Artist Spotlight - Ricky Rude

Welcome to another edition of Po Politickin. In this episode, we politick with Camden, New Jersey rapper/producer Ricky Rude.Bio...Born and raised in South Jersey, Ricky spent his youth driving his parents and teachers crazy. After being arrested twice the week of his high school graduation—a ceremony that his family members, doubting his ability to graduate, did not attend—Ricky found within himself a new determination to chase his dream of making music.After high school, he began carving out a name for himself in the New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles music scenes, differentiating himself by approaching hip-hop with a punk rock attitude. But he truly separated himself from the pack when he caught the eyes of industry heavyweights, Scarface and Trina. Scarface took Ricky under his wing and worked with him on No Guts, No Glory, making an appearance on the track, "So Immature." "Scarface is a hip-hop icon," says Ricky, "so to be mentored by him is an honor." Before No Guts, No Glory could even reach the shelves, Ricky found himself on the front pages of gossip blogs after suggestive photos of Ricky and Trina leaked from the set of their "Stripper A**, Model Face" video. Ricky only added fuel to the fire when he responded to the rumors with an enigmatic, "I don't kiss and tell." After spending time in Los Angeles and Miami, Ricky has returned to South Jersey, where he's been working closely with local rappers and producers at his studio, The Tree House, to put together a new album, which he describes as his most autobiographical body of work to date.