Loaded Mic: The Fight Continues — Bobby Marvin

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Just as change is constant, so is struggle. In fact, in order for change to be realized it must first be conceived by opposition. One force applies pressure, while the other resists, Baltimore Hip-Hop artist Son Of Nun (S.O.N.), is definitely acting as that defiant force. With the release of his new album, The Art of Struggle, he is not only setting up to address new challenges, but offering new solutions as well.

One might say S.O.N. was born to battle, being diagnosed with sickle cell when he was an infant, he has been battling disease all his life. At age 16, his health was hit hard again when he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, a hereditary trait that was later removed. But his life mission and passion would be directed to the repressed, embarking on a journey to heal the wounds that often go unnoticed.

Beginning in high school, S.O.N. was drawn to social conscious artists such as Bob Marley and Public Enemy, artists that resonated with suppressed people. These artists became more then musical influences when he enrolled into UMBC (University of Maryland Baltimore County) and became involved in social activism, subsequently, this also heightened his desire to focus on music more seriously.

“I got plugged into groups that were actually organizing to do different things, around different issues, that’s where I found out about Mumia Abu-Jamal situation, listening to him speak and reading his work I found out a lot about different issues. The more that I learned, the more interested I became in putting my thoughts on paper, and I love Hip-Hop and poetry, so that’s how I reflected what I was learning,” said S.O.N.

Shortly after graduating college, S.O.N. joined the Campaign to End the Death Penalty (CEDP), a national grassroots membership organization with a agenda to end capital punishment in the United States. A strong believer in passing the torch, S.O.N. also is involved with Peer 2 Peer, a coalition of various youth programs based in Baltimore.

However, amidst of working against injustice, S.O.N. also pointed out that grassroots organizations are not without fault, insisting that separation does lie between progressive groups as well. “You go to an anti-war protest there’s mostly white people, police brutality protest it’s mostly black people, immigrant rights protest mostly brown people.’ He continued stressing the importance of being unified and avoiding racist traps.

S.O. N. latest, The Art of Struggle, promises to touch on the human condition closely, examining the intricacies of racism, economic segregation, and war. “This album and so many events that are in this album in terms of protest, meetings, in terms of organizing and all that stuff, it’s about the fact that some people get to eat and other people don’t. So what are we going to do about it?” explained S.O.N.

As far as future endeavors, S.O.N. will be in Denver protesting as a Green Party supporter at this year’s Democratic National Convention late in August, with an additional appearance at the Republican National Convention in September.

For more info on Son Of Nun, log on to www.sonofnun.net