace.com/gemstardagoldenchild Words by Jacinta Howard Photos by Zalontate “Napz” Smith