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".I don't see myself as a positive or negative.I'm a gentleman
if you're a gentleman and I'm definitely a gangsta' if you're
a gangsta'." -Styles P.
1 STYLES
1.1 When Hardcore is an Understatement
Styles
P., government name David Styles, is no ordinary rapper. He
embodies true thug-life to the fullest, and then some. His
blood gauging lyrics will leave you cringing and wounded. A
hardcore runner whose thugged-out persona leaves admirers and
challengers for the chase-and he's so far ahead of the game
that there isn't anyone who's remotely close to catching up.
Simply put: Styles P. keeps it so real, one look and, he'll
make any "Ruff-Neck" go soft. And these aren't attributes he
chose to take on willingly, these traits stem from personal
experiences that have molded him to be one of the most-if not
the most-grimiest and most lethal rapper around today. Now,
unleashing fire on his solo debut project, "A Gangster and a
Gentleman," Mr. Styles P. drives skills so hard not even the
strongest MC can break 'em. Once a Bad Boy Entertainment
devotee-LOX was signed to Sean Combs label during their
"Money, Power, Respect" days-Styles, still a committed member
of the LOX crew, rips chests open and leaves hearts hanging
for questioning. You're either with him or against him, plain
and simple.
1.2 Power, Substance, Style
Born in Corona, Queens, Styles moved to Yonkers NY at the age
of seven. And he considers himself to be a Yonkers man because
he has spent a third of his life there, on Groshan Ave. His
mother, a South African woman from Johannesburg, and his
father, a Brooklyn native, have been instrumental in his
development as a lyricist-whether directly or indirectly. The
streets have taught him what it means to be loyal, to be
aware, to beware and to know that life spares no one. "I
basically grew up in the ghetto like most black boys," says
Styles. "My man "BG" (Black Garf) and I use to go outside for
the hustlin'. Ralph and me started off "bottlin' up" and then
started pumpin'. Ya know, the regular stuff young boys do in
the ghetto." Drugs, guns and stabbed backs become routine in
the streets. Styles had to decipher between who had his back
and the people who tried to knife it. "Those kats are still my
boys and I've got to respect everything I've been through,"
testifies Styles. "Even though I rap I still got the same
niggas from day one."
It wasn't until he began spitting rhymes that Styles knew this
art form would be his salvation. "I was rappin' since I was
nine. I remember always flowin' wherever I went. I met Sheek
in junior-high summer school. I met 'Kiss in 9th grade,"
recalls Styles. "Kiss and Sheek were already a group and I was
a solo-ist from another part of town. But when I met them I
started to roll wit 'em. I would do little hooks, I would be
in the background 'cause they was better in the booth, and I
ain't have too much booth exposure. At the time we named the
group "The Bomb Squad." That's when we got with Bad Boy and I
had got popped with a burner. I was nineteen so I had to go to
county jail. When I came out I met Dee (Ruff Ryders CEO) and
he was already down with Sheek and 'Kiss."
When things didn't turn out as planned with Bad Boy, "The Bomb
Squad," who had changed their name to the "LOX," ran a street
campaign to free themselves from their contract and after it
was finally terminated got signed to Ruff Ryders. Now after
multi-platinum success with the LOX, Styles P. has readied
himself to represent the streets like no one has because
Styles represents "the niggas with the hoodies on-struggling.
Whatever's on my mind I'm gonna speak it, so I ain't never gon'
make it how I'm supposed to make it 'cause I ain't gon' get in
no meetings with nobody and kiss they're ass. I love money and
I love bein' ai'ight but I love my honor and my respect more
and that's what I represent," firmly states Styles. "You see,
I'm a gangsta,' and a gangsta' ain't somebody who runnin'
around killin' people. A gangsta' is a nigga who takes care of
home, his people and lives by the "rules" and lives by the
"code." A gangsta' is a nigga who work 9-5 who just knows the
rules of life and knows how to respect a man and how to be
respected and he knows where to take it when he's
disrespected. You don't have to be on the streets sellin'
crack and dope to be a gangsta.' You can be a poet, a doctor,
a construction worker or whatever. Like if 'you' do something
to me I don't believe in stoppin' until my point is proven.
I'm not gon' stop unless you stop me or unless I'm
incarcerated or bleeding badly or I'm dead."
1.3 A Gangster and a Gentleman
Styles P. is a hardcore poet. His new album, A Gangster and a
Gentleman, is a fine example of a black man's ability to turn
negatives into positives and live to tell the story. When a
man like Styles P. hits the mic the landscape becomes far more
interesting. "I don't really MC. What I say I just say cause
that's how I feel. I always try to make a jewel in it. You
might not catch what I'm sayin' til later," boasts Styles. A
Gangster and a Gentleman is an audio documentary, taking the
listener through every knit and cranny of one man's pains,
joys, aches, rebellions, defeats and conquests. It's an
all-personal report of his attitudes toward people, the
streets, his little brother (who died in an accident), his
family and life. For instance, "Black Magic" (feat. Angie
Stone) is evidence of this. Collaborating with such an artist
shows how much influence Styles' mother had on him-she's an
African born woman who instilled Black Pride into her children
from an early age. The track is subtlety militant yet it rocks
like a street anthem. The first single "Good Times" is yet
another evident track showcasing Styles P' lyrical genius and
story telling. "I get high cause I'm in the hood, the guns is
around, it takes a blunt, just to ease the pain and humble me
down, and I rather roll something up, cause if I'm sobered up
dog, I might just flip, grab my guns and just hold something
up." "Good Times" is an immaculate head bangin' Swizz Beatz
produced arsenal that is sure to be on full rotation on the
streets, radio, and video.
Produced by heavy-hitters such as Swizz Beatz, DJ Clue, The
Alchemist, Rockwilder, Shok, DJ Twinz and PK, A Gangster and a
Gentleman is geared toward "those niggas in the jail cell, the
murderers, the hustlers, deep thinkers and righteous men."
Other tracks such as "Daddy Get That Cash" (feat. Lil' Mo),
Latino (feat. Jadakiss), and "My Brother" (in memory of his
lost sibling) are classics that'll glitter beyond gold. Styles
P. is a child of the ghetto-born and raised. He sold
crack-cocaine in his teenage years yet wrote plays in high
school. He's a straight-up thug with a stern yet receptive
spirit. When he says "Nobody can do it like me," he's telling
the honest truth.
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