Published: Tuesday - July 1, 2008
Words by Ronnie Gamble & Jay Casteel
Jihad (Photo: BallerStatus.com / Dennis Ogtong)
Hip-hop is a genre that reaches all races and cultures. It's international influence has made it popular among youth around the globe and among all cultures. One culture who has yet spawned a huge star within the U.S. is the Middle East. Sure, there's a few Middle Eastern rappers, but none have hit the mainstream. Maybe it's all the post-9/11 terrorist alerts the media has beaten everyone over the head with, or maybe it's hard for the fans to really except anyone on a major scale who's not black, and on occasion maybe white (ex. Eminem). Despite the odds being stacked against him, there's one rapper, of Pakistani descent and based in sunny Los Angeles, who is determined to prove everyone wrong. His name is Jihad.
Jihad grew up on the outskirts of Los Angeles, in a city called Cerritos. Tagging along with his older brothers during his elementary and junior high years, he was first introduced to the genre from a very young age, and fell in love with it right from the start. While his brothers flirted with their own hip-hop ambitions, mostly freestyling with friends at USC, it was Jihad who picked up the baton and never gave it back.
"[My brothers freestyled] to play around, and I was freestyling too, but I took it a little more seriously," he says. "In elementary, I would write poems, but everything rhymed. So I went on writing poems because, one, I enjoyed it, and two, I felt I was pretty good at it. It kind of came natural."
Once hitting high school, Jihad began to write songs and record at home with his friends, but after graduating, he linked up with a friend who took on DJing, then later started producing, and began hitting the studio, and chasing his dream.
Although as he strikes out to make music professionally, Jihad has different intentions than most rappers. While financial means drives most, it's not Jihad's driving force. He wants to use his voice for something good, something he can use to change peoples' minds, and hopefully -- one day -- the world for the better. Plus, his love for it is worn on his sleeve, and you can hear it when he speaks.
"When I listen to rap music, it's just so natural. It's something inside. It's hard to explain, but there was just this feeling I have inside," Jihad explains. "As I progressed, I started realizing that I could do something with this that could actually be beneficial to people, rather than just the regular stuff, like rap about what I got and all that. I could use it to get my point across and do something to help change the world or whatever. It's inspirational to me."
However, being Middle Eastern in hip-hop isn't that popular. He's gone through his struggles along his journey and ran into countless obstacles, but he maintains, and continues to move forward, no matter what. Jihad's heard it all -- from people telling him he has no chance because of his race, or others being afraid of working him because
of the stigma he faces thanks to his name, which most people's first impression or thoughts are "terrorist." He's quick to clear that stereotype up, however, and urges people to do their homework and even listen to his music before jumping to conclusions.
"It's definitely a struggle 'cause you got people who tell you everyday you can't do it, because you're not black, Hispanic, or whatever. You run into all kind of things," he admits. "It should be about the person and what they represent. You take the struggles and keep going. If you listen to the negative stuff, you won't go nowhere.
"[And my name has] always been an issue. We'll go to meetings and they're like 'We love the music, but the name is one thing that's stopping us from moving forward.' At the end of the day, I'm not coming out on no terrorist stuff. The name, if you really research it, it's not even really on that tip. You can take any word and turn it into something negative, but that doesn't mean that that's what it is. It's cool though, we still get support. It's always a conversation piece though," Jihad continued.
Beyond that, Jihad has moved along nicely over the past few years. He has built a buzz and received accolades from the likes of The Source and MTV just off the power of two mixtapes -- his first being Death Before Dishonor, and his most recent titled 93' Fly, with DJ Warrior, DJ Envy and DJ Arkane, and hosted by Cashis.
"The mixtape stuff definitely created a foundation for me," he says. "The accolades from the mixtapes have been good. Everyone's been real supportive of my music."
Up next, Jihad is planning things in music and film. He is currently in Dubai shooting a video "You Can't Hold Us," a track off his latest mixtape; doing film work; working on setting up concerts in the rising tourist destination of Dubai; and working on his next mixtape.
Scouting Report
With a unique background and lyrical content most anyone can relate to and wrap their heads around, Jihad has strong. Over the years, he's been able to hone his craft, and is determined to put out nothing but quality material. He's only released two mixtapes in a span of a few years, but it's not because he of the lack of music. He records constantly, but says he wants to maintain "quality control," as he calls it. So expect more from him ... more quality that is and not just throwaway mixtape tracks on a monthyly basis.
As he grows and builds upon his buzz, he may continue to run into obstacles along the way, but if he can endure the hardships, he may have a shot at being one of the first Middle Eastern rappers to really break out. While his name gives him troubles now, it's only a matter of listening to his music to see he's not about what you're first impression might be. But the question is, can people look past the stereotypes, and actually give him a chance? If they can, Jihad has a promising future, and with his prospects of bringing more hip-hop to Dubai, he may be on the verge of some big things there as well.
Check for this kid, he's definitely one to watch coming out of L.A.
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