Album Notes

Fresh Marcus has been down with hip-hop music and culture since the mid-1980's. He quickly found that he not only appreciated and enjoyed rap, but had a unique skill for writing and delivering rhymes himself. He first spat lyrics on the junior-high bus during school field trips, on the school intercom during homeroom announcements, and at various talent shows in the city of Denver. His first notable accomplishment as an MC was earning third-place honors in a BAD (Blacks Against Drugs) talent show around 1987, where he impressed the skeptical crowd as the only white competitor.

College days in Atlanta in the early 1990's brought Marcus greater exposure to underground rap, and built his understanding of hip-hop's place in urban and African-American culture. Development of his talent and perspective during this period included continued notoriety and recognition garnered through talent show and festival appearances, regular listening to ATL college and underground radio selections, and the chance to meet various pioneers in hip-hop, including Chuck D of Public Enemy.

"FM" internalized the reality of hip-hop's global potency while living in Scotland in 1994-95. He saw posters for American hip-hop artists thrown up by a street team in the city of Edinburgh, and visited a hip-hop club in Paris where the music spun was hotter and truer to the origins of hip-hop than 90% of what was being played on American commercial radio at the time.

Three years in New York City, and the cumulative total of two years spent on-and-off in Washington, D.C., firmly solidified Fresh Marcus' direction in hip-hop. Everyday exposure to hip-hop as a culture (beyond the mere music) in the streets of its birthplace provided Marcus with indomitable respect for its origins and history (listen to his joint "Encyclopedia of Hip-Hop", for example). Meeting brothers like Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith of EPMD, DJ Evil Dee of Black Moon, The Jungle Brothers, and underground radio legend Bobbito "The Barber" Garcia while living in the City forever ingrained Marcus' already strong devotion as a true-school hip-hop purist. It was commonplace for headz to be surprised and impressed by how deep his knowledge ran, and to befriend Marcus on that basis.

It was not until now, however, that FM was fully able to capitalize on a large-scale opportunity to share his refined skillz as an MC through a finished body of work. He recorded the full-length album "Transformation" with producer Dan Morris in Atlanta (or, as Marcus calls it, the "Lost City of @lantis"). The 2004 release is the product of all Marcus' formative hip-hop experiences, and of the accelerated spiritual growth he's undergone in the past 10 years.

Long-time fans will notice the addition of "MARK 10:27" as the alter-ego of the man known as Fresh Marcus since 1986. That verse in the Bible speaks to a person's ability to do what is otherwise impossible when he or she is in right relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Since 1999, Marcus has sought out and been welcomed by the Holy Hip Hop community. In this realm, he has been most influenced by the chance to fellowship with cats like eDDie Velez ("Da Preachin' Puerto Rican"), DJ Lace, Scribe, Corey Red, and Christopher "Play" Martin (formerly of Kid 'N Play).

"Transformation" reflects Marcus' growth as an MC and a Man of God, a move from rhyming to gain popularity and props to MC'ing for the purpose of glorifying God and providing an alternative to morally bankrupt commercial hip-hop. It's an attempt to be open to God's purposes in drawing others to Himself, sharing the ways in which He has forever changed and bettered Marcus' life, while still bringin' the rugged styles that lend street credibility and reflect unadulterated, raw hip-hop. You will enjoy the result on many levels.