T
he laws of attraction affect people in different ways. Some are attracted to their most negative fears, while others are more magnetized by their passions. For rappers Young True and Rokstar, who make up the Indianapolis duo Nappyville, it was their undying passion for music that brought them together. “We’d been working together for years, and our songs just came together,” says Young True, regarding the formation of the group whose name doubles as the nickname for their city. “We used the name Nappyville. We just put the city on our back and ran with it.” Rokstar, who raps as well as produces for the group, has also made beats for artists like Bonecrusher and Lil Zane. The Nap-town native, who has also produced music scores for movies, actually began his musical journey in the church. “I first started playing in church back in the day,” he recalls. “Everything escalated to making beats. I’ve been making beats about ten years now. At first I didn’t rap, but being around real lyrical people, it started to rub off.” While Rokstar was honing his lyrical skills, Young True was busy releasing his two solo projects, King of the Midwest and Baddest Yellow Boy. Once the two combined to form the Nappyville collective, Young True and
Rokstar created an uncanny presence in the Midwest, earning them recognition from an array of established artists and DJs. The Duo has recently released two singles, “Take Em Off” and “Supa Clean,” featuring Lil’Boosie, both of which are getting notable spins in the Midwest. “Literally, as soon as we came together we started making hits,” boasts Young True. “‘Supa Clean’ was one of the first songs we did. We had a few songs before that, but ‘Supa Clean’ was the one everybody picked up on, so we put a big push behind it.” Accompanying their hit singles is Supernatural, the album the group claims to have been made with “a hit factory formula.” “The process for making the album didn’t take long either,” says Rokstar. “Not to sound arrogant, but the music comes real easy. As long as you stick to the format you’ll keep cranking out hits.”
Supernatural has gotten the attention of Indianapolis and has also led them to nearly 1,000 spins on the radio. Already working on their second album, Nappyville hopes to continue to stand out from the pack and bring a new image to the Midwest. “We’re bringing a brand new sound to the Midwest. Nothing against everybody that came out of the Midwest, but right now there’s a drought,” says Young True. “Coming from Indianapolis, we’re really trying to solidify our city and put it on the map. That’s our main goal.” Words by Jee’Van Brown Photo by Eliot Miller of Munki Boi Studios
y l t n e i t g PWaaitin
OZONE MAG // 91