Mo City Don

Z-Ro (born Joseph Wayne McVey on June 6, 1976) is an American rapper from Houston, Texas, known for his "up-from-nothing" rise to fame, flexibility in rhyme and extensive collaboration with other rap artists and musicians.



Early life:



Z-Ro was born in Missouri City, Texas and was raised in the "Ridgemont 4" neighborhood on the SouthWest side of Houston -- an area notorious for being rife with both gang violence and drug dealing. Z-Ro became involved in such activities at an early age after his mother's death due to complications from cancer.



Early career:



It was through hip-hop that Z-Ro found a channel for his experiences in the hood. In his late teens, he relocated to his birthplace of Missouri City and befriended a local rap group, Street Military, who were signed to EMI. Now a member of Street Military's Killa Klan collective, Z-Ro found himself inducted into DJ Screw's infamous Screwed Up Click in 1997. However, Screw wasn't the only one to pick up on Z-Ro's talent, and what followed over the next five years were a string of independent albums, which were considered by fans and critics around the world to be Down South classics. Z-Ro's first solo release, Look What You Did to Me, was described by Murder Dog magazine in 1998 as a "ground-breaking record" and a "masterpiece". 1999 saw the release of the equally lauded Rise by the Guerilla Maab, a group Z-Ro formed with his cousin Trae, and brother Dougie D. In 2000 Z-Ro vs. the World, Ro's first album to crack the Billboard charts, was released, followed by King of da Ghetto in 2001. With the release of three solo albums in 2002 - Screwed Up Click Representa, Z-Ro and Life - and a new Guerrilla Maab album, Resurrected, Z-Ro became very well known in Texas as well as around the Southern United States. In 2004, Z-Ro Tolerance was released by a record company that Z-Ro was no longer affiliated with, but had the rights to publish what material of his they had, and pieced together an album. Less than a month later Z-Ro's first wide release album, The Life of Joseph W. McVey was released on Rap-A-Lot records. Although the album cracked the Top 200 on the Billboard Charts, it failed to meet sales expectations. However the album spawned a hit single, I Hate You Bitch, which garned many spins throughout the South. Soon after that, the first of many legal troubles for the rapper lead him in and out of bars during the summer of 2004.



Recent events:



Asylum Records, an independent subsidiary of Warner Bros. Records, struck up a deal with Houston-based Rap-A-Lot Records after seeing major success from fellow Houston-ite rappers Mike Jones and Paul Wall, and Z-Ro's Let the Truth Be Told was released in April of 2005. Once again, the release failed to meet sales expectations, but Z-Ro's national appeal was growing as it debuted at #69. Depite that, it was Z-Ro's best selling album to date, and a favorite amongst his hard-core fanbase. Later in that year, he was featured on Bun B's single "Get Throwed" with Pimp C, Jay-Z, and Young Jeezy, and also made an appearance in the music video. Since, Z-Ro has been arrested multiple times, and his 2006 album, I'm Still Livin' was released on November 21 while the rapper was in prison. The album featured a few previously released tracks, Let The Truth Be Told, Man Cry and Homie Lover Friend. The album sales were similair to his previous album, proving that his profile is still on a steady rise. In late April of 2007, Z-Ro released an independent underground album, Power, through his King Of Tha Ghetto Entertainment label. The majority of this album was recorded at his personal home studio in late 2006, just before his re-incarceration. He handled all of the production duties, and featured artists Pimp C, Mike D and Lil Flip. Z-Ro VISION, a DVD of exclusive material was released along with the album. Z-Ro and his cousin Trae have not been making music together since late 2005. Although Trae's hit single, No Help, featured Z-Ro, the two didn't actually work together on the track. The verses were taken from a solo song Z-Ro did originally titled One Deep. Trae had grown tired of Z-Ro's hot-tempered personality and his, as Trae called it, "whining and complaining on in his music" after all these years. The two have since stated that they are not beefing, but are just two grown men taking their own paths in life and their careers. Z-Ro is currently incarcerated In The Gist unit in Beaumont,Texas, for possession of a controlled substance and he will be released July 9 of 2007. It is unknown whether or not he will continue to record for Rap-A-Lot after his release, as he'd been unhappy with the label.



Discography:



Solo Albums:



* 1998: Look What You Did to Me

* 2000: Z-Ro vs. the World

* 2001: King of da Ghetto

* 2002: Screwed Up Click Representa

* 2002: Z-Ro

* 2002: Life

* 2004: Z-Ro Tolerance

* 2004: The Life of Joseph W. McVey

* 2005: Let the Truth Be Told

* 2006: I'm Still Livin'

* 2007: Power



Guerilla Maab:



* 1999: Rise

* 2002: Resurrected



Mixtapes:



* 2003: A Bad Azz Mix Tape

* 2003: Gangstafied

* 2004: Underground Railroad, Vol. 1: Street Life

* 2004: Underground Railroad, Vol. 2: Thug Luv

* 2006: Underground Railroad: Paper Stacks 3

* 2006: Z-Ro And The S.U.C.

* 2007: Southern Lean Vol. 3: Boss King

* 2007: S.U.C. Thang



Compilations:



* 2002: Z-Ro vs. the World

* 2003: A.B.N.: Assholes by Nature: The Soundtrack

* 2004: For My Thugs: Greatest Hits

* 2005: Kings Of The South

* 2005: 4 Da Green : Reloaded

* 2005: Fuck 'Em All

* 2005: Z-Ro and Friends

* 2006: Z-Ro Greatest Hits Vol. 1

* 2006: 4/20 The Smokers Anthem

* 2006: 1 Deep

* 2007: The Omega