The year was 1983...Springtime. The year I met my first love... In one swoop, my life would never be the same. The colors of the world were now brighter...the air was now crisper...my spirit was awakened. This indescribable feeling was Hip Hop. Not just Hip Hop but music period. The gift that God infused me with had started it's evolution. At first, it was just a caterpillar crawlin' thru life seekin' inspiration. It had finally found it. Kurtis Blow, Run-DMC, Fat Boys and so many others were modern day street poets to me. To say that they influenced me would be an understatement. But influence me, they did...so much so that I, "ruined a perfectly good name"(my mother's words, not mine). M.C. Denny Dee was my new name...anytime that I put a pen or pencil to paper, it was like I was leaving the entire world behind...The only place I felt strong...safe...wealthy...like I belonged...free. Unfortunately, no matter where I went while writing, I had to come back to reality. As I grew, so did my music. The caterpillar was now a chrysalis. When I was young and stupid, so was my music. When I matured, so did my music. When I look back, I see how God was preparing me for my purpose. Music wasn't just something I do, it was who I was. As much a part of me as my breathing or my tears. The chrysalis had hatched and out came a B-Boy Butterfly...Writing kept me out of trouble...it was all I wanted to do. At home...in school during my classes. The teacher would be up there givin' a lesson and all I could hear were break beats in my head. While some of my friends were out robbin' people, jackin' cars and/or sellin' crack, I was writing verses, songs...the spirit of "organized noise" consumed me the way a black hole would. My first love became my only love...girls came and went but my music stood true. Even when I decided that I wanted to do this to make a living, the love was always there. Sorry to say though, that love is no longer as strong as it once was...the colors of the world look grey and dismal and the air is flat. Now when I write, there's a nu purpose behind it...Purity...Justice. And if I can achieve my purpose, it may start to feel the way it did in 1983...Maybe...just maybe.
Truly Yours,
Mitch L. Hennessy
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