Who Is...
KOLGATE
Born June the 14th, Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Seven to the gritty, but beautiful streets of Cleveland, Ohio, Kolgate got his first hit of this thing called music at an early age. " I remember listening to music a lot when I was younger, in my early years, it was my only escape, I would take my little walkman, with my MC hammer tape, or some bullshit mix tape I made off the radio ...
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Who Is...
KOLGATE
Born June the 14th, Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Seven to the gritty, but beautiful streets of Cleveland, Ohio, Kolgate got his first hit of this thing called music at an early age. " I remember listening to music a lot when I was younger, in my early years, it was my only escape, I would take my little walkman, with my MC hammer tape, or some bullshit mix tape I made off the radio and just chill and forget the world. I always got caught taking my moms tapes too. I couldn’t get enough Tracy Chapman when I was 8 and 9. Don’t ask me why". Kolgate, born Kenneth Kuglin, lost his father to suicide at the age of 7, and believes that’s when his life took a drastic turn for the worst. "I wasn’t bad but, my mom, being how she was, thought that I was the worst fuckin' kid on earth I think. I was grounded and spent more time locked in my room, then I spent at school most of the time, all I had was my radio and a few tapes and cds I was lucky enough to get." His mother, though sometimes trying, failed to be all that she could be. Hardly working, and frugally spending what income the family did have. "If it wasn’t for my moms boyfriends, we probably would've been living on the streets". Life for Kolgate has seemed to be a series of obstacles, and heartbreak. Though triumphant so far, Kolgate believes that it is in-fact music that gave him the head on his shoulders. He credits much of his success and motivation to songs from the 80s and 90s. Saying that "Music no matter what genre, or style can and will appeal to anyone, and if you give songs a chance, they WILL speak to you. I have the ability to relate to any situation, not necessarily cause I been there, but because someone has, and they wrote about it and put that shit to music. Life is all about learning, and music is the best teacher." Kolgate began making music in early 2005, co-creating a group with childhood friend Vince "Veeno" Veverka. The Midwest Menaces, as they were called, taught Kolgate a thing or two about the music world. First and formost, the art of writing rhyme. Kolgate, always a freestyle rapper by nature, was hit with many challenges, but feels he has since beaten all doubt of his writing skills, showing so in the single 'My Life', his first solo attempt at writing to music. Kolgate will be the first to admit however that the state of hip-hop today is not relatable to anyone except other 'rappers'. "I wanna break that, I want people to feel my shit, and I don’t mean 'like it', I mean feel it. I don’t give a fuck if you hate me, and never listen again if you just listen once and soak in what I'm saying, I know somewhere down the line that shits gonna effect you. Maybe not you in particular, but someone in your circle, and your gonna remember my shit, and my job will be done. The worlds got like a billion people in it, but the same shit happens everyday." He goes on to say, "Not everybody in the world needs to see Johnny the Jeweler about a grill, but everybody knows somebody with cancer, everybody knows or knows of someone who committed suicide, or tried it. I just want to help someone with my music, they way 2pac, and Em, and Bone helped me. That’s it." With a pocket full of ego and a backpack full of determination, Kolgate is well on his way to becoming one of Cleveland’s most prominent artist. Be on the look out, and keep ya head up.
