Soz

Positive spin

Soz builds his rap street cred with good music

BY PAUL FREEMAN

For The Daily News

Hotbeds for rap music? Compton, sure. Detroit, Atlanta and Trenton, definitely. Burlingame? Not so much.

However, Jason “Soz” Sosnick, who was raised in that upscale Peninsula city, is carving out an impressive career as a hip-hop performer.

For a Mills High grad, son of a mutual- funds executive and a private school teacher, street cred was an issue. “That definitely worried me in the beginning,” Soz told The Daily News. “But the challenge made it a lot of fun. Negativity like that helps me gain energy.

“Being a white guy in hip-hop is kind of rare. It’s mostly black and Latino. I felt like the underdog. And I still do. I enjoy that role. My passion and persistence overcomes the skepticism.”

His latest album, “Soz,” will go a long way toward winning new fans. It was produced by Dale “D-Wiz” Everingham (En Vogue, Destiny’s Child, Too Short).

Soz met Everingham through Bay Area rapper E-40.

The new single, “Twerk It” (with E-40 labelmate Turf Talk) is getting a huge response on iTunes. The album is also distributed through Barnes & Noble stores.

“I’m very hands-on with everything, writing, production, engineering, promo work. You have to be involved in every facet.”

Soz has worked with such hip-hop notables as Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent and Joseph Tom (“JT Bigga Figga”).

“It’s pretty much a chain reaction.

You network and try to meet as many people as you can. Being on a song with a major artist can be a surreal experience. But you get so involved in the promotion, you don’t have time to think about that.

“It’s just being who I am. I put my heart into it. I think they see that in my music, my writing.”

Soz has been writing rap numbers since he was 12. His grandfather, Gary Long was in a band with Mel Torme.

“Maybe I got some of the music genes from him.”

But Soz’s big influence wasn’t Torme, but Tupac. “He spoke from the heart. There

SOZ, page

Happenin’ tonight

What: Khanthology Tour with Soz, Andre Nickatina and more

Where: DNA Lounge, 375 11th St., San Francisco

When: 8 p.m. Today

Tickets: $25 Information:

415-626-1409


Photo bywongpix; digital manipulation by The Daily News


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SOZ

From page 30

was no faking it. He was all out there. I loved the guy. Even though, in many ways, he was the total opposite person to me, I related to him.”

Soz writes about his own life experiences.

“It’s poetry. Putting a beat to it sells it. But people have to relate to it. It has to move you. “I was talking about relationships, haters. Still do. It’s weird how the viewpoint changes over time.”

Soz’s perspective has always projected the positive, whether he’s talking about women, relationships or other aspects of life. “A lot of rappers talk about those things in negative terms. There’s no negativity whatsoever in my music. We don’t need haters. We don’t need unnecessary negativity.”

He’s very positive about his career as a rap artist. “I’m confident that I can take this to a major level. The ultimate goal is to get signed to a major label, get that extra boost. I sell decent right now, but I could do even better on a major label. I’m just one lucky break away.

“It would be nice to get a full paycheck from music. I’m able to pay some bills with it, but not everything at this point. To get that notoriety and be able to make music my living would be great.”

For Soz, performing is its own reward.

“It’s like nothing else. It’s such a rush, being on stage. Doing all these shows lately, seeing all these fans out there, has been a blessing.

After a really great show, there’s a feeling of jubilation. It’s incredible.”

He’s part of the big show tonight at San Francisco’s DNA Lounge and he anticipates a packed house.

“In the recession days, it’s tough for everybody. But the fans are still coming out to the shows. They like to be entertained. It’s almost like therapy for them. It’s an escape, that one fantasy moment they can get.”

Soz’s fantasy of becoming a rap star is coming ever closer. “I keep trying to improve. That’s my motivation. I’m very hard on myself.

”I just have to ride it out and people will recognize the music I put out, as long as it’s good.

My music is real. It’s my outlook on life.

I think a lot of people have the same kind of outlook.

“There’ll always be some skepticism out there. But I’ve changed a lot of people’s minds. And that’s really cool.”

To learn more about Soz, visit sozonline.net.

E-mail Paul Freeman at romper333@comcast.net.



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Soz - Westcoast Bangers - Soz - Westcoast Bangers

. - May 2007