A self-pronounced “lyrical philosopher,” Dante Maurice is a refreshing artist. Born on the South side of Chicago, Illinois, Dante received his fair share of violence, pain and poverty at a very young age. Through hard-ship and adversity, he was forced to grow up very quickly. He learned that the world was a harsh place. He lived in Englewood, Chicago until his mother, Marianne Martinez, decided it was time to relocate when he was 8 years old. She moved him to the Southeast side of San Antonio, Texas. There he began to experience what it was to have a family and gained plenty of friends along the way. He developed a love for football and basketball, but most importantly, his ears began to grow fond of music. Having an interracial background, he was exposed to a plethora of genres; from Hip-Hop and R&B, to Rock and Country. After attending one year of High School, his mother decided she would once again relocate. Dante ended ...
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A self-pronounced “lyrical philosopher,” Dante Maurice is a refreshing artist. Born on the South side of Chicago, Illinois, Dante received his fair share of violence, pain and poverty at a very young age. Through hard-ship and adversity, he was forced to grow up very quickly. He learned that the world was a harsh place. He lived in Englewood, Chicago until his mother, Marianne Martinez, decided it was time to relocate when he was 8 years old. She moved him to the Southeast side of San Antonio, Texas. There he began to experience what it was to have a family and gained plenty of friends along the way. He developed a love for football and basketball, but most importantly, his ears began to grow fond of music. Having an interracial background, he was exposed to a plethora of genres; from Hip-Hop and R&B, to Rock and Country. After attending one year of High School, his mother decided she would once again relocate. Dante ended up in small town 5 miles south of Austin, Texas. There he began to develop his mental, intellectual, lyrical and melodic abilities through countless readings, writings, freestyle sessions and rap battles.
After graduating high school at the age of 16, Dante found himself in a difficult predicament. He had an undying love for the game of basketball. He was not highly-recruited due to a lack of playing time on his high school team. In the wake of countless tryouts, Dante winded up landing a point guard position at a junior college in Jacksonville. Through innumerable early morning workouts and a vigorous training cycle, he found himself a set of new skills; diligence and humility.
Dante graduated his junior college, Lon Morris, and obtained an Associate’s degree in Business Administrations. He then found himself at St. Edward’s University back in Austin, Texas. There he began to find his true self. He became a Philosophy major and started to deeply analyze the world and humanity for what it truly is. Using his prior knowledge and experience he realized that there is no such thing as a bad person, only bad situations. With this new passion for the arts, he began to create depictions of the world around him. He began speaking for those with no voice. He became a being of positive energy. He became Nawm$aiyan.
Nawm$aiyan is not an alter ego of Dante Maurice. Nawm$aiyan is the ascended form of the man who seeks truth and knowledge. Knowledge brings power. Power breeds wealth. Wealth produces the opportunity to support, comfort and relieve. With musical influences such as: Nasir Jones, Tupac Shakur, Jermaine Cole, Sean Carter, Louis Armstrong, Erykah Badu, Wasalu Muhammad Jaco and Yasiin Bey, Dante Maurice’s ultimate goal is to bring color to a world filled with shades of grey. He intends on bringing peace to a world devastated by chaos, cruelty, greed and selfishness.
Although Dante Maurice has only released one official EP, On Your Mark, he intends to create plenty of positive, truthful compositions throughout his musical career. His legend is not set in stone, but he will one day become the mountain.
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