aProof

Born in Albuquerque, NM, Joel Quintana caught the hip hop groove at the age of 8 when his dad introduced him to Stephen Wiley and DC Talk. When aPROOF was in the 5th grade he performed for the first time on stage. Rapping his heart out, a spark was ignited in aPROOF that started the fire in his heart he has today. At the same time he was discovering his talent his family life was changing. His parents divorced and his mom remarried to a native Oregonian. When he was 11, Joel and his family moved to Springfield, OR and then a year later further north to Portland. Immersing himself in beats and rhymes helped him adjust.

As he got older, aPROOF unfortunately succumbed to the temptations that presented themselves. Now a young adult, music did not carry the same gratification or comfort as drugs, alcohol, and girls. The habits he began in high school continued as aPROOF enrolled at Oregon State University, wanting to eventually join the Air Force. He decided to move into Varsity House, mens Christian dorm, where he hoped to get his life back on track. But the vices of drugs, depression, alcohol, and women took precedence over getting things right with God. However, aPROOF could not ignore the positive influence of his mentor, an older Varsity House member. As their friendship developed, aPROOF began to feel God drawing him closer. At the end of his sophomore year at OSU, aPROOF rededicated his life to Christ, starting fresh and giving way to Gods will.

Through all of this, aPROOF never lost his passion for hip hop and rap music, though he tried to ignore it as he pursued the goal of entering the Air Force. aPROOF kept running into doors that would not open for him. After running into the final door, aPROOF reevaluated what he really wanted out of life. As he was rethinking his goal, he saw a hip hop concert that changed his heart and led him to where he is today.

In 2003 he was introduced to Solo 8, a recording studio and artist development company based in Salem, OR. Now writing lyrics and rapping under the name aPROOF, Solo 8 helped him release a 5 song demo. aPROOF also began scheduling local shows in Salem, Corvallis, Silverton, Portland and Eugene. Having gained some local acclaim, aPROOF toured with Freedom Productions in 2004. After officially signing with Solo 8 in April of 2005, aPROOF has had the opportunity to open for: Seventh Day Slumber, Falling Up, Shawn MacDonald, Selah PR, Triumphant Denial, Benjiman, Edict, JAS, Soul Plasma from Light Headed. As he toured he continued to write and in September 2005 Solo 8 released aPROOFs debut album, Evidence.

aPROOF continues to tour and share his story and passion for Christ with the audiences who come to hear him. Having struggled with finding the evidence of Christ in his own life, aPROOF wants to give hope to a generation who is looking for something more to believe in, a generation that wants proof of Gods existence.

CHECK OUT aPROOF's website at: aproof.net www.myspace.com/aproofevidence