ARTIS HIGHLIGHT 5-19-2010 BAD NEWS BROWN/ CHARLES HAMILTON

Rap newcomer Bad News Brown has stepped forward to declare himself as the first-ever hip-hop harmonica player.

With roots stemming from Haiti to Montreal, Canada, the artist recently described why he chose to take a unique and uncharted lane in hip-hop.

"I started out rapping and doing spoken word," explained Brown in an interview. "I'm no Drake. I'm no Jay-Z. I'm no Lil Wayne. I knew that was the competition. For me to try to step in the ring and try to box with people of that caliber would be futile. It's just not gonna happen. Certain people I knew in my own entourage, I couldn't even beat on that level... I decided to step off the scene and do something in the background." (The Boom Box)

Brown also said he found branding himself with a harmonica would be original.

"I started playing the harmonica for myself for fun, just to calm down and still play some hip-hop beats and quickly realized nobody was doing that," he explained in an interview. "Everybody was starting to identify me with the harmonica. So I ran with it, the first songs that I did were instrumentals..." (Hip Hop Canada)

He has already opened up for rap stars including 50 Cent and Kanye West.

Starting out his music career on the streets of Montreal, Bad News Brown wanted something to make him stand out in the hip-hop world. He chose the harmonica as his weapon - an instrument he found united even the most different people. Today he is well on his way to establishing himself in hip-hop, after opening for such heavy-hitters as Snoop Dogg, Sean Paul, Kanye West and 50 Cent. (Watch MoJo)

Additional reports suggest he has worked with other artists including Common and Lloyd Banks.

He's a Hip-Hop Harmonica Player, doing something very different by fusing different kinds of music together to create a new sound. That's what hip-hop has always been about and know the marriage of Beats, Rhymes & the Harmonica is truly something amazing. He has performed on-stage with legends such as Nas, De La Soul, Cypress Hill, Ice-T, Aerosmith, The Eagles, 50 Cent, Snoop Dogg, Kanye West, NERD, Gym Class Heroes, Miri Ben Ari, Common, Lloyd Banks, Jadakiss, Ice Cube & many more. (Boxden)

CHARLES HAMILTON

Raised in Harlem, New York, Charles Eddie-Lee Hamilton Jr. was exposed to music at an early age. "My mother was an entertainment journalist for the Cleveland Call and Post, so she would take me with her to events when I was just a baby." He is the younger cousin of MC Lyte[citation needed], one of the most acclaimed female rappers in the history of hip-hop.

His mother always made sure he had an instrument around him. She put different kinds of instruments in the basement of their Cleveland home, but he naturally gravitated to the keyboard. "At first, I was just playing the rhythm of the songs I would hear," says Hamilton. "The older I got, the more proficient I got at hearing the notes." For most of his life, he was self taught, picking up the lead and bass guitar in his teenage years, as well as the drums and harmonica. He says listening to other genres of music, being exposed to different cultures and experiencing life helped mold his musical sound.

Most of his music is sample-driven. Though he catches quite a bit of heat for his sampling, he insists it is for the good of music: His use of sampling music is unique which is always looked at on his mixtapes.

“ When I sample, I'm not just doing it to sound good. I'm trying to tell a story. To convey an emotion. If I sampled it, there is a reason I sampled it. I believe that music is based on moments, and that there are some moments that people may have missed back in the day. They may have even missed it a year ago. When I sample, I'm giving the artist their respect, while simultaneously creating something new. ”

Utilizing a studio built in Frederick Douglass Academy (in West Harlem), Charles Hamilton spends countless hours in the studio, perfecting his craft and his signature sound. "The Lab (FDA's studio) means so much to me because when I literally didn't have anywhere else to go in the world, I can just go into my beloved alma mater and purge myself creatively." In this studio is where most (if not all) of Charles Hamilton's music is made. "Don't get me wrong," continues Hamilton. "I can do my thing in other studios. It's just something about home that makes my music breathe."

At his July 19, 2007 show at the Bowery Poetry Club dubbed "Night of the Living Lavalamp", Charles Hamilton was on stage with his DJ (producer/turntablist Halo), alternative/blues band Mad Cow, hip-hop producer Black, and live painter Sarah Kolker. All of which are personal friends of Charles Hamilton. In regards to them, he stated:

“ My man Halo and I met at a cookout me and my man Sciryl threw in the summer of 2007. That's like my twin. We had only known each other for a few weeks before we did the show. That's how much we hit it off on a creative level. I actually met Viktor from Mad Cow in the summer of 2006 when I was in a rap duo. We had been talking about working together for ages, and we finally did it at my show. I grew up with Black. He was the first person I knew when I moved to Harlem. Ironically enough, I taught him how to play the piano. And Sarah, I met her through my poet friend Aja-Monet. We hit it off very well" Aja-Monet performed at "Night of the Living Lavalamp". "I hope to make 'Night of the Living Lavalamp' an ongoing thing at the Bowery. The Bowery is where I got my start when it comes to on stage experience when doing hip-hop. I love them for that. ”

It was at "Night of the Living Lavalamp" that gave them a chance to have a serious conversation. I met him again at an open house that Abiodun (from The Last Poets) has every Sunday. We just talked for hours about everything from music, race relations, to relationships. He exposed me to the most profound spoken word artists in the world. I am thankful to God for introducing me to him, among other things I thank God for."

His debut solo digital album, "The Pink Lavalamp," is his way of illustrating his ideas for the future of music. "It is, without question, a hip-hop album," says Hamilton. "At the same time, I embody different genres of music to express different feelings and emotions that I feel in my everyday life. My music is ALWAYS based on my life. My happiness, my sins, my heartbreak, my anger, my quirkiness, my everything is given in my music. The music I grew up listening to told a story. So I'm taking the music I grew up with, as well as my story, AS WELL as my musicianship, to bring about a new sound. I don't want to sound redundant and talk about myself all the time, but I hope my story can help someone else's life. If my life were to be a movie, it would be the Antoine Fisher story all over again, but with a killer soundtrack and without a military background.

His favorite video game character, Sonic the Hedgehog, is featured prominently in his music and promotional artwork. In December 2008, Charles Hamilton was featured on the cover of XXL, along with Asher Roth, Wale and B.o.B.

Charles Hamilton was dropped from Interscope Records on September 19, 2009.

On November 16, 2009, Charles Hamilton released an Internet trailer announcing his return. His comeback mixtape titled Normalcy was released on December 28th, 2009. Towards the end of February, Charles Hamilton announced that he was releasing his last mixtape in March. On March 25 2010, Charles Hamilton released his mixtape entitled "The Binge Vol.3 - Charles Hamilton's Last Mixtape".

Although he announce that "The Binge Vol.3" would be his last mixtape, Charles Hamilton, along with fellow rapper B.o.B. released a video trailer on March 29, 2010 to promote the song "Paperboy". In the video, B.o.B. hinted that the two may possibly be making a mixtape together. The single "Paperboy" was released on March 30, 2010. Hamilton dedicated his song "Choices ( A Wave to Alex)" in honor of a friend who died after getting in the car with a drunk driver."

Charles Hamilton released his single "Gauchos" on May 5th 2010.