Break Bread

CHIANTI L. HOLMES STAGE NAME: PIMP-KEE Watching Pimp-Kee on stage is like watching a jackhammer smashing down the barriers of musical genres. His music - an infectious combination of west coast, east coast, and the dirty south's griminess- gets sliced, spliced and ferociously meshed into another, solidifying his status as a musical innovator. Though down-to-earth and unassuming, Pimp-Kee, the 28-year-old song writer, producer and studio engineer, radiates natural star power. Certainly, that quality is one of the reasons why the Virginia native has come up from the humble beginnings of distributing CDs out of the trunk of his car to assembling a rsum that would make any aspiring rapper green with envy. But his modesty is pale in comparison to the staggering number of hours he has logged in the recording studio, as well as his association with some of the biggest names in the hip-hop industry: he's opened up for Trae the Truth, Lil-Boosie and Plies just to name a few. As a young man, Pimp-Kee's military family forced him to travel back in forth from Charleston, S.C., New Orleans, La., and Oakland, Calif. It wasn't until moving to Houston, Texas however that he found a place called home. Pimp-Kee now resides in South West Alief Texas, better known as the S.W.A.

T to the Houston community, which is also the home of his fan base. Pimp- Kee, born Chianti Holmes, discovered his passion for making music in the summer of 1996. His older brother Ashianti took the then 16-year-old Pimp-Kee to platinum producer Mike-B's recording studio. The fire was set during that first studio session, PIMP-KEE says. I've been pursuing my dream of making it in the music business since that day. At 18 he began to try to make his life long-dream a reality when he started his own production company Fam-Tide-Music-Group in 1999. It was that year he began to perfect his craft of making beats. Pimp-Kee continues to bang out tracks with friend and mentor Mike B. Together they've released two mix CDs-The UNDERGROUND and The Fam Tide Mobsta's. Pimp-Kee makes a variety of dancefloor-worthy party hits on his CDS as well as tracks with substance to educate listeners on a variety of subjects like overcoming poverty and politics. While Pimp-Kee is a high tenor, the darker nature of his content is rooted from experience. Pimp-Kee said his inspiration comes from lives lost and lessons learned. He served a four year prison sentence that he won't discuss in depth. My music is like a non-fiction movie, Pimp-Kee says. It's a true testimony about what I've done, seen and heard. What sets Pimp-Kee apart from the rest is his work ethic, dedication and willingness to go outside the box. Pimp-Kee says he is very optimistic that his albums will place him amongst the elite in the hip- hop industry. PIMP - KEE.