On the Rise: Genesis the Greykid
By The Rap Scout
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer
Despite producing Pharrell, Missy Elliott, and Timbaland, Virgina is still a virtually untapped hip hop market. There is a lot of hip hop talent in the state, but few have been able to break through and gain national success. Recently, Rum, a native of Richmond who is signed to DJ Khaled’s We The Best Music Group, began receiving national attention.
Another rising artist is Genesis the Greykid, who has caught the attention of Pharrell and is working closely with the Star Trek honcho. While still a relative unknown, Genesis the Greykid has caught the attention of other big names and has co-signs from a few media outlets. Still, his work is far from done.
A military brat, Genesis the Greykid moved around throughout his childhood, but the bulk of his memories were produced in Virgina Beach. In addition to making big-name connections, Genesis the Greykid performs at showcases in the DMV area, keeping his name out there and having the chance to network with the fans, personally. Hip Hop Vibe recently spoke to Genesis the Greykid and he spoke on his background and his current work.
Read the entire interview below:
You already have a minor name for yourself, how did you feel when you saw your own Wikipedia page? I’m a bum that writes poems from time to time, so any love is much love really. Someone emailed me from Wikpedia asking for a picture, one thing lead to another, I saw myself on there. One point for the underground.
What was the inspiration behind your “Note to Pharrell” track? I’m from Virginia Beach, so naturally I was shooting for the home team when I came up with the “Wanna be a Writer” track. DJ B, at the station in the seven cities named it “Note to Pharrell” and the name just stuck. I came up with that song as just something to put out there to stay relevant with my clients at the time and with Pharrell, although we never met, the security guard for The Clipse informed us that he heard Grey Skies 1 at a listening party that was scheduled for The Clipse and wanted to link up.
To this day, I just took his word for it and made another track that came to be known as “Note to Pharrell,” whether he heard it or not, I may never know. No worries though, the main thing is just putting out music you love, so whether he heard it or you heard it, I felt like my goal was accomplished if you understand it.
Do you feel moving around frequently helped you as an artist? Absolutely, if it wasn’t for Maxwell and Kristoff introducing me to the NYC scene, I wouldn’t be anywhere near as far as I am now. I owe them to this day for that, they believed in my music so much, it poured into other relationships which helped me build the team I have now.
Now that you are an artist, will you still write for others? I’m writing as we speak, I’m an artist, yes, but my passion lays behind the lights and camera and near the sounds echoing out of some speaker with a paint brush in my hand; cell phone off, painting songs, that is the Greykid in me.
Can you explain the experience of meeting Damon Dash? It was a humbling, very cool, but very short. Coodie and Chike were telling Dame about me, at the time, but that was back in like 2010. My manager, at the time (Kristoff) set all of that up. He practically grew up knowing Dame. But I’ll tell you this, Dame commands much respect and seems to be a very intelligent individual in terms of business.
Will you be performing at any showcases in 2012? Yeah, but it has to be the right vibe for my music. I’m more of a poet, than a rapper. I’ll keep you posted.
Do you plan to continue your Grey Skies mixtape series in 2012? Absolutely, Grey Skies 3 will drop this year for sure.
What does the future hold for Genesis the Greykid? More projects with my family, Creative Control TV (Coodie & Chike). My main goal, though, is to spend an entire day on the bank of a river, laughing with friends and not feeling like I’ve wasted anytime.