Who's Next To Shine?... Rumorz.

Rumorz is doing his thing and it looks like its starting to pay off. With two albums under his belt already ('The Whisper Campaign' and 'Crocodile Tears' both available on iTunes) his third attempt, 'The Souloist' is an awesome tape which truly displays raw talent. He had earlier problems with the business aspect of the rap game and is finally making up for lost time. Rumorz style is versatile and can be reminiscent of early Eminem (Slim Shady LP not Infinite) like in the song Remember the Name. Here at theGrindStoned we recently were able to get a hold of Rumorz and ask him a few questions:

Samson: First of all thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for theGrindStoned. Why don't we start off by you telling everyone out there who you are and where your from.

Rumorz: Sure, thank you for featuring me. I go by the name of Rumorz and I come originally from Stoughton, MA, which is a suburb of Boston. I now live elsewhere but still on the south shore side of Mass.

S: How long have you been rapping and what kind of progress have you made since 'The Whisper Campaign'?

RZ: I guess I started rapping at the very end of 8^th grade where I used to freestyle with my friend Digits. The Whisper Campaign was completed my freshman year of college, and was basically my first real attempt at making songs and not just rapping for the hell of it. I’m now at the point where I want to make great songs with good concepts and having a fan tell me they were moved by a song I wrote means way more then eating other rappers does. Another big difference is my skills on the business side of things. My advice to anyone starting out is make sure you find balance between being a great networker and a great musician, because you are just running on a treadmill if you are missing one or the other.

S: What were your early rap influences and have they changed at all today?

RZ: First cd was Coolio, though I wouldn’t say he was a big influence on my style haha. I feel like I’ve drawn influences from all over the place over the years starting initially with Big Pun and Bone Thugs N Harmony. For a couple years I was big into Jedi Mind Tricks, and them along with rock music is what probably gave me my more aggressive sound. I’ve always been a fan of Eminem, that dude amazes me to this day. Delivery wise, Tech N9ne is unbelievable to me, and writing wise I look up to Lupe Fiasco and Joe Budden.

S: What kind of negative response have you had due to the fact your a white rapper?

RZ: Well there’s always the one or two clowns that mess it up for every other white rapper. Someone hears a guy who isn’t true to himself and all of a sudden people look at you different when you say you rap if you’re white. It’s tough because I feel like people don’t take me serious until they’ve heard my music, which means I am constantly trying to prove myself. It doesn’t bother me, but it does suck when people are ignorant like that. Back in High School I dressed a little more gangsta so to speak and I ran into a girl making fun of another white kid who dressed similar saying he was a wanna be. When I confronted her and asked her about her thoughts of how I dress, she said “Well you can rap good, so it’s different”. It will never make sense to me…

S: Who would you really like to work with in the game right now, name a rapper and a producer?

RZ: Hmm… Well I’d have to say Lupe when it comes to rappers because I think conceptually we could make some dope shit. As for a producer, one guy I think is amazing is Pharrell and the Neptunes. Even though they might not match my style so much, they have a great understanding of what it is to make a great song. I am happy to work with anyone who is passionate about my music and truly wants to make a great record. I would also love to collab with The Black Keys. They are a blues-rock group who recently did a sick project with Dame Dash.

S: What kind of problems have you had trying to make a name for yourself on the Boston rap scene?

RZ: The Boston scene is a funny thing man. I’ve been in New York for the last four years with school, so these last few months since I’ve graduated are my first real attempts at building a buzz around Boston. There are only 3 or 4 dope rap producers, and only one guy who runs all the promotions for rap shows around here. I’ve been trying to make my own path doing shows at more underground spots and trying to build a solid fan base instead of sucking up to some of these other dudes just to get in the scene. I enjoy performing where people are there for the music, so that is the scene I look to conquer, whether that is Boston, New England, or wherever they’ll hand me a mic and the stage.

S: I really like how your music has progressed. I feel that 'The Souloist' is your best work as of yet what kind of changes have you made to bring your game to the level its at today?

RZ: Thanks that means a lot. My mentality has definitely changed. I can’t stress enough how much I want to make great music, I’ll let the other dudes fight over who is the illest and got the most swag or whatever. I just want to create songs and concepts that people can relate to and vibe to. That change in attitude along with working at my craft has been a big factor. I also started incorporating this type of “almost-singing-but-not-quite” style that I use a lot for hooks now (I have no official name for it yet haha). The Souloist is a preview of where my sound is going and the prequel to Souled Out Show, my next album which should drop sometime in the spring.

S: What are you currently working on?

RZ: Souled Out Show and also a few different projects. Me and fellow Stoughton rapper Grafite are working on a project together and I am also working with a live band called Mean Monsoon. The band is very new, but it’s dope. It’s got that rock-rap vibe to with a little twist. Both those projects will be something to look out for near the end of 2010.

S: Any shoutouts?

RZ: Yeah. Shout to DJ Ill Will, Kp of Datpiff.com, Mix Master Maize of hear-it-first.net and Shake from 2dopeboyz. Their support is what is helping spread the word and get the name out. And shout out to anyone who has ever suggested my shit to someone else… You’ve got good taste. Haha.

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Keep your eye on this dude he's building his own niche in the game and it looks like he's here to stay.

Spread the Word.

Samson