Life & Work with Open Face

Today we’d like to introduce you to Open Face.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started in the middle with a couple of friends of mine who were actually brothers. I’ve always liked music but they introduced the idea of being a musician. We used to practice music in the apartment, Marcus ( the older brother ) and I use to rap while the young brother Corey made beats on the table. The thing that got me hooked was, one day we were on the Marta train and a couple of guys that look like rappers were on the train. The younger brother started to do his beat thing on one of the seats on the train. I had never wrote a song to a beat. I would actually write everything acapella and then I could rap it to whatever sound was available.

So I started rapping something I wrote and caught the attention of the guys and the passengers. Before I knew it they were rapping against me and I was very nervous. It was my final turn and I decided to rap one of my best verses. This was the defining moment that made me decide to be a musician. Once I rapped that verse, the whole train began to clap. That energy and feeling was something amazing and knew then I wanted to do music.

Fast forward and now I’m older, maybe early 20s and I rapped with a group call Kickdoe. This was a time when you had to put flyers on cars and use word of mouth to let people know you had a show. We had one of the biggest potential songs that could’ve took us to the next level but a difference of opinion kind of broke the group up. We used to do a song called “I Bet You Won’t Swang” create by Rasi Dunkley bka Rasta, around the time Crime Mob was being discovered. We used to do big foam parties at the Atrium and other clubs in the city. If we didn’t split up the group, I think we would be a household name by now, lol. Fast forward again to my mid to late 20s. My cousins and I Dray and TJ started a group called KinfoAK ( Keep It N Family Only Antonio Kelly ) in honor of my cousin Antonio Kelly which is the older brother of Dray bka Drayno Mercy. We started to make some buzz on the Southside of Atlanta with a song called “I QUIT” after TJ left the group. We used to pass out cds at shows and open mics we performed at. That was the first time I’ve had a song play on the radio. 107.9 played our music, best feeling in the world! My cousin would get locked up at a later time for about four years and that devastated me and stopped the movement. During that time, I learned so much about how to put music out and how to distribute it yourself. But once again I found myself starting from scratch and had to build a name. Today with cds being obsolete, digital distribution is the game right now and it open the door for everybody to do music. Right now, I’m fighting so to show my worth as an artist and bless the world with my skills.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It’s crazy but I’ve had a few challenges. The first came when the guys that started or should I say introduced me to being a rapper quit about a week after the train situation. Had me feeling like “what am I supposed to do now?” The second was the group Kickdoe breaking up after a mainstream artist was looking to sign us. The local promoters and club owners loved our music but we had a reputation for fighting. I mean the main song was called I bet you won’t swang. That kept them from wanting book us. Shout out to Stac and my whole Kickdoe fam.

The third was my cousin getting locked up right after we started to get a good buzz. I felt so lost. I really didn’t want to be a solo artist. But I also didn’t want to have nothing fine when my cousin got out.

The last big setback was losing two good friends. This was a few years ago. I lost two producers. One named Rasta who was a producer and engineer also the one that created “I Bet You Won’t Swang”. We rapped in the Kickdoe group together. It was the song he had that got us started. The second was the lost of Sanchez Holmes. Platinum producer and mentor to me. He was Tiny Harris Godbrother. I used to record in the mansion all the time. The craziest part about losing these guys is they were my only producers and close friends. They passed away within months of each other. This set me back. They would not be around for my first solo professional release “Open Season”. They each producer half the records on that album. I still miss them a lot. I’m currently dealing with a tumor and have to get brain surgery that’s scheduled on 3/17/2022 so I’m not sure if this my last interview. I slick scared.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a musician. I specialize in rap and writing. This new collection of songs I’m creating proves that I can compete with any other artist out here. My new song Trophy, I’m most proud of so far. This is my first all auto tune song and I’m putting I’m heart out there. Showing the vulnerable side of me. I think my voice and vibe on a track set me apart from others. I actually care about what I’m saying. I want it to make sense. I’m working growing my portfolio. I feel like I don’t have enough music out so I’m pushing bless my fans with more. I’m also going focus on making more videos.

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success is living off one record for the year. Once you can create one song a year and you eat from that one song like 100k every year. That’s success to me because anything you do after that one is a bonus. Then you can just make money on features, shows, and royalties. Kind of like OT Genesis. I wouldn’t mind grabbing a few awards along the way, lol. Success is being paid to show your face. Success is being able to buy your mom a house. Success is making sure your kids can eat from what you created after your gone.

Image Credits:
SeeCannon – photos Brgfx – cover art Orbit did it – video stills