Born and raised in Bronx, New York, “MAG” J. Daniels is producing hip-hop without all the “extra stuff” people sometimes associate with the hip-hop culture. During a recent interview, “MAG” describes his music as “honest”, making it a practice to only speak on things he’s seen or done firsthand. “MAG” explains, “the best way to keep the integrity of any art form is being honest”. Having said this, “MAG” uses everyday life as his inspiration, from love and relationships to the world around us. Fans respect “MAG’s” honesty and passion because it makes them feel as though they can relate. “MAG” shares, “I struggle and work hard just like anybody else, except I have a platform to speak from where most others don’t”. “MAG” takes his art very seriously, and it shows.
A typical audience at his shows is like “a rainbow” with a variety of ethnicities and cultures, including Black, White, Latin, and Asian. “MAG” also attracts ladies and gents, hipsters, and, of course, a couple of “street dudes” are often thrown in the mix. It just shows that at the end of the day, people just want to hear good music, regardless of the genre. “MAG’s” hip-hop really is for everybody.
“MAG” feels that hip-hop artists, at one point in time, allowed themselves to be boxed in, but he feels that as a culture we’ve figured out how to say, “Hey, we have a voice and we’re business saavy. We control our music and careers.” He is proud and excited about the diversity and direction of hip-hop over the past few years. The variety that was lacking in the past is back into play. “MAG” also points out that online networking and blogs have made it a lot easier for diverse artists like himself to get the love and support they deserve in order to sustain this hip-hop evolution. J. Cole, Drake, Outasight and Yelawolf are all upcoming hip-artists that “MAG” feels are setting the tone for what hip-hop means to the new generation.
“MAG” primarily performs in New York City, but will go wherever people want to hear what he has to say. Check out his music at mrmag.bandcamp.com. You can also find him at www.facebook.com/thisismag orwww.myspace.com/mrmag where you can download or stream his music. Whether you’re a hipster or “street mixer”, you’ll definitely appreciate this music for its authenticity.