Q: Who are your musical influences?(site specific examples).

NDL: Reggae and Hip-Hop are my major influences I would say on a musical tip. Artists I feel are Capleton, Lutan Fyah, Kool G. Rap and Big Pun. I feel their spirit, skill and originality.

Q: What are your songs about?(what specific themes do they cover)

NDL: My genre of music is Reality Rap. It is NOT Gangster, Crunk, Hyphy, New York, Southern, Conscious, not any of that. Its outside of those categories. Its grounded in reality, MY reality… that is. It's a love it or leave it type of thing with me. It's tied to my life experiences, my emotions, my moods, GOOD or BAD. Basically, you ain't gonna hear me talk about going to Saint Tropez or the Trump Tower unless I actually did. If I'm on a track and I talk about Don Perion, you can put your money on the fact I know what I'm talking about, you feel me? We are so used to rappers popping shit, that we dismiss everything as just plain entertainment now. Rappers talk about millions, black cards, cars, models, bottles, trips here and there, guns, coke money when they ain't never left their state. Its to the point where it's gotten ridiculous. We are so used to it, we don't even bother to question it no more. Its like "oh you rapper, you must have dealt with bricks (coke) then". Rappers want to be known for being everything but what they really are, which is: A RAPPER!!! You in a studio half your life my man! You ain't doing nothing in the streets. The majority of gangsta rappers are spitting from a real life cell, you feel me. That's not discounting everybody, because some cats are real, but nowadays its out of hand. Same goes with that conscious shit. Cats pick up a Che Gueverra book and a dictionary and start spitting so-called "conscious" verses. I ain't feeling that either. So my song's are tied to my reality, if I'm going to the club a lot for a period of time, that's what you will get. If the music is emotional, I will spit some emotional shit… It's a mood thing. It's a Reality Rap thing. No formulas, just pure shit.

Q: What made you decide to pursue music. How did you get involved?

Napoleon Da Legend, the name itself evokes images of larger than life ambition coupled with a flawed yet fascinating persona. Born in Paris, France and originally from a small, very impoverished African island called Comoros, Napoleon was raised in the DMV (DC, MD, VA area). He claimed to have coined a new genre of rap music – “Reality Rap”. Not feeling that any of the categories or “labels” attributed to rap artists fit his style and personality, Napoleon saw it appropriate to create “Reality Rap” representing a brand new genre for his music. Indeed, blessed with an uncanny versatility, Da Legend makes songs ranging from up-beat pop and dancehall influenced club bangers to deeply introspective social commentary.

Much like the historical Napoleon figure, his vision is global as he wishes to propagate his sound and “conquer” the ears of listeners in the four corners of the world. He is currently seeking the right team to materialize his vision and introduce his style of music to the global audience. Napoleon is a tireless perfectionist presently hard at work on his debut album “World Conquest”, which he describes as his official introduction to the world stage and music scene. Napoleon hopes his album can cause a paradigm shift in the current music scene like Obama was to the political scene.

Da Legend’s career has taking him to many states and even different countries where he has performed and collaborated with major artists. He already has a substantial fan base in the US and Europe, his myspace page having generated heavy traffic close to half a million individual views and three quarter million song plays (www.myspace.com/napoleondalegend). Napoleon has opened shows for many well-established artists in major venues in the DMV and the US: Busta Rhymes at GWU, Ghostface Killah at UMCP, Nelly at the 9:30 Club and Wyclef in Los Angeles. He has also performed in countless venues and clubs (large and small) in the DMV, New York, Philly, LA and Paris, France (radio appearances on Skyrock Radio and Generation 88.2 in Paris). He is a passionate and energetic performer able to captivate and excite audiences. In addition, he has years of studio experience showcasing innovative recording techniques, which he’s been known to keep very secret.

Napoleon was featured on the Indie-released single called Prison in Europe, which lead him to be invited on various famous signed artists projects in France such as Rockin’ Squat (EMI), Saian Supa Crew (Virgin) and Clara Morgane (Sony BMG). Da Legend was also sponsored by various urban clothing lines such as Grim Team and Wrung (French urban clothing line) for whom he was featured in their nationwide billboard ad campaign. Along with other local rappers in the DMV, he released several installments of the “Black Mafia” mixtape, which were promoted mainly in the North Atlantic region of the US. He is featured in an interview for the newly released December issue of “Heard” magazine.

Napoleon Da Legend intends to bring innovative concepts and ideas to the modern day musical landscape dominated by 24 hour news cycle and internet downloads. His journey towards created and releasing his “World Conquest” album has been tumultuous and filled with adversity. He will attempt to convey the emotional roller-coaster of these past years in his opus. The late DJ J-Zap, a local celebrity, said “he will live up to his name” upon first hearing a Napoleon Da Legend song years back. As it is well known, Napoleon’s ambitions were cut short some 200 years ago in the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon Da Legend, however, plans to carve a new path and rewrite history altogether while doing it. Only time will tell…