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Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, Lynise Walters a-k-a Queen Pen started out her journey into womanhood, like most young women in her era, at a young age. Becoming pregnant with her first child at the age of 15, Queen Pen found herself dealing with life and responsibility sooner than later. Still never giving up on her dreams of becoming an Entertainer, she struggled to raise her son, Donlynn. By the time Queen Pen was 17, she found herself giving birth to her second child, Quintin. Being a single teen mother of two, Queen held her head and continued to pursue her dreams. Studying dance and drama at Erasmus Hall High School for the Performing Arts, she tried hard to overcome lifes obstacles until her efforts were defeated. Falling off track and getting caught up in the streets, she put her dreams and goals on hold to do what she had to do to raise her children and survive. Still when it was possible, Queen Pen took whatever extra money she had to go into a neighborhood studio and record demos. But demos didn't pay bills or put food on the table. So Queen set out on a totally different journey.life.
It wasn't until years later in the parking lot of a Virginia Beach 7-Eleven that Queen Pen's life would begin to get on track. Platinum Producer and Recording Artist Teddy Riley stood in amazement when his friend, Queen Pen, revealed her talents. Teddy was not only surprised, but also excited about the skills Queen possessed. Vowing to come back for her as soon as his situation was squared away, two years had gone by before the two of them could connect musically. But when they did connect, she was on a plane just days after their conversation to record on Blackstreets Multi-Platinum Hit "No Diggity." This led to her not only touring across the world, but to landing a major recording deal. In 99, Lil Man Records/ Interscope Records released Queen Pen's debut album MY MELODY and the wheels were in motion.
It was at that point Queen Pen started taking advantage of her newfound fame. She began to speak in various juvenile prisons, group homes, inner city schools, and facilities for young mothers which have to date gotten her recognition from the Mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey; Assemblymen in Harlem and Brooklyn, New York; and several other High Risk Teen Organizations.
In 1999, Queen Pen slowly slid off the scene after giving birth to her third child and first daughter, Lyric. "Family comes first. My fans know I'm real so they understand when I come and go. Trust -they know I'm dealing with life, just like they are."
In 2001, she returned, spending a short time on Motown Records, releasing her sophomore album, Conversations with Queen. The album featured artists such as Damian and Stephen Marley, Mr. Cheeks, Camron, Prodigy (Mobb Deep), and a host of others.
Soon after departing from Motown Records, Queen Pen released her self-published book of short stories entitled Situations. Her creation quickly took off, eventually selling well over 70,000 copies.
This accomplishment led to a 2-book deal with Atrium/Simon & Schuster. Blossom, Queen Pen's first novel, is scheduled for release in May of 2006. Intense from the very beginning, Blossom is overflowing with dynamic characters and insight into an extremely fast paced, dangerous lifestyle. One of the main characters, Spring, has fallen for Dude, a wealthy man who gives her everything she can possibly need. However, Dude is able to support such a luxurious lifestyle-new SUVs, fully furnished townhouse for Spring, continual shopping sprees, and a six-carat diamond friendship ring- because he is one of the ring leaders in a substantial drug ring in New York City. Blossom chronicles the relationship between Spring and Dude, their friends and their enemies.
In the tradition of other bestselling authors of so called hip-hop and street lit, like Shannon Holmes's Bad Girls or Terri Woods True To the Game, Queen Pen stays true to her hip-hop roots and tells this cautionary tale with all of the artistry and high octane energy that put her on top of the charts as a rapper. Blossom is an unvarnished, candied portrait of life in urban black America where tomorrows are never guaranteed and drama and danger is always near.
Musically, Queen Pen is currently finishing up her third album set to be released Summer of 2010. On her upcoming single, Please Forgive Me, QP proves why she still has what it takes to make records. Take her maturity and spiritual growth; mix in four children coupled with Single Parenthood; and Broken Relationships lyrics like, Now I know I changed for the better though my life has been so wrong, And I know that things are getting better, Forgive me Lord for all my wrongs still speak of her very own real life experiences.
Signed presently to Travio Records distributed through Fontana Music/Universal, Queen quotes, "I haven't been this comfortable in a situation in a long time. At Travio I feel at home. I feel like I have control over my destiny.And that's something you rarely get at most major labels.Control.
So between operating her government funded High Risk Teen Progams in Harlem and Brooklyn NY; the release of her debut novel BLOSSOM on Simon & Schuster; her third album on Travio Records; and not to mention her four beautiful children, Queen Pen is a force to be reckoned with.
For further info visit:
www.QueenPenMusic.com
