Mark DeCristoforo
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Mark DeCristoforo

Band Hip Hop Singer/Songwriter

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"Meet Mark D"



ENTERTAINMENT







MUSIC: The great white hype
by Ben Johnson/Staten Island AWE
Thursday October 16, 2008, 1:00 AM


This week's cover of AWE.
How a hometown football hero & high school math teacher morphed into an undercover rap sensation

Mark D didn't want to tell you -- for six years, in fact, he's been avoiding it. But he's finally ready for people to know he's a pretty damn good rapper, and, as a white math teacher and assistant football coach at Monsignor Farrell High School, he thinks he's sort of an unusual one, too.

"The stigma of hip-hop has always made me fear losing my jobs at Farrell," says Mark DeCristoforo, 30, of West Brighton, who teaches math and is the defensive coordinator for the Lions. "But this is the time where I don't mind promoting myself, because I finally invested in my craft enough to where I'd like to see it turn into something."

To a certain degree, it already has.

DeCristoforo has receipts for more than 16,000 sales of his last underground mixtape. He rubs elbows with local rap stars like RZA and Remedy at View Studios on the North Shore. Last summer, he stepped to the mic at Hollywood's Knitting Factory in front of Death Row Records co-founder Suge Knight.

"In terms of playing shows and packing them out, selling his CD independently, Mark D is definitely the poster boy for Staten Island," says Ken Williams, 29, of St. George, a publicist who has worked with Def Jam Records, Funk Master Flex and DeCristoforo. "But that stuff costs money. What he needs now is major backing."


Photos by Paul Moakley
LIVE AID:
Rapper Mark D, aka Mark DeCristoforo
When: 9 p.m. Oct. 18
Where: Danny Boys, 1815 Victory Blvd., Castleton Corners
How much: $10
Sample the sounds: MySpace.com/somebodydude

Of course, making a bid for the big time is tricky for the rapper, who chose the MySpace name "Somebody Dude" to promote himself online without revealing his true identity.

"I'm really stepping out of my comfort zone," says DeCristoforo. "I mean, even my name, Mark D, doesn't sound like a real rapper's name. But it's gotten big enough so as I can't control it. Kids from Farrell who I never told are downloading my stuff on iTunes."

Last weekend DeCristoforo performed at the University of Delaware, one of the off-Island locations where he has a strong fanbase. This weekend he's celebrating the release of his new CD, "Blast4Me," at Danny Boys in Castleton Corners.

"I named the album 'Blast4Me,' and I put it on a cross, because I want people to jump to conclusions and say, 'Oh no, he's a Catholic school teacher, and he's doing things about the church,'" says the rapper, who was a star defensive back at Farrell before returning to his alma mater in 2002 to teach and coach. "But if you listen to the record, all the messages are positive."

DeCristoforo started out making beats and singing through karaoke machines with neighborhood kids when he was a pre-teen in West Brighton -- the result of his father giving him a keyboard and setting him up with piano lessons.

But while music has been a constant presence in his life, DeCristoforo says he's always put it aside to do other things.

After attending Wagner College with a focus in finance (he says he graduated top of his class), DeCristoforo went to work on Wall Street for Morgan Stanley. He says he managed big accounts and made lots of money, but music always seeped into his social life.

"We would always act like we were in a rap group, my friends and I," he says. "I would even rap on the trading desk, and guys would encourage me, saying I was good and should try and do it for real."

A big change came on 9/11, when DeCristoforo says the terrorist attacks made him re-evaluate his life. "I said to myself, I have two dreams in life: To make a real CD -- whether people laughed at me or not -- and to work with kids. So that's what I decided to do."


Going to work in the daytime at Farrell, DeCristoforo spent his nights making basement tapes and performing at various rap showcases around the city -- some of them pay-to-play affairs. But overall, these performances helped grow DeCristoforo's fanbase and get his name out among the underground.

"I really won over these gangster types at the Sucker Free showcase," says DeCristoforo. "I got up on stage and said to them, 'You know, I don't really fit in here, but I had to write this song about my girlfriend.'"

That song -- "If I Ever Blow Up" -- apes the melody of the hook Nate Dogg sings in the 1994 hit "Regulate," and tells the story of a girlfriend who doesn't support her man's aspirations toward rap stardom. It's currently DeCristoforo's most popular track sold on iTunes, and the song that got him noticed by promoters.

"Anybody can rap," says Mex Guevara, 29, of New Brighton, a manager and promoter who organized the early Sucker Free showcases in Manhattan. Guevara put unknown acts like DeCristoforo on stage with known performers like Brooklyn wordsmith Joell Ortiz, and the result drew the attention of BET and MTV as well as some major rap magazines. "The thing about Mark D that impressed me the most was his attitude about the game. He was persistent. He stayed on me. Sometimes it's not how good you are, its how much drive you have."

Guevara, whose company is called Another Mex Creation, helped DeCristoforo put out his first real mixtape, "The Voice of My Tears." They pressed 6,000 copies and DeCristoforo kept performing in the Northeast, from NYC to Rhode Island and Connecticut to New Jersey. Soon they had to press another 10,000 copies to keep up with demand, and DeCristoforo was asked by Pat Restaino of Sony Records to perform at a showcase in Hollywood where Suge Knight and others were in attendance.

"I may never get famous, but I was out there in a swimming pool with models at the Roosevelt hotel in L.A.," says DeCristoforo. "I don't think that a lot of Staten Island underground cats -- at least none that I know of -- are doing their album release in another state. I don't think they were featured all by themselves at the Knitting Factory while not really trying to promote themselves. I'm not in any way arrogant about it. I never thought I could even rap a whole CD by myself."

The school teacher says that his new album -- featuring collaborations and performances with local rappers like Crucial Tactics and Ruthless Bastadz -- is the one he set out to make. He's still worried about the repercussions -- even though he has the support of his teacher's union -- but it's time to make a move.

"I say to my wife, 'This is it; this is a risk,'" says DeCristoforo. "Something big could come of this, or it could ruin my whole life. I have a feeling we'll talk again when this album gets around, and either I will have lost my job at Farrell over hip-hop or I will have made it very accepted in a different type of world. I'm hoping it's the second one." - Staten Island Advance


"The Great Mark D"

October 29, 2008

The Great Mark D

When I was real young, I used to make beats for all the kids in the neighborhood who wanted to rap.
DJ Mark D, tell me a little about yourself:
I am an underground hip hop artist from New York City. Basically what underground means as a term these days is not signed to a major label. With the oncoming of Myspace and the making of music on Macbooks, everybody is an underground artist and everybody is trying to establish themselves to get signed.

How did you get started in music?
I’m from Staten Island originally. When I was real young, I used to make beats for all the kids in the neighborhood who wanted to rap. Back then everyone wanted to rap and I would be the guy making beats. Now making beats is a very common thing, but back then it was different and no one was really doing that and everyone wanted to be an emcee. Long story short, I made a lot of connections because I made beats for so many other Staten Island rappers that one day I had the opportunity to actually rap and I was very successful.

What was the first piece of music that you ever purchased?

I can remember it was yesterday. It was a Public Enemy CD, which to this day still influences me, and a Young MC CD. Young MC was the guy who sang “Bust a Move.” And that was the first two CDs I ever purchased. It’s something that I don’t forget.

What has it been like as a part of the New York City underground and do you like the club scene?

I love the club scene. The problem with New York City, not that it’s really a problem at all, is that in New York City people feel that they elevate themselves by putting other people down—I’m going to step on someone else’s ladder. In other cities, like Miami, they help elevate. They’re stepping stones for each other. In New York City, they step on each other’s backs. I’ve had so much help for other people that I don’t feel I need that for me But for others coming up, it’s very difficult to elevate themselves without stepping on someone else in the underground community.

What was it like stepping into the studio for the first time to record your CD?

The first time I stepped into a studio wasn’t for my CD, it was for a Hot 97 mix tape. Hot 97 is the New York City hip hop channel. It streams all over the country and across the world. Hot 97 did a mix tape called On the Come Up. They were looking for a white person, which obviously I am (not that that’s my selling point). I got a chance to tryout for the guy making the CD. The first tryout was in the studio, so there was a lot of pressure and I was very nervous. I was the only white guy in the scenario. The rest is kind of history because I did very well and my tryout made the CD. That’s what started the whole thing.

On your first CD, you cooperated with DJ Storm of the Wu Tang Clan. How did that come about and what was the nature of your work?

The first CD was basically a mix tape and to help me make a name for myself, DJ Storm, who was a Staten Island guy and Wu Tang guy, agreed to help me by being the host to the CD. That’s what a lot of mix tape DJs do. It’s a brand association. By being associated with DJ Storm and Wu Tang, he helped me by lending me his name. I now do that for other people.

What influenced your first album and where did you draw inspiration?

I graduated first in my class from Wagner College. I got a masters degree in finance. I had a $400,000 account in Morgan Stanley Dean Witter. I graduated with a 4.0 and had everything handed to me. I worked at a great firm. I’m 30 years old, so that was around 2001 when I came out of college.
September 11th influenced my life because I wanted to work with kids, influence kids, and do music. Because of the things I saw that day, it was no longer about finance and money, it was about reaching out to people. I actually became a teacher, a coach, and I started rapping. I never knew the rapping would become that successful.
On my album, Voice of My Tears, the concept is that you won’t see me crying. The way I’m going to reflect my feelings is to rap about it. My newest album, called Blasphemy, shows a picture of ground zero and a cross. The cross is beams from the World Trade Center. A lot of people say you shouldn’t use it because it’s sacrilegious or disrespectful to what happened, or that it’s too old. My counter is that that is the only reason I rap. What else would my art be about?

Was recording different the second time compared to your first album?

The first album was a mix tape, but it sold enough that I got on iTunes. I was one of the first underground rappers in New York City to get onto iTunes. It was getting downloaded across the country. The second album was like the dream I had six or seven years ago on September 11th. I got to go in and I wasn’t nervous. I wasn’t listening to other people or their influence. It was the thing I stepped out to make.
I won the MTV Sucker Free Underground contest. I won the Rapfanatic Magazine contest. Someone who was at that show saw me and invited me to Hollywood last summer. I went out in the national showcase and I won that. Then I made my CD. So if today was the last day I ever rapped, I would be very content with that.
It wasn’t the goal I set out to do at all. I still coach, I still teach. I missed practice today to get down here. I really feel like I’m living my dream. If a lot of people don’t show up, I would still do it. It’s just something I like to do.

How did you get involved in this CEO event?

Andrew Licata is actually from Staten Island. He and I had a relationship prior. He went to the High School I work at. If you can convince students that you’re a rapper without promoting it to them, and they like it, then that’s the biggest obstacle you can overcome. Also, guys that I worked with started the Jetty Clothing Line and guys from Jetty graduated from Delaware. Through that, I got this contact and they invited me to come down.

What do you think of the CEO event and what they’re trying to do?

I think what they’re trying to do is excellent. I think there should be more events like this. There are fraternity events and there are business organization events. But what about the events for the people that are go-getters and the people who want to be entrepreneurial? I don’t think there are enough of those people. I think moving forward, the way that the economy is, there are going to be more opportunities in being yourself than in being an accountant. I really enjoy it and I would do anything to support it.

What do you think of the UD and have you gotten a chance to go around campus?

My friends have started the Jetty Clothing Line. I’ve been out to Delaware 15 times in the years that they’re here in the 90s and early 00s. I love coming down to Delaware; I think it’s one of the nicest schools. There are kids that’ll be here tonight from the High School that I work out because I always talked up Delaware.

Any other thoughts?

There are not enough of these events about entrepreneurship and being yourself and going getting things. Everything is about fitting into the corporate mold. If you want to be a doctor, you go to this school; if you want to be a lawyer, you go to that school. There is never anything for the people who want something more or want to try a different path. I think events like this do that. - Audio Magazine


Discography

Zudu Records presents "The Blessing" (2002)
Zudu Records presents "Legitimate" (2005)
NYC Hot 97.1 "On the Come Up Mixtape" (2005), major radio stations mixtape of the best unsigned artisit NYC had to offer, made it as the "token" white m.c., "Mockingbird Freestyle" became the largest selling song off of the mixtape.
Mark D "The Voice of My Tears "(2006), on the heels of the mixtape success had the opportunity to make first solo mixtape, available on iTunes, songs propelled to national recognition 17,000 plus physical copies sold and counting.
Shady Records Street Radio (2006), selected a song called "If I ever Blow Up" from the Voice of my Tears to be part of this national mixtape. Song became my most popularly downloaded song.
Blast4Me(2008) first full length album (yet to be released digitally), already has produced me a Magazine Cover, rave reviews, featured act at the University of Delaware and the #1 video in the world on October 31st on www.worldstarhihop.com (and its not even out yet). Trying to expand the brand into festivals. Weve been on local college Radio and Hot 97.
Projected Mixtape Volume 1 (2007) "Paradox of Time", Projected Mixtape Volume 3 (2008) "Blast4ME", featured on these two mixtapes by the Projectivity movement, a national group consisting of united hip hop artists with a positive message, featuring noted artists such as Remedy, NYOIL, and Akrobatik. Blast4Me was noted as a "top 3" in written reviews of the 70 projectivity tracks!

Photos

Bio

This Bio was written by Paul Cantor.
"New York is the city of dreams, but for aspiring rapper from Staten Island, it took one nightmarish moment- the terrorist attacks on 9/11- to fuel his entire career.
Seven years ago, the graduate at the top of his biz school with a double masters degree, Mark D was working on Wall Street, but after seeing death and destruction, he decided his artistry needed to be exposed before it was too late.
So he started taking hip-hop more seriously, and after appearing on a HOT97 On The Come Up mixtape in 2005, he spent the next year in a Staten Island recording studio crafting his debut album, The Voice Of My Tears. The album sold over 15 thousand copies, earning him a gold plaque. Through performances at the Sucker Free Showcases in New York, he was spotted by countless record label reps, and invited to the Left Coast, where he was the featured act at LA’s famed Knitting Factory.
Mark D’s unique brand of rap meshes singing and harmony with brutally honest lyrics. His style is as diverse as his influences ranging from Springsteen and Billy Joel, to Public Enemy and the Fugee's. At his least he is unique and a breath of fresh air in the hip hop game. He’s now preparing to release his 2nd LP, Blast4Me, which he created all while being filmed by an independent documentary team. Acting as his own manager, promoter, publicist, Mark D is one-man music industry wrecking crew. Itunes calls him the “Great White Hype.” The streets, however, say he’s hip-hop’s last hope"
-Paul Cantor XXL Magazine, MTV.com Sucker Free Blog (2008)