“Everybody that knows me just knows that’s what I do. I rap. I do music. I love to do it.”
Above all of the talent and proven dedication, it’s a certain level of genuine humility that sets rising emcee Mark Steele apart from his peers.
In an industry where grandeur and self-involvement reign supreme, Steele has settled into his own lane, supplying just enough content for the conscious listener while succeeding at engaging the even the most carefree of minds.
“I try to create music based off of my life. I try to basically turn my life into a big song or an album. I’ve grown personally as a man and I take those experiences and I put them into song,” says Steele “I literally try to create my life in song.”
First making waves after landing one of his songs on ESPN back in 2014, providing one of the tracks to the year’s March Madness tournament, Steele has since gone on a mission to prove that he’s, unquestionably, here to stay.
With a third studio album in the works, Steele has perfected the craft of inspiration. Tracks like “Not Like Y’all”, “Greatness”, and more recently “Big Dreams” have all been the byproducts of an insatiable hunger that Steele is proud to call his own.
“My career is sort of my life. You grow into the person that you become. I’m growing into the artist that I’ve become. I definitely feel like whatever is ahead of me is close.”
Citing the storied 9th Wonder as a mentor, Steele is using his experiences, both personal and observed to put together the most prolific project of his career to date.
“I look back and say that he was a very important piece,” says Steele of 9th Wonder. “My growth from an artist’s standpoint, and learning the game.”
Slated for release on October 28, Almost Time is testimony to Steele’s trying past, a background that he’s used to propel him into a path he’s taken time out to carve out himself.
Versatility for Steele, as mentioned before, means an array of content most relevant to listeners across the spectrum, and just as a new generation of African-American’s community has been forced to deal with injustices head-on in recent times, Steele hasn’t shied away from using his art for empowerment as it relates to this audience.
His latest “Turn Around’ serves as a dedication to Keith Lamont Scott, a 43-year old Black father of three gunned down by Charlotte police late September e in Steele’s home of North Carolina.
A heartfelt ode to victims of police brutality both living and dead, Steele’s conjunction of activism and his craft displays yet another piece of evidence all pointing to his promising future as an artist.
Take an exclusive first look at Mark Steele’s “Turn Around” below.
