A couple months back, I was out with a few female friends enjoying dinner for a birthday celebration at a local restaurant. While we were waiting for our food, a young man approached our table, presumably to hand out a club flyer of some sort. It turns out, he was actually an up and coming rapper by the name of King Mez. (He’s quite dope. Check him out.) He had heard about me through a friend, and recognized me. My friends laughed it off later, but I went and looked him up. As it goes, I should have been the one approaching him like a fan. We’re the same age, and he’s already garnered acclaim and could quite possibly be the next to blow from around here.

Long story short — I’m slipping. I’ve been doing this music thing for almost 4 years, and I’m not much further along career wise than I was when I started. The same people I considered my peers then are now all over the radio, doing shows and making major connections along the way. Granted, I’ve been doing the whole college thing, which takes up a lot of time. But somewhere along the line, I’ve lost sight of my goal.

I’ve grown too complacent with the way my life is. I’ve created a sort of aura that makes me feel important. I’m BJ KICKS. A self-made blah blah blah. But in order for my name to work for me, I have to work for my name. I have to give it substance. Diddy didn’t hop out of the womb yelling “I’m Diddy.”… He has a track record. I have to have the same if I’m going to last.

So for now, I’m going to stop feeding my ego. It’s giving me a false sense that I’ve already made it. As my uncle once told me… Once you get caught up in your own hype, the clock starts ticking. I have way too many goals to not be working toward them. So the next time you hear from me significantly, it’ll be with another step closer.

Love…