J-Ro

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J-Ro
Image:Jro liks.jpg J-Ro (Tha Alkaholiks)
Origin	Los Angeles, California
Genres	Hip hop
Labels	JuJu Records

While it's true that J-Ro's native neighborhood, Pacoima, doesn't carry the same clout in A&R offices as, say, Compton or Long Beach, the paths of many well-known L.A. hip-hop soldiers -- King-Tee and DJ Pooh, for instance -- have crossed there at one time or another. To hear J-Ro tell it, the networking among starving artists at the time (circa '85) ran deep.

"I saw the whole L.A. hip-hop scene happen," muses the caramel-complected elder of Tha Alkaholiks. "I was young, but I was around everywhere. There were a few of us who were really into hip-hop and all hung out."

One key MC significant to the pre-Alkaholiks career of not only J-Ro, but many others, was local biz wiz Scotty D. "He was like the grandfather of L.A.'s hip-hop scene, helping us out on the strength, letting people stay at his crib," says a respectful J-Ro. "Scotty brought all of us together: DJ Pooh, King-Tee, DJ Aladdin, even Coolio. Everybody."

As for J-Ro himself, he first met Scotty D at his custom sweat-suit shop. "When I bought my suit, I told him to put 'J-Ro' on my sweat suit. He said, 'What's J-Ro?' I said, 'That's my rapping name.' So he said 'Hey, I know these guys who DJ for Uncle Jam's Army.' The streetwise entrepreneur invited DJ Pooh (who came strapped with turntables) down and, as J-Ro states, "We started making mix-tapes right there out of the shop." The collaboration led to the formation of the group Total Control. "It included me, King-Tee, DJ Pooh and my boy Suavee D, who passed away many years ago," explains the quick-witted lyricist. "Cold Crush Chris and Scotty D were our managers. We were getting paid and all that."

The self-confessed opportunist ("April 29, you know the Ro was a looter / Now I'm writing raps on my laptop computer") hit the road in '86 with homies King-Tee and DJ Pooh during their respective ascension to the triflin' throne on a West Coast tour whose bill boasted Ice-T, The Real Roxanne, Whistle and Dana Dane. When Tee started churning out underground hits like "Bass" on Greg Mack's Mack Daddy Records, J-Ro "was like, 'Yo, I wanna do some shit,'" he recalls. "My other boy had kind of stopped rapping. So I was like, 'Yo, I'm solo, I'm gonna find a DJ.'”

And he did, although that DJ - E-Swift, who's also skilled on the mic - and eventual partner-in-rhyme Tash were chillin' back in Ohio until they crash-landed in Cali in the mid-'80's. "One of my boys knew E-Swift and told me that he made beats," says J-Ro. "we started kickin' it when he heard a demo I made that King-Tee produced and DJ Aladdin was scratching on. Swift called Tash up and was like, 'Yo, listen to this man.' We were all on the phone talking about 'When we gonna hook up?'" A friendship ensued amongst the three and they "just started hanging out all time," explains J-Ro.

After blessing rhymes on King-Tee's single "I Got It Bad Ya'll", Tha Alkaholiks finally got a deal with Loud / RCA Records in 1992. You couldn't go anywhere in L.A. without peeping the notorious "praying to the porcelain god" sticker. Their debut "21 & Over" irked critics everywhere and sobered party people up to the fact that these rappers were all about liquid flows and just having a good time.

During the latter years, making music, touring and hanging out with the elite; Snoop Dogg, Xzibit, Tha Dogg Pound, Too $hort, Ice-T, Busta Rhymes and Pharell Williams among others, J-Ro found himself making a name for himself, not only as a great MC, but also as one of the funniest artists in hip-hop. Tight rhymes and humor is what J-Ro often finds himself spreading amongst his peers, fans and family.

"I swear, J-Ro can find humor in the worst situations," Tash laughs. "All three of us have crazy senses of humor and joke a lot. But there's times when things get real, real hectic, and no matter what, J-Ro can keep things light." says fellow Likwit member Tash.

After four albums with Tha Alkaholiks, and a final installment ("Firewater") on the way, J-Ro decided to move from Pacoima to Malmoe, Sweden in late 2004. "I felt it was time for me to move out of L.A., I mean, I love L.A. and will always do, but things out there are hectic and I love to chill, so Malmoe was the perfect spot for me." Since 2003, J-Ro has been hanging out and working with JuJu Records in various projects. "I see a lot of opportunity for me in Europe, it's a different vibe out here." explains a calm J-Ro. With his debut solo album, "B-Boy Funk" he plans to show the hip-hop scenes all over the world that love and appreciation for hip-hop that got him in the game from the beginning.

And with his new store, "Likwit Cali" opening up in Malmoe, "I got everything, tee-shirts, khakis, hoodies, belt buckles, mix-tapes, hats, DVDs and all that good stuff" says an excited J-Ro, he continues to expand his business ventures beyond just music. "I got big plans", and people around him know it too,J-Ro is always looking to doing it big and making it happen.

But even in its fourth decade of existence, straggling nonbelievers persist on predicting hip-hop music's last call. Some things ain't changed. J-Ro remembers people telling him when he first started rhyming that hip-hop would be played out in five years.

"But there's no way it'll die, because too many people love the art," he says. "Even if hip-hop was banned, DJs and MCs would still mix tapes at the crib. That's where it starts."