Growing up around the influences of a jazz-piano-playing father and soul-singing mother, Noah M. Stephens IV naturally gravitated toward music, writing his first rhymes at the age of 10. Born in California but raised in Detroit’s Schoolcraft section, Noah drew from diverse sources to develop his uncanny style. “I’m from everywhere, so my twang is just something different,” he says. And after moving to Atlanta in 1994, Noah began to stand out on the local scene with a style that was part East Coast braggadocio, a bit of offhand Southern cool, and mostly charismatic appeal.
Looking to catch his first break in 1998, he competed on the MTV talent-elimination show The Cut. Though impressive, he left the Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes-hosted competition with a disappointing second-place finish. Nevertheless, a record deal with the renowned Suave House Records followed in 1999. Unfortunately, the label lost its distribution deal, which forced Noah onto the rap unemployment line. But a chance encounter with producer Deric “D-Dot” Angelettie in 2003 at Jay-Z’s 40/40 Club lead to a second coming. By early 2005, Angelettie helped broker a deal with Jive to release Noah’s debut, The Music Man. And to hear him tell it, Noah’s something like a phenomenon. “I’ve done records with the great ones — Eminem, Jay-Z, and the Notorious B.I.G. — and I’ll put Noah in the category with them all,” Angelettie says.
And just like the Detroit Pistons, who were able to bounce back from tonight’s crushing Game 5 defeat (winning the Eastern Conference Finals in seven games), Noah is certain that the current appeal for his bouncy, trunk-rattling single, “Dat Boy Chevy,” marks a new beginning. “From losing, I’ve learned how to win,” he says. “Now that I’m on the rebound, I’m just trying to continue what was never finished.”
Do you want VIBE delivered you your home or office? CLICK HERE.
del.icio.us
digg
Furl
Reddit
YahooMyWeb
Comments
No comments have been posted.