Lil Scrappy

Destined to soon make his own mark in the world of music, Scrappy has come a long way from the ugliness of southeast Atlanta's underbelly. A soul survivor of Zone 3, Scrappy was born Darryl Richardson in the heart of a concrete jungle where today's rubbish piles of bricks represent torn-down colonies of project buildings once overrun by prostitutes, drug dealers and dope fiends.

"My mom was out there selling dope, pimping hoes and I was out there in the streets with her," Scrappy recalls his upbringing. "A lot of people want to be like me, but they dont want to go through that grind and the pain I went through."

Although emerged in ghetto living, Scrappy refused to let his destitute environment take him under. This enduring dream chaser sought music as a way out. First beginning to write lyrics at the age of nine years old, Scrappy had a natural flow, and by his thirteenth birthday, nobody around could touch him when it came to spitting nouns and verbs.

In a one-man, grassroots campaign to expose his music to the masses, Scrappy would service his neighborhood traps with homemade CDs of his music. Pushing single after single in strip clubs, at area flea markets and on street corners, Scrappy's buzz grew so strong that it eventually caught the attention of indie label BME.

I went to this teen club because I was hearing about all of these kids going to see these local performers who I had never heard of before, recalls BME co-CEO Vince Phillips. As soon as they played the first note of Scrappys song, thousands of kids started doing the Headbussa dance - hitting their fists in their hands. Because of the way he commanded the crowd, I knew this kid was going to be a star.

Without haste, the local powerhouse snatched up the neophyte MC and re-released a studio-remixed version polished version of Scraps major label debut single Headbussa. And in 2003, Scrappy dropped his gold hood-certified debut EP The King of Crunk & BME Recordings Present: Trillville & Lil Scrappy (which was shared along with label mate group trio Trillville) and solidified his own identity with the equally successful follow-up single "No Problem."

"Lil Scrappy is one of the best up and coming threats down south," BME front man Lil Jon testifies. "Scrappy has raw talent."

Now with the aptly titled Bred 2 Die, Born 2 Live slated to drop late summer, the Prince of Crunk returns with a barrage of head-banging hits. Scrappy continues to supply street people with musical mayhem on the first round out of the chamber. On the piercing street single "Gangsta Gangsta," Scrappy retorts to tearing clubs to bits over adrenaline-pumping production and forceful vocals.

Scrappy goes into player mode on the Isaac Hayes III (yes, Isaac Hayes son) produced Money In the Bank featuring G-Units Young Buck. Flossing new big-faced bills, he boasts his stacks of cash with charismatic confidence. Scrap crows: "50 got me/ Lil Jon got me/ I got a big-ass family/ How you gon stop me?"

But Scrappy is more than just your average hood cat spitting hot sets of 16 bars. On the painfully truthful The Police Song, he confronts the long arm of the law from a firsthand perspective. Atop a grinding, mid-tempo groove and dramatic piano chords, he testifies: Mr. Police/ Is you hearing me?/ You can do your j-o-b without touching me.

"Making music is nothing but trapping. If they dont like this, I can go back in the streets and make another hit," Scrappy proclaims. "My music is real. Other rappers can act hard all day. I am just going to give the people what they want."

Whether making major moves within the music industry, getting club crowds amped-up with his rowdy brand of ghetto grit or pouring out his soul atop a melodic groove, there is absolutely no denying Lil Scrappy. Get your weight up; this is only the beginning.