User:Havana Joe(iamHavanaJoe)

Havana Joe (born February 21, 1984) is an American rapper of Cuban descent. He is the Founder and CEO of Grind Pays Entertainment.

Chicago is where it all started. On February 21 of 1984, Havana Joe took his first breath of fresh, cold Chicago air. Before Havana Joe was brought into this world, his parents came into the United States from Cuba in search of the American Dream. Just as many refugees have done in the past and continue to do so today, in hopes of creating a future in the land of opportunity was one of the goals his parents worked for. Shortly after his parents divorce he ended up living out the rest of his younger years in Humboldt Park despite its chaotic street life. Like many cities across the United States, it’s a part of the city where many of his friends fell apart throughout the harsh realities of gangbanging, drugs, incarceration, or death. Havana admits that it was these obstacles that helped him realize that he did not want to end up as another product of his environment. Music became an essential part of his escape.

Havana Joe first discovered rap when he started listening to Hip Hop pioneers such as Tribe Called Quest, Pharcyde and later 2Pac,Biggie and Snoop Doog and developed his love for rap music. But it was not until the sounds of Big Pun where Havana Joe realized were a hispanic could thrive in a predominately black industry. Overall, any type of music that is essential for every emcee was most likely to be found in Havana’s tape deck. Hip-hop became more than just music he listened to. The music became his passion. Writing his first song, Havana realized that his love for hip-hop could instill inspiration and truth. Learning from the greats, he figured out that he had the lyrical prowess to create rap music that various people can relate to.

Havana Joe took advantage of the time he had in his teenage years by gaining exposure and experience for the foundation of his hip-hop career. His musical description can be summarized in one of his statements: "Music is my life. It's everything that describes the person I am today. It's the way I walk, it's the way I talk, it's the way I portray myself, it's the way I choose to live my life. Music is my highs and my lows. It's my joy and pain. My music is a representation of life itself. Not just my own. If I could accomplish anything with my music, it would be to reach out to people. I want to touch lives and give people hope to follow their dreams. It's up to you as a person to make the right decisions. Life is a blessing that shouldn't be taken for granted because everyday is not promised."

Havana Joe bursts onto Chicago’s music scene in the summer of 2006 with the Release of 108 La Famila Presents “Its 108 or Nothing” The Mixtape, the first release off the Indie record label “108 Records”. Even though this was a Collaboration project of all the artist on the label Havana Joe had a chance to show case his talents on various songs. Undoubtedly putting in work for many years before this release, this was really the first time Chicago got to see what this Cuban emcee had to offer. No stranger to the game Havana Joe has been doing his thing since early 2000, featured on alot of other artist projects. Havana Joe has shown an uncanny ability to evolve and differentiate himself in a game cluttered where everybody raps.