Lil' Romeo

Lil' Romeo Hits the Charts with a Big Sound

Lil' Romeo's dad P, first learned of his son's musical talent when he got home from a business trip to overhear his son rapping. "I found it amazing just to come home and find out that he had the talent that he had. I think he took a lot from everybody," says No Limit CEO and Romeos dad Master P. He was referring to Lil' Romeos musical heritage: his growing up under the influence of P, his Uncle C and his Uncle Silkk the Shocker, all three representatives of one of hip hops most successful, independently owned labels.

"My real first name is Percy," the little rapper explains. He takes his singing moniker, Romeo, from his middle name. Starting out as a four-year old who wrote and sang many of the intros on TRU and Master P records, Lil' Romeo took a lot of his influences' styles, put them together, and came up with a unique style of his own.

The first hit single for this precocious eleven year old, "My Baby," features a recreated loop from the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" and sports Lil' Romeos just-for-fun tale of wanting to remain single amidst crazy female adoration. Billboard magazine notes that "My Baby" makes Romeo the youngest solo artist ever to go number one. And his self-titled first album, Lil' Romeo'' (from Soulja), which Billboard magazine ranked #8 among the top 10 albums of July (as of July 19th), is not Romeos only achievement. The talented 11-year old is also a serious hoopster. Last year, Lil' Romeo attended the AAU national championship and played so well that he competed in the 12-year old bracket.

s

He was also the MVP of the Michael Jordan basketball camp and impressed some of NBAs premiere sponsors. As with music, so with sports; Lil Romeo may head straight for the pros.

While balancing music and basketball, Master P progeny Lil' Romeo pulls straight A's in his 5th grade class. Both in his private and professional lives, Lil' Romeo exhibits precocious talent. And his fans note that his hit album, "Lil' Romeo,'' which includes the Spanish-flavored second single "The Girlies" and the street-influenced "ABC's," appeals both to teenagers and to adults.

What about problems he has overcome to develop as a musician? Besides practicing 10 to 20 hours a week or more, "the hardest thing about playing my music is being away from my family when Im travelling," Lil'Romeo says (in a very adult kind of way).

As for technology, Lil' Romeo confesses to being a lover of all computer gadgets: there are Macintosh computers all over his house and Apple Computer technology is behind his records. His love for video games extends to "Indiga Street."

As for his future plans, "I am planning to do another concert with Michael Jackson in New York," Lil' Romeo says, referring to his participation at an all-star 30th Anniversary Celebration tribute concert to Michael Jackson held in September in New York's Madison Square Garden. Looking forward, the Lil' Solja and his dad are also making plans for a Lil' Romeo back-to-school concert tour, which will take place some time this year.