jack montel aka scape: artist bio

Streets are watching — and talking. What do they see? What do they say? Scape knows, and his rhymes rightly reflect his flirtations and fascinations with the darker side of the streets. Born Michael Devonish to Barbadian parents who left Barbados for Boston in 1973, Scape’s been rapping since he was thirteen, spitting stories about his experiences growing up and making moves and money in the streets of Mattapan, one of Boston’s grittiest urban enclaves. Years later, he’s still introducing listeners to the streets that molded him into a man and musician with the mind of a hustler.

Inspired by the sounds of KRS-ONE, Biggie, Nas, Special Ed, and Busta Rhymes, and equipped with a talent and passion for hip-hop, he began traveling back and forth between Boston and Philadelphia in 1997, networking with Philly emcees at Ruffhouse (now judgment/RKO) Records. Two years later, he put his music career on pause and put his business savvy to use by opening, owning, and operating Boston recording studio empire Hit Quarters. The move was both smart and strategic: he could work for himself while working on his music. Over the next decade, Scape taught himself to produce and engineer music, and grew Hit Quarters into a successful business venture by opening three additional locations.

As he established himself as an urban entrepreneur, he continued to create connections to amplify his music career. In ’04, he became a member of notorious Queensbridge rap crew Screwball (“Who Shot Rudy?”, “H-O-S-T-Y-L-E”) after being discovered by group member KL, and spent the next four years traveling to NYC to record and perform with his new squad. He appeared on the group’s 2008 release Screwball Classics and was featured on a number of mixtapes, including compilations by DJ Jay Faire, DJ GMF, DJ Denox, DJ Flipcyde, and DJ 24. He also released Scape Presents Who Got the Key to the City?, a compilation of hard-hitting hood anthems from New England emcees, and is preparing for the release of Let’s Make A Deal, his latest mixtape.

With the pieces of both his career and business falling into place, Scape shuttered the studios to focus more fully on his debut album Sex, Money and Lies, slated for a mid-2010 release. He’s also taken a lead role in engineering and producing Screwball’s latest effort, A Whole New Ball Game, and has plans to establish Kmilli Records, an entertainment company named in memory of KL, who passed in March 2008. With his mind on his money, his music, and putting “Murdapan” on the map, Scape is ready to show hip hop fans what the streets are seeing and saying. And whether those streets are seeing something sinister or sublime is all in the eye of the beholder.