New York, NY (Top40 Charts) The rap artist known as Easop has released his newest single, "Got Em Shook." Hailing from San Francisco, CA, Easop is the easily the most prominently rising star in the underground genre of urban gospel music. The artist himself has dubbed his own personal brand of rap, "street gospel," a moniker that proved appropriate following his "Reloaded" release in early April of 2013. The "Reloaded" LP (which was created in collaboration with fellow music artist Don Clay) showed Easop to be a razor tongued rapper, a sharp witted writer, and - what continues to surprise and enthrall larger and larger audiences across
America - an entirely steadfast man of God.
With titles like "Got Em Shook" and "Reloaded," it may seem unlikely that these records are written with the Word of God at the forefront of Easop's intentions, but the truth is (or perhaps more appropriately, the Truth is) that Easop's booming music career is a devout and evangelical one.
1997 saw the start of his own, morally minded music label, Life or Death Records, often called LOD for short. This is the production company that has produced "Got Em Shook," as well as his recent albums. Although his music is very much "of-God," as goes the vernacular in the Christian music scene, there is much more to set Easop apart from the rest of the gospel industry. Many of his themes revolve around the gritty street life of the inner city, an experience of the hard life that many Christian music fans may not share - but one that many more inner-city listeners, thirsty for a respectable role model in God's army, can.
"I like to stand apart in the crowded landscape of music," Easop says of his new single. "I like to stand apart with a positive but gritty street vibe that the streets can relate to."
There can be no doubt that he has always succeeded in this. Often compared to the great and likewise very respectable Tupac Shakur (a bronze effigy of Shakur circulates European ghettos where he founded libraries and other services for disadvantaged teens), Easop's rhymes are direct, heavy-hitting, and masterfully crafted poetry, but they are also steeped in the lifestyle of the streets, tempered with Easop's own personality and will.
The message of his newest single, he says, is one of "realism; life experiences, both good and bad; fun; motivation; and hope - a hope that you can do whatever you put your mind to."
"Got Em Shook" by Easop is available online everywhere beginning spring of 2013.
The single "Got Em Shook" is distributed globally by MondoTunes (www.MondoTunes.com) and is available at iTunes or www.top40-charts.com for convenient purchase and download.