Staxx

Staxx

Hip-hop was built around lyrics: the art of storytelling and the power of rhyme. Fierce, aggressive and from the street, hip-hop is often filled with bravado and fronting. It’s rare to find an artist who walks it like he talks it.

Staxx is that artist.

Born into a tumultuous life in Taunton, Mass., and blessed with innate talent, Staxx was on his way to becoming a statistic: broken home, high school dropout, determined to be a rapper but lacking direction and focus. Despite difficult times, a hardened past and a life
of struggle, music always brought him back to center. Now he’s ready to share his experiences with the world.

Staxx wrote his debut album, Writin' My Mind. It was produced, recorded and mixed by respected up and coming industry producer Lü Balz, whose many credits include, but are not limited to, tracks for Juvenile, Rachel Loy, Tyga, Sugar Ray and Speech from Arrested Development, television commercials, and songs placements in major motion pictures and television series.
His partnership with Staxx kicks off with first single “Turn You On,” featuring Brian Angel of Day26 (Bronx Bridge Entertainment, Inc./Fontana), launching a powerful new team and a step forward in hip-hop’s positive resurgence.

“Hip-hop has changed dramatically,” says Staxx. “It has received an increasing amount of criticism over the past decade because of the downward spiral of lyrical content and the upward spiral of an electronic sound that hip-hop experts claim is NOT hip-hop. I can’t deny the fact that music has changed immensely since the emergence of hip-hop as a globally recognized genre of music. But just because the music is evolving doesn’t mean the message has to evolve with it.”

What makes this young man so special is his talent for creating radio-friendly music without compromising his personal message. Staxx writes from the heart. Staxx is the best of both worlds.

Staxx has been recording professionally since his late teens, working diligently to find the right producers, learn his way around a studio, and surround himself with people who could grow with him and support his vision. At 23, he met Lü Balz. “He had everything I was missing,” says Staxx. “I knew he could take me to the next level.” He also met his manager, Tony Spears. With all of the pieces in place, Staxx was ready to conquer the music industry … until one mistake brought his world to a crashing halt.

Serving time, he says, was a wakeup call and a cold lesson in reality: his career was likely over, his record deal was gone, his girlfriend broke up with him and his manager wanted nothing to do with him. Released after doing his term, “I was on the verge of suicide,” he says candidly. “I was heartbroken. I drank a lot and I felt
I had no purpose in my life.” Despondent and convinced that he’d lost everything, Staxx ran away with the carnival — literally. Oddly enough, it was there that he regained his drive for music, motivated by a supervisor who learned of his talent and couldn’t bear to see it
wasted. He began writing again, applying himself and convincing Lü Balz and Tony Spears that he was a new Staxx. “They thought I was nothing but trouble,” he admits, “a kid with no direction in my life. I got them back onboard with my work ethic. I never stopped. They saw
my drive and that I was willing to do anything to make it. I knew I was

accountable for my actions and it was up to me to prove myself to them.”

With a new single, upcoming debut album and new outlook, Staxx is ready to take the music world by storm. Most importantly, he says, the past has made the present stronger, and he’s looking forward to
the future.

“No matter where I go, because of the difficult circumstances I went through, I’ve convinced myself that I can make it through anything,” he says. “No challenge is too difficult or great for me. I recognized that over time. Some people fold and can’t take it. I deflect and deal
with it because the worst thing could happen and hurt me, but it’s not going to stop me like it did before. There’s a quote I heard as a kid that has always stayed with me: ‘Life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you react to it.’ I want to be inspirational and let people know that no matter how difficult the circumstances, it’s up to you to change and make something of yourself. I wrote lyrics about how if I make it or if I fail, it’s mine.

“I’ve been blessed with a lot of great people in my life, friends and family who stood by me, have been hurt by me, who were there for me when all I had to offer was myself. I can’t imagine what they went through, seeing me destroying myself. I hated myself. I killed myself
without killing myself and I don’t live like that today. My glass is half full now and am looking to fill it instead of seeing it half empty and draining it.”