French Montana & Jeremih to Play Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas, 12/20

Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas, recently named "Best Live Music Venue" by Las Vegas Weekly and "Best New Venue" by Vegas Seven, is thrilled to announce French Montana & Jeremih live at Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas.

Ticket Info: Tickets are available online at www.ticketfly.com, vegas.brooklynbowl.com, or to charge tickets by phone, call 702.862.2695. Tickets available also at the Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas box office open daily at noon.

The streets are talking: French Montana is one of the hottest rappers in the game right now. And what the streets want, the streets shall get.

The Bronx representing rapper waded through a fierce bidding war when several labels began taking interest. Among these, were Def Jam, Warner Bros. and Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music. Yet, when all was said and done, Montana came afloat announcing that he was ready to ride the wave with hip hop impresario Sean "Diddy" Combs' Bad Boy Records (via Interscope Records).

The partnership, made possible due to Bad Boy president Harve Pierre, makes perfect sense. The label has earned a reputation of igniting the careers of bubbling street artists, transforming them into steaming hot hip hop game changers; a path which fit into French Montana's vision.

Born Karim Kharbouch in Casablanca, Morocco, Montana immigrated to New York City with his family at age 13. His parents, seeking greater opportunity than what they could find in their native land, settled in The Bronx. While fluent in French and Arabic, Montana spoke only a small bit of English. However, he quickly became acclimated to Bronx culture, partly through his infatuation for hip-hop; an obsession which would later become his profession.

"I just love hip-hop. [At first] the rapping was just a hobby," explains Montana. "I figured out it was a career when I got my first check, [after] I came out with the Cocaine City DVD. It was a winner from the jump."

"Winning," it was; but Montana is no new jack that got lucky. This shot caller's come up dates back almost a decade. When street DVD's were king, Montana's Cocaine City series, which he began dropping in 2002, were grassroots video royalty. Featuring raw and uncut interviews with both up-and-coming and established artists like Jadakiss, 50 Cent and Young Jeezy, each volume was also interspersed with music from Montana himself. "The DVDs were always the plan for me to get on as far as rapping," says Montana. "It was a platform. It was a stepping stone."

The next step in his journey to rap riches was solidifying his growing fanbase by dropping great music. Acclaimed projects including his Mac & Cheese and Coke Wave series of mixtapes established his rep as a hustler with legit rhyme skills that listeners could steadily gravitate to. Mixtapes, viral videos and songs like "Choppa Choppa Down," featuring Waka Flocka Flame, only heightened Montana's buzz.

That buzz was amplified with the release of his single, "Shot Caller," in 2011. The song became a runaway smash, earning major airplay across the nation and certifying Montana as the next big rapper out of NYC. "I just caught on fire. They say every couple of years someone comes and sweeps the streets," says Montana. "First it was DMX, then it was 50. I guess it's my turn now."

His decade long journey to the top has not come without its own set of trials and tribulations-the greatest of these, a late night shooting of which Montana fell victim. All of his struggle, as well as success, will no doubt come to light on his debut album, Excuse My French, which is due out this year.

The album, which is being executive produced by Diddy and Rick Ross, with Harve Pierre serving as co-executive producer, has already been named by Complex Magazine as one of the "most anticipated albums of 2012." The project features several guest appearances, including: Max B, Drake, Rick Ross (and the rest of the Maybach Music Group), Bad Boy and of course his Coke Boys crew (Chinx Drugz, Charlie Rock, Cheeze and Flip). Production will be handled mostly by longtime collaborator Harry Fraud ("Shot Caller").

While the streets patiently await Montana's highly anticipated official debut, he continues to stay in the mix. Having become highly sought after as a guest artist, he has lent his talents to Rick Ross' smash street single, "Stay Schemin," as well as Akon's, "Hurt Somebody." XXL Magazine recognized and placed Montana on the magazine's annual Freshman Class list which highlights rappers on the rise. And recently, Montana dropped yet another fiery mixtape, Coke Boys 3. He plans to drop Mac & Cheese 3 in the near future.

Following through on the enormous expectations he has built up for himself is a matter of keeping his ear to the streets. "I just pay attention to what people say," offers Montana, who is currently a featured act on Drake's Club Paradise Tour. "The people chose me. You can't come out and say you hot. The people gotta choose you."

The people have spoken. Now please, excuse French Montana as he cooks up more hits.

"I can make a great sex song anytime I want, without even saying a body part, without saying anything that would be omitted on the radio. Somehow I've just been given that ability," Jeremih remarks matter-of-factly, not even the hint of a mischievous grin on his face. The man knows his talent, and his calling card. And as enviable as that talent is, no man of Jeremih's intelligence and versatility would be satisfied in a pigeonhole: "In no way do I feel that 'Birthday Sex' defines me as an artist, or defined my first album. People are quick to make comparisons: 'he's the next R. Kelly, he's the next Dream.' That's flattering talk but we're all different, as people and as artists."

Indeed, 23-year-old Jeremih Felton has planted his own flag among the glittering banner acts at Def Jam: "I feel like I'm on the best label I could be on; I'm not intimidated by anyone musically, and I'm honored and inspired by the artists around me. There were a lot to choose from, a lot of labels were interested in a short period of time, but I didn't get this far by making bad decisions. And to be blessed with L.A. Reid's thoughts and even his critiques, I couldn't ask for anything more."

So the stage is set for Jeremih's sophomore album, All About You, dropping September 28th. The singer/ rapper/producer/multi-instrumentalist has again aligned with producer Mick Schultz to deliver eleven songs long on sophistication, sex appeal, and even some old soul. "Mick and I have a great chemistry; we entered the game together, and we have albums' worth of music," Jeremih imparts. "I want him to get known too; I'm not selfish like this has to be the Jeremih show. This album is a great showcase for his ability as well as my own. Once people hear this album, others will recognize what I recognized in him and reach out for more of what we create."

What they create is a sonic palate ranging from subtle savoir-faire to unapologetic, house-shaking climax. First single "I Like," featuring labelmate Ludacris and co-written by Keith James, is pure babymaking bliss. Jeremih's uncanny falsetto wends into Ludacris' irresistible, irrepressible flow, bobbing and weaving with Schultz's bubbly, scaled-back rhythm. Elsewhere, the titular track is a languid 4/4 offset by sawing high-octave synth riffs. But Jeremih's vocals, smacking of a young Michael, steal the show. Rare is a falsetto this controlled, this textured, this evocative. Listen for it also on "Take Off," what Jeremih terms a relationship record told from the lesser-heard male point of view: "Guys have feelings too, guys get hurt, and this record expresses that. There's a point when we feel like we've done enough in trying to work this out, and now it's best if I take off for the both of us. I can say I been there, but I also hear this from a lot of peers. Women can relate to it too, even if it's not from their perspective."

"Down on Me" featuring 50 Cent is a supersmash in the waiting. 50 unleashes an insistent, machine-gun flow, while Jeremih contorts himself through some outrageous vocal acrobatics. His voice, spiced with an island cadence, bends and stretches about one of the nastiest hooks R&B has seen in quite some time. "Down on Me" is definitely a song to be up on. "I've always respected 50 and always wanted to work with him," Jeremih notes. "I wanted to reach out to a couple artists who could bring to the table what I know I do."

Jeremih doesn't lack for confidence. Nor should he. A native of the unforgiving Southside Chicago ?"a city full of talent"? streets, Jeremih kept to a positive path, honing his prodigious musical chops on saxophone, drums, and piano. He graduated high school a year early and enrolled at the University of Illinois as a prospective engineering major. Bookworm by day, beatmaker by night. "I write off beats," Jeremih reveals. "I'm a producer myself, that's how I thought I'd initially get into the game. After a while, I just got to writing to the beats. And at the time, I was rapping, not singing." Indeed, the U of I campus couldn't hold Jeremih; he transferred to Columbia College, one of Chicago's preeminent creative schools.

"That's where I met Mick Schultz and started vibing with him," he continues, "And began singing over his beats, because that's what a lot of his stuff called for at the time. But singing and rapping both came natural; that stemmed from playing instruments growing up. Playing the piano taught me how to sing, or at least how to sound out, reach, and hold notes."

Jeremih holds notes, and court, on All About You. The album has a depth, a sense of growth, an exploratory side. "The Five Senses" is a slow, sultry firestarter featuring Jeremih's peerless tone. Then there's "Broken Down," full of ominous piano chords and cadenced like a frozen moment in jazz or soul lore. And "Holding On," the subsequent track: "After being broken down, you gotta keep holding on," Jeremih affirms. "It's about trying to see the future when you're going through something in the moment that's getting you down. I played this for my Grandpops and a lot of older listeners and they really responded to it. I'm proud of this song and how far I've come as an artist."

Jeremih has other reasons to be proud. Concurrent with his album release, he'll be appearing on the second season of BET's popular series, Rising Icons. Icons, presented by Grey Goose vodka, pulls back the curtains and chronicles the lives of rising stars, both at home and on tour. Jeremih will share the spotlight with fast risers such as J. Cole, Estelle, Laura Izibor, and B.O.B. Elsewhere, he's been honing his pen game for other ballyhooed newcomers, including Jenna Andrews, for whom he and Mick wrote "Tumblin' Down," her debut single on Island Records. "I write what I feel, and with the pitch of my voice, I can write for a man or a woman," he states. "My voice just has the ability to do a lot of different things."

Speaking of different things, fans yearning for even more Jeremih can cop the Deluxe version of All About You, available via iTunes and featuring several tracks not on the physical CD. Expect also a Jeremih mixtape, on which the young star does as much spitting as singing: "I rapped a little on my last album with 'Raindrops,' and people asked 'Who was that?' Now, I have some new stuff that I went hard on that just didn't fit with the theme of this album. So I'm looking forward to the mixtape to let people see that side of me. A lot of singers try to do it, and it can either A) turn all your fans away like 'You need to stick to singing, fam' or B) get you respect as being able to do both. I can put rhyme to a melody and have it accepted."

It's been a whirlwind couple years for Jeremih, first setting the Midwest ablaze with his indy anthem "My Ride," following that up with the RIAA-certified platinum "Birthday Sex," a nomination for an American Music Award, and now, an imminent sophomore album. "I've almost traveled the world in a year, and that's an amazing experience. I now know what to expect this time around. When I do shows, I perform every song off the last album. People still want to hear those songs live, and those are from a year ago. So I'm excited to see the response to this material." Jeremih recognizes that without his dedicated fans, none of these amazing experiences would be possible. That is why, on September 28th, he would like to tell each and every one of them it's "All About You".

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