In the past, the Montgomery County community has been relatively untouched by the hip-hop world. Of local hip-hop artists, D.C. native Wale is the only successful one, until now. Gaithersburg has birthed a rising star, rapper Logic, who may change the face of hip-hop.
Born Sir Robert Bryson Hall II in Gaithersburg Jan. 22, 1990, Logic did not grow up with a privileged lifestyle. He was born to an African-American father and Caucasian mother, who raised him alone.
According to Logic, his mother had a racist attitude towards him. She constantly put him down, called him racial slurs and was abusive. Her poor parenting cost him his good education from a young age.
“My mother took me out of school in the fifth grade because they said I had emotional problems,” Logic said in a phone interview. “In actuality, my mother had a lot of problems, mental and life problems, and would put her business out there to people, and so they thought I had problems too.”
Even though he returned to school in eighth grade and performed well academically, his high school education did not go smoothly. He was expelled from numerous schools in the MCPS school system, leading him to drop out of high school.
“I skipped school starting in tenth grade,” Logic said. “I started doing badly and failed every class but English, so they kicked me out of school, they gave up on me.”
Logic left home at 17 with no money to support himself, so he got two jobs. When he was not at work, he wrote and produced new music. Eventually, a friend took Logic in, allowing him to spend more time on his rapping. He gave up all the free time he could spare each day to work on his music.
“I still work 12 hours a day, no matter what day. No Christmas. No birthdays,” Logic said
Logic first started rapping under the name Psychological and made one mixtape by the same name. He then shortened his name to Logic and released three mixtapes, Young, Broke, and Infamous in 2010, Young Sinatra in 2011, and Young Sinatra: Undeniable April 30. Each has been more successful than the last in showcasing his talent and showing fans the artist Logic really is.
His fans also know him as Young Sinatra, in tribute to one of his greatest inspirations, the late singer and actor Frank Sinatra. Sinatra had the same blue eyes and boyish appearance as Logic, so the rapper found it the perfect persona to adopt. His fans are even called the Ratt (Real all the Time) Pack, after Frank Sinatra’s Rat Pack.
Logic manages to create lyrics filled with meaning and passion that tell story after story, all to catchy rhythms.
“People think rap is not poetry but it definitely is,” Logic said. “Great thought goes into every single word.”
Through his talent and image, Logic is rising fast to fame. His most recent mixtape, Young Sinatra: Undeniable, received over 100,000 downloads in less than a week. He performs all over the country in sold-out shows and is planning a summer tour.
Some may question his talent and ability to serve as a role model. He is a high school drop-out entering a field of music known for harboring gang bangers and advocating sex, violence, and drugs, but Logic believes in himself and his dream.
“I think education is extremely important, but I didn’t have it so I got into music,” Logic said. “It was the only place I could vent.”
A talented, intelligent musician and hard worker who came from poverty to a place where he has over 30,000 followers on Twitter and screaming fans chanting his name, Logic serves as inspiration and motivates fans every day to achieve their dreams.
“No matter what you want to achieve in life you need persistence, determination, and to want success more than your next breath,” Logic said. “Most people wouldn’t literally die for what they want, I would.”
