Thee Phantom wrote his first rhyme at the age of 8 and made his first beat by mixing the instrumental from the Beastie Boys' Paul Revere with Beethoven's Fifth Symphony at age 12. It's ironic considering that the particular movement of Beethoven's 5th he chose is entitled, "Destiny", because little did he know, that his combination of B-Boy Meets Beethoven would later open up a world of opportunities for him. Most notably, in 2002 Phantom became the first Hip-Hop artist to perform at Philadelphia's prestigious Kimmel Center with musical accompaniment from members of the world-renowned Philadelphia Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia. Included in the ensemble was Violist Renard Edwards, who 30 years earlier was the first African American musician to play for the Philadelphia Orchestra. The standing room only show was such a hit that Phantom was invited back in 2003 to perform at the Kimmel Center's annual Summer Solstice Celebration. This time performing in the much bigger Perelman Theater with a string section, concert pianist, female vocalist, female dance troupe and a sitar player, Phantom again packed the house to capacity. His most recent Kimmel Center performance came in 2006 inside the 2,500 seat Verizon Hall where he was accompanied by strings, horns, a DJ, a female vocalist, 3 guest MC's and a trio of breakdancers.
In 2003-2004, Phantom's independently released single entitled, "Storming the Bastille" received airplay on over 300 college and independent radio stations in the U.S., topping the charts at WGBB and WSIA in New York among others. Storming has also reached the airwaves in Germany, Japan, Sweden, Italy, Spain, Croatia, the U.K., Singapore, Australia, Ireland, Africa and France.
Phantom has released his debut album entitled, "Hero Complex" in 2006. He nearly discontinued the album and his career after his best friend, Dr. Jason Porter was murdered in Atlanta. However, after a year long hiatus he was convinced to resume recording and honor Jason's memory by dedicating the album to him. "Hero Complex", plays out like an audio comic book with scored scenes connecting one song to the next.
Phantom has recently released his second album, "Making Of An Underdog", which is available on iTunes and other online retaliers. He will be performing at the world-famous Carnegie Hall in December and is organizing his own College Tour which has already made stops at; the University of Illinois, University of Pennsylvania, Berklee College, University of New Haven, American University, Wheaton College, University of Buffalo, Swarthmore College and many more.
