First Day Feature: B.Eveready

Boston-bred, Baltimore-based emcee B.Eveready is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and a practicing Christian with roots in Barbados, B.Eveready has collaborated with Torae (stream “Shot @ The Crown”), Emilio Rojas (stream “Drippin’ Swagu”) and has an extensive discography which includes the Guns & Butta mixtape and the EPs A Cold Summer’s Day, #GrindSeason and #INeedAManager(Bandcamp). B. is currently preparing his next full-length #GS2.

How did you get your stage name?

My man Jason who I went to high school with gave it to me. We were in a rap group in college, and he just noticed that I was always the one who was ready for whatever we had going on. First one ready with a verse, first one ready in a cypher, first one ready with a game plan for the group – I’ve just always been like that. One of my nicknames is B, so it just worked. At first, I wasn’t feeling it that much, but I didn’t have anything better, so I went with it. But once I really embraced it, I gave it the juice it needed.

What made you decide to become a rapper?

I always loved Rap & Hip-Hop culture, but growing up in Boston, being a rapper or an emcee just didn’t seem realistic. We didn’t have anybody who did it on a major level we could look up to. I mean, we had Guru, but it wasn’t like he was shouting out Boston a lot – it was just something that we knew. So we lacked the role models, and just the level of skill that all the greats had was intimidating. Biggie, Pac, Nas, Jay, Wu-Tang…the list goes on & on. But when the South really started to take over, I realized that there was room for everyone in the game. My boys pushed me into some cyphers to start freestyling (which I found out I loved), and we wrote a few songs together. That was it. I was hooked.

What’s the first rap song you ever heard? Describe the moment.

Man…..the first rap song I ever heard? I think it would be “Parents Just Don’t Understand” by The Fresh Prince & DJ Jazzy Jeff. That’s the first thing I can remember listening to (and watching) and knowing that it was Hip-Hop. I remember thinking that I wanted a fly car like the one in the video. I was really little, and I remember thinking, “yeah, parents don’t understand!”

How did “Always Major” come together?

Synesthetic Nation (the production team behind the record) sends me new beats every few weeks, and when I took my first listen to that one, it was a wrap. I was going to grab some breakfast on a Saturday morning, bumping the new beats in my truck, and I had to pull over & start writing. By the time I made it back home, I had most of the first verse done, and I had already paid them for the beat. It was quick. When I hear a real banger, it doesn’t take me long.

What do you think about the year of 2018 in rap so far?

I love it. We’ve already had some great moments – Kendrick winning the Pulitzer and having the Black Panther OST, Cole’s album, Skyzoo’s album, Phonte, Elzhi & Khrysis, Royce with his solo & PRhyme 2, and I could keep going. There’s always great music out, but the level at which everything gets promoted is definitely not the same. So you can easily get caught up in thinking there’s only turn up music out here. And I like some of that too. I don’t hate on anyone getting their bag. I just want balance in the game. There’s always been party music in Hip-Hop, but there was always some substance on the other side to balance it out.