Watt's native Glasses Malone had the streets on lock long before he uttered one word on the mic. The product of a broken home, the young hustler shuffled back and forth between living with his mother in Compton and his father in Watts, and inevitably joined the squadron of street soldiers that choose to start gang-banging.
By age 16 G-Malone was a full-fledged crip. With his brother and mother doing time behind bars, Glasses had both "street" in his family and "family in the streets" and it wasn't long before he was pushing "work" in the streets to get by. Eventually struck with the desire to break the family legacy of serving drugs and prison terms, G. Malone made a conscious effort to change his life, and that change would come through music.
The world first caught a taste of G. Malone's gritty flow with 2003's "The Crack Mixtape", but 2005's underground classic "White Lightning" really made the streets take notice of his lyrical fervour. Fuelled by the single "200", "White Lightning", went on to sell over 30,000 copies, and caught the attention of The Game, Dr. Dre, and Jay-Z. The hood was hooked and his notable appearances on The Game's "Devil's Advocate", DJ Warrior / DJ Strong's "West Coast Mix Tape Kings Vol. 1" and Clinton Sparks' "Coast Control Vol. 1" caused his buzz to spread like an epidemic from coast to coast.
Glasses' perseverance and special brand of street philosophy made him no stranger to the hustle and it was nothing for him to parle his work on the streets into the business of his music and he began pushing his own product like weight. With powerhouse record companies like Def Jam, Interscope, Atlantic and Black Wall Street eager to snatch up the young talent, a bidding war ensued.
When the smoke cleared Sony Urban Music emerged as the victor, signing Glasses to the tune of an astonishing $1.7 million dollars. Determined to prove that he was worth every single penny and more he began working on his debut album "Beach Cruiser", slated for an early 2007 release.
The celebration was short-lived, however, when Sony Urban Music announced it would be dismantling, making the gifted rapper an eligible and free agent. It didn't take long for him to find a new recording home, rebounding nicely by inking a deal with Lil' Wayne, Baby and Mack 10 through Mack 10's Hoobangin / Cash Money label.
If you ask Glasses he'll tell you, he's not a gansta rapper, he's a gangsta that can rap and with his recent affiliation with Hoobangin' / Cash Money he's about to prove that he can make hit records no less.
His current single, the aptly-titled "Certified" with Akon, is a nice indicator of what's to come. With another mixtape on its way through his Blu Division Music imprint, "Beach Cruiser" will hit the streets late 2007 and it's clear that G. Malone is hell-bent on playing a crucial role in the resurgence of West Coast hip hop.
And trust me you won't need a pair of glasses to see that. Now that's Watts Up.
