Spirit of the South

"Southern folks are real hospitable.
They're real down to earth..."

A Lot of folks would get insulted if you called 'em country... But not rapper & record producer Cool O, Da Phunkie Wizdom Tooth. "Southern folks are real hospitable. They're real down to earth. So I just kinda embraced the term country. I like that," proclaims the cutting edge hip hop impresario. He's proud of his roots in Jackson, Mississippi and that pride shines bright on all 15 tracks of his bumpin' debut album, "Spirit of the South" (released through O's Mama's Boy Productions - pending major label distribution).

Funny thing is, Cool O's music and image are so fresh that a lot of heads are surprised to learn that he grew out of the same region that spawned rap star Master P. Cool O's signature sound is funky. Real funky! With thick bass lines that sound more like West Coast than Dirty South.

His lyrics are not about bragging and "bling bling." Neither is his look. "I don't wear a lot of jewelry. I don't have gold teeth or diamonds in my mouth. I don't have all these tatoos everywhere and things like that... And my music really doesn't identify with the bounce that's going, say O. "That's the unexpected aspect and why I stand out from the crowd."

But make no mistake, Cool O is down home Southern through and through. He left Mississippi four years ago for Georgia, to study at Clark Atlanta University, engineer sound for the renowned American Urban Radio Networks (AURN) and produce music for local artists.

Cool O's Southern pride comes through loud and clear on the CD's title track, "Spirit of the South," an infectious party song that pays homage to the Southern states. Cool O declares: "When I wrote it, I was like, I wanna unify everybody from the South!" Check out his first single, "Country Folks," and you will know how much love Cool O has for his home state of Mississippi. "The song starts out with me calling one of my homies to tell him I'm coming home to Jackson for the weekend," Cool O explains. "The song is all about being happy to come home, seeing old friends, seeing old girlfriends, giving shout-outs to my cousins and things like that."

"When I Die," inspired by the death of Cool O's cousin ( a preacher who passed away in Feb. 2000) and his suprising, feel-good funeral. "Even though people were sad it was probably the happiest funeral that I've been to. every one there knew that he (my cousin) had lived the life he wanted to live." That service made Cool O think about all the things he has accomplished in his 22 years: Graduating from Clark, taking trips to Africa and Jamaica. "When I was in high school I never thought I would achieve any of that!"

"Shine," uses a sample from Brenda Russell's "Piano In The Dark" to help convey an inspiring word of encouragement. "It's basically about how a lot of times, when peolpe have a dream, others say 'You can't do that!' The song's telling everybody to keep on doing what you are doing Hold on to your dreams. Stick to it no matter what and you can achieve it. That's my message to everybody out there who is struggling."

I have to admit, since receiving O's CD I have been bumpin' it almost non-stop. even though my ass is parked in the frigid northern city of GO - ILL (Chicago to all y'all heathens!) the Southern flava and Dirty South luv have got me hooked! - papabaer

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