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Biography
Ever notice that when you listen to New York radio the rotation of rappers you’re listening to hasn’t changed since the year 2002? The airwaves are still dominated by Jay-Z, Nas, Diddy, 50 Cent, Dip Set, and Fat Joe, just to name a few. Meanwhile, the Big Apple is stuck in a rut of monotony, and most New Yorkers are convinced that the game isn’t what it used to be. But maybe the game isn’t the issue at all – perhaps it’s the players. It’s time for some new blood. Time for the emergence of fresh talent to identify with a new era of hip-hop fans. It’s time for Maino.
Having used the mixtape circuit to cull a strong following, Brooklyn, NY native Maino is no longer his borough’s best-kept secret. The swagger-rich MC is now in a position to present a brand-new look to hip-hop with his debut Hustle Hard/Atlantic album, If Tomorrow Comes… “I don’t want to say let’s bring New York back, but let’s bring New York forward,” he says. “And the only way to bring it forward is to breathe new life into it. That’s how you keep hip-hop alive, you give birth to the new. I want to be the one bringing that new life.” Surely bold proclamations from rappers are nothing new, but with Maino it’s his captivating approach that’s refreshing. “I’m not trying to be the next anybody,” he says. “I can’t do what Jay-Z does. I can’t do what Diddy, 50, or Wayne can do. I can’t do what Big or Pac did. I can only be me and master what I do.”
And what Maino does is blend gritty lyricism with riveting street flair, combined with a magnetic confidence that’s both hard enough for the fellas and appealing to the ladies. It’s a proven formula that all the greats utilize, and it has come through in his music, starting with buzzworthy mixtape joints like “Rumors,” “All Eyez On Me,” and “The Diary.” “I come to the people as one of them,” he says. “I’m not Hollywood. I’m coming from the ground up, trying to get to the top.”
Able to overcome a daunting ten-year incarceration, Jermaine “Maino” Coleman made the transition from nobody to somebody look relatively easy. However, the journey was anything but trouble-free. Raised in the heart of Bed-Stuy Brooklyn – Nostrand Ave to be exact – Maino developed an affinity for hip-hop during the genre’s classic ’88 era. Legends such as Rakim, KRS-One, and Brooklyn’s own Big Daddy Kane were some of his early inspirations. In fact, Maino’s fondest memories were the late-night radio mix shows that he’d record. “I’d make my lil’ tapes so I could have something to play for me and my friends,” he recalls. “I wasn’t really writing rhymes yet; I was doing it because I was such a fan.”
Unfortunately for Maino, the golden era of hip-hop coincided with the crack epidemic in America’s urban communities. Music was unable to shield the tough Brooklyn kid from the effects of the plague. As a youngster he saw both his parents succumb to drug addictions. “I watched my dad go from being a good father to a fiend,” he says. “My mom developed her own little habit, but she never let herself get to the point where she was in the streets.” Barely a teenager, Maino was forced to fend for himself and his younger brother. Committing petty crimes became a means of survival, which snowballed into ‘bigger problems. By the early ‘90s Maino found himself in the middle of a “drug related kidnapping” that led to a 5-to-15 years prison sentence. “We didn’t really know what we were doing,” he recalls. “We had a great idea, I guess, but we wound up getting caught.”
During his decade-long prison term Maino caught the emcee bug as a result of boredom. “I’d be in the box for twenty-three hours a day,” he recalls. “I just started rapping as something to do. I feel like hip-hop kept me alive.” While listening to DJ Clue mixtapes featuring some of “Brooklyn’s Finest” – Notorious B.I.G, Jay-Z, Lil’ Kim – the vibe only got stronger. Maino adopted the “no writing” technique of emceeing. “I was never comfortable writin
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