Chris Classic

Born in Hempstead, NY, Classic began writing poetry influenced by Shel Silverstein at the age of 8. An eighth grade English class assignment influenced him to write his first rap. This would be his first, because in his Jehovah's Witness household, rap music and especially the idea of him rapping was not an option. However his success in his school project that required a rap began a cycle of the tough guys wanting to battle him, which caused large cafeteria crowds and increased his popularity in school. Around the same time his aunt married a rapper who took an interest in him because he could see the hungry artist inside of the skinny, quiet, straight- A student. He purchased a Nas single, "It Aint Hard to Tell" and hid it under his bed. It was found, confiscated and condemned and the situation created quite a big stir in his home and was the catalyst for a rift in the family. His desire for independence and freedom in his love for music caused him to pack his belongings and leave home. He went to his grandmothers house, maintained great grades, started writing songs of his own, drew closer to his new uncle and began the early foundation work for his career. Hempstead High School and college @ SUNY Buffalo were fun for Classic, who was very popular and often performed at Talent shows and Showcases and parties for fraternities and sororities. He left college early to help his uncle pen lyrics for his album Crown Royal where he got the chance to meet and work with artists like Nas, Kid Rock, Stephen Jenkins of Third Eye Blind, Jermaine Dupri, Jagged Edge, and Sugar Ray.. From there (2001) he met Ali Dee of Deetown Entertainment, his current producer and creative partner while writing for Union Turnpike on the Epic label. Ali Dee was able to steer Classics songwriting path, with the likes of LFO and O Town and was able to record songs for the themes of TV shows, and movie soundtracks or placements for many movies including Transformers, Underdog, Fantastic Four (both movies) Night at The Museum, Date Movie, Without A Paddle, Cry Wolf, Harold and Kumar Goes to White Castle, Alvin & The Chipmunks, Sydney White and several others. When Ali made the transition to JSM Music, he brought Chris along. JSM Music is the number one producer of commercial music in America. The magic of Ali, Classic and JSM led to the creation of several ads for huge clients like the NBA, McDonalds, Sprint, Chevrolet and Dodge. There is no question that his songwriting and performance skills are marketable and appealing. The media buy for the Dodge charger campaign was $60 million. The Transformers and Alvin & The Chipmunks movies alone had $200 million behind them. And while it seems that most artists who are fairly successful are trying to get into the Film and TV world that Classic has cornered, he still yearns for the ability to release an album on a major or successful independent record label. He is currently working on his first album even with no recording contract, called The Radio Project, with an expected completion in early 2008