Reason the Citizen is recording his first solo album debut entitled, "Broke For Free", which is set to be released under Fameless Entertainment February 19th, 2009. This highly anticipated solo release is expected to open big doors for this up and coming emcee. After almost ten years of steady involvement in the world of Hip Hop, Reason the Citizen is destined to leave a lasting impression on any listener. Be on the lookout for upcoming single releases and don't forget, February 19th, 2009! Broke For Free.

Reason the Citizen: The Story

On the day the great Notorious B.I.G. turned 13, (May 21, 1985) Reason the Citizen, born Richard Martinelli, came into the world in Torrence, CA. At age six, his family moved from Long Beach to sunny Oceanside, CA. His love for hip hop was realized at a young age when at only 8 years old, his Christmas list included Snoop Doggy Dogg's "Doggystyle", Dr.Dre's "The Chronic" and Cypress Hill's "Black Sunday". Although his mother refused to allow her son to listen to such violent and offensive music, thanks to a generous babysitter, he got all three tapes that year and kept them well hidden from his parents. By age 9, he knew all the words to "Dre Day", "Gin n' Juice" and "C.R.E.A.M.", well before he knew what they even meant. It was clear that his love for Hip Hop would play a significant role in his future. At age 15, he met local Oceanside emcee, Issac the Osiris, who influenced him to try freestyling after hearing him recite some difficult verses from some of there favorite rappers. Reason the emcee was born. After a year or so of being strictly a freestyle emcee, Reason along with Issac the Osiris, formed "Paragon Army", a short lived crew with little more than high school recognition. The two met Tactik, a local producer, and began recording tracks, using only a computer and a Bob Barker style karaoke microphone with a sock over it. Eventually, Paragon Army combined forces with three other local emcees and created "Abyss Prophets", who went on to play several succesful local shows as well as a very small US tour. After creative differences, Abyss Prophets broke up, and Reason (Now Reason the Citizen), along with fellow AP emcee Concept, approached their friend and also emcee Mark My Words. The three became "Natural Selection", and went on to play more than 50 shows throughout southern California that year. Unfortunately, the crew split up before finishing their album. Frustrated but not ready to quit, Reason began splitting live sets with his high school friend and emcee Tacs, who had also recently split from his crew Pandoras Box. Eventually, the two began traveling up and down California, Nevada and Arizona playing shows under the moniker "The Box". During this time period, Reason released his first "album" entitled "Survival Plus". It wasn't much more than a burned CD with a home printed album cover. However it helped greatly with his reputation and popularity. After more than a year straight of traveling and playing shows, Reason's girlfriend became pregnant with his daughter. Although he did not want to, it was necessary for Reason to take a break from making music and playing shows, to straighten out his financial situation. On July 7th, 2007, Reason married his girlfriend Amber Ralston, and on October 20th, 2007, she gave birth to his Daughter Sofia-Lynn. Now, almost two years of absence in the Hip Hop world, Reason the Citizen is recording his first real solo debut entitled, "Broke For Free", which is set to be released under Fameless Entertainment February 19th, 2009. This highly anticipated solo release is expected to open big doors for this up and coming emcee. After almost ten years of steady involvement in the world of Hip Hop, Reason the Citizen is destined to leave a lasting impression on any listener. Be on the lookout for upcoming single releases and don't forget, February 19th, 2009! Broke For Free.