Since his auspicious arrival, attached to
112's certified gold single "Only You," Bad
Boy Entertainment's Mase has been an
attention-grabbing rapper --reflecting both
the simplicity of true hip-hop and the grabby
saavy of chart-topping pop. In just a few
short months the mellow-voiced MC has
easily leap-frogged from relative obscurity
to become a poetic powerhouse attached
to more hits than a little bit.
In addition to the 112 joint, Mase has laced
such hits as Sean "Puffy" Combs' double
platinum "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down;"
Notorious B.I.G.'s platinum "Mo Money, Mo
Problems;" Mariah Carey's platinum
"Honey," Puff Daddy's "It's All About The
Benjamins;" and "You Should Be Mine (Don't Wast My Time)" by Brian
McKnight. Mase has also adds his signature flow to Mario Winans'
"Don't Know"; Keith Sweat's "Just A Touch" remix; Busta Rhymes' "The
Body Rock" and Junior MAFIA's "Young Casanova." Each successive
track has succeeded commercially. No verse has passed a listener's ear
unnoticed.
Before dropping a single of his own, Mase was already a familiar
face--having been a featured artist in more than six high-rotation,
chart-topping music videos. And on the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards,
Mase joined the entire Bad Boy family in a stellar live performance of the
night's winning single "I'll Be Missing You" along side rock legend Sting.
"The way I look at it," Mase says, "everything that has happened to me
so far is a blessing from God. I can't take credit for any of it. I've always
just kept my head straight, doing what was right, and it's like God's finally
telling me, 'Yo, I appreciate how you've been livin'."
So far at this point in his career, Mase has been a featured performer on
some of the hottest records of the past 18 months. Now with his
eagerly-awaited full-length debut album, Harlem World, he is offering
listeners a chance to fully experience his life and growth. "With my album
I'm just telling you how I feel," insists the young rap star. "I don't write
rhymes 'cause they sound good. Any song from Mase is gonna be the
truth. Honest."
Harlem World is an infectious, often humorous, intricately-woven
continuation of Bad Boy's way of moving crowds right. As such it
enthusiastically plays to win. Mase wants to follow in the Bad Boy
multi-platinum footprints of Notorious B.I.G. and Puff Daddy, but he also
seeks to forge his own musical path and create his own signature sound.
"Growing up," he says, "I was always the guy who went left when
everybody else went right. I'm my own person and I like things my way."
So even though he recorded most of Harlem World at the Manhattan
Bad Boy-owned Daddy's House Studios, Mase ventured outside of the
company for some of his tracks. "I love how Puffy and [his studio squad]
The Hitmen produce, but I wanted to try working with some new cats too.
My main concern when picking beats was, 'Are they hot!' I've got to love
everything, 'cause if I don't the public won't either and I don't ever want to
be predictable."
Besides hiring The Hitmen Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie, Stevie J, Ron
"Amen-Ra" Lawrence and Carlos "Chucky" Thompson, to name a few,
Mase also commandeered producers Jermaine Dupri, The Neptunes,
Chad Hugo, Pharrell Williams, Grease and Mo Suave-A. The resulting
jams roam through a wide range of soundscapes, including frothy funk,
hot-buttered soul and earth-shaking bump and thump.
Titles include the hard-hitting "24 Hrs. To Live" featuring The Lox, Black
Rob and DMX; the R&B flavored "Love You So," featuring Billy
Lawrence; the Jermaine Dupri produced "Cheat On You" with Jay-Z and
Lil' Cease; Mase's head noddin' message to playa hatas "Wanna Hurt
Mase" and Busta Rhymes' contribution, "Niggas Wanna Act." Puff
Daddy adds his flavor to "Do You Wanna Get $" and also joins Mase
along with Queen B Li'l Kim on "Will They Die For You."
Born 20 years ago in Jacksonville, FL., Mason Betha was one of six
children --three boys and three girls. Jacksonville was his home until age
five, when his family moved to the heart of New York City's Harlem.
As a kid, Mase was a good student who spent much of his spare time
playing basketball or in church. And until the age of 13 he managed to
avoid the lure of dangerous ghetto games. When he began showing the
slightest sign of getting caught up in the world of Harlem street
economics, he got shipped back down South. "My mother saw I was
becoming more negative than positive," Mase recalls. "So she kind of
tried to rescue me."
After returning to New York two years later, older and wiser, Mase's
interest in music began to sprout "from nowhere." As he remembers it, "I
just used to like to play basketball. And as one of the guys going to
games on the team bus, I just tried to rhyme like everybody else. At first
they used to tease me about my voice, saying I talked slow. But, as I saw
it, that's what made me unique."
For encouragement, Mase turned to neighborhood MCs. "They always
used to tell me that if I wanted a rap career, I had to be serious," he says.
The fledgling performer also received inspiration from young manager
Damon Dash and his clique of MCs that included Jay-Z and Big Al
McGruff. "They all influenced me in different ways," Mase remembers.
"For instance, I liked Jay-Z because he was such a slick talker, and
McGruff was cool 'cause he always came across with so much
arrogance."
From spending time in hip-hop hangouts, rapping, dancing and having
fun, Mase made the acquaintance of more established performers,
including Keith Murray, MOP, Redman and Busta Rhymes. While in
Atlanta to hook up with Jermaine Dupri last year, he ran into Sean "Puffy"
Combs. "I rapped for him," remembers Mase, "and when I got back to
New York he put me on the 112 remix. It was all love after that."
Mase has shown he has the stuff to hold ears, and in preparing for his
solo set, he has worked hard to steer clear of formula. "Everytime I rap
I'm tellin' you somethin' that I feel," he insists.
For instance, "Instead of player-hating me-- get to know me. If you want
to get money with me--get money with me. Don't knock me 'cause I'm
gettin' mine," says Mase. "That's basically the vibe of Harlem World. It's
showing where I'm from and mapping out where I'm lookin' to go."
And Mase is quite clear about where he's going. Harlem World gives
you a chance to come along for the ride.
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