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Ronin Gray | The Modern Day Samurai
Ronin Gray on the East Side of Los Angeles by Sal Rojas Photography
With an unstoppable spirit, young rap artist Ronin Gray is one of the undergrounds most anticipated upcoming artists of the New Year. He is truly on his way to becoming one of Latn Hip Hop's rising stars. On a life long marathon of trials and tribulations, rapper Ronin Gray was born into poverty and raised in Boyle Heights.
His love for music and unique artistic style comes from his hometown of East Los Angeles, where the streets are full of beautiful murals, sounds of culture and inspiration. Although a very positive intellectual, he also adapted to the dangers of his enviroment. Selling drugs and holding firearms at a young age was a daily survival tactic. At the age of fifteen, he was sentenced to a state facility where he served three years of a fourteen-year sentence. With a heart full of honor and intent on achieving a better life, Ronin surrounded himself with the people he needed to succeed in the tough music industry. His highly anticipated debut album "Takin' A Shot" was and still is in high rotation on the bootleg market. It is only through hard work and extreme amount of time and patience that Ronin Gray was able to achieve the impossible. "I'm making it happen just like I said I would, but I wouldn't be making sh** happen if it wasn't for God." Fifty thousand records sold independently in the last three years, rapper Ronin Gray is rapidly moving up in the ranks of status on the underground street scene. From New York to Miami, Chicago to Texas as well as his homebase of Los Angeles. By bombarding the market with real heart felt material, Ronin has the financial backing, support of his colleagues and a real strong hold on how he attends to his business. The young emcee states that he hopes to raise the bar for all the over saturated garbage being played on the radio.
Unlike many others on the rap scene Ronin Gray is all about staying true to himself. No gimmicks, what you see is what you get. From begging for pocket change on the corner of Brooklyn Ave and Soto in Boyle
Heights, to creating a lucrative and well organized franchise of crime followed by many other illegal actives outside of city limits. Ronin Gray strived for ways to legitimize his operations eventually
regrouping with long time friend and business partner Scripts Unlmtd, who then created Triple O Records. This was followed by the later initiation of Nostaljik and Raul Arteaga due to there loyalty and willingness to work for the Triple O. All are also equally commended for the success due to their contributions on Ronin Grays prior EP release "Takin' A Shot" (2004), "Simple People" (2005), Triple O Records Mix Tapes Vol. 1 & 2, and the latest release "Still So Dangerous" limited Edition CD/DVD (2006-2007).
Ronin Gray is at this point in time ready to set the example by showing that it is acceptable to be yourself in your music that is being produced as well as not to play in to record labels stereotypes on what is believed to boost record sales. "It's ok to love your culture and take pride in who you are. We should never sell ourselves short of that, for some of us our community is all we have. I am a product of my environment and that just happens to be Boyle Heights."
Definition of the name: RONIN (roŽnin) , in Japanese history, masterless samurai. Ronin were retainers who were deprived of their place in the usual loyalty patterns of Japanese feudalism. The daimyo they had served might have died, been exiled, or become so poor that the samurai had to abandon his lord. Ronin became farmers, monks, soldiers of fortune, or even bandits. In demand in times of war, they were often a burden on society in times of peace. In modern Japan, the term ronin is often given to high-school graduates who, having failed to pass college entrance exams, are preparing for another opportunity. GRAY Of or relating to an achromatic color of any lightness between the extremes of black and white. The name Ronin Gray Came from when my elders fell off into jail, drugs or death and I was left to fend for myself. It is to me as when a gang members gang is diminished and the only option to take is to go off independently. I still hold the same traits, respect and understand the laws of the land, I just lead myself now. I am my own master. Gray came in because that is the color that best defines my life, never black or white, nor wrong or right, evil or good , war nor peace, love nor hate, wisdom nor foolishness the list goes on. I believe that we all live our lives in a form of homeostasis. For as sweet as my life may seem it is as equally as bitter.
Ronin Gray - Pow Pow Pow - Music Video
Ronin Gray - I Feel Bad 4 U - Music Video
Ronin Gray - Still So Dangerous - Music Video
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