Hello Mr. Carter ;) Wow. Check out my interview with Johnnie Mae, best up and coming rapper featured in the book trailer for GLITZ…

As most of you know, my fourth novel, Glitz, hits the shelves on February 3.

Well, you probably also know that we recently launched the official book trailer for Glitz as well.

Originally, I wanted to use music from two of my favorite rappers (Lil Wayne and DMX) for the trailer. And then my book editor suggested that, in the spirit of Glitz, perhaps we should consider using an up-and-coming rapper instead. How fitting. And what a wonderful idea! (Thank you, Joy!)

Piper MC, the rapper featured in Glitz, is an up-and-coming artist with all the promise in the world.  So, of course, I absolutely agreed with the suggestion. And so the idea to have a nationwide contest for best up-and-coming rapper was born!

We put out a national call to up-and-coming rappers, deejays, managers, publicists, and just about everyone that I knew might be looking for an extra opportunity for exposure on their journey to success. Entries came from all over the country!

From there, I assembled a team of voters–fellow rappers, deejays, radio personalities, hip-hop enthusiasts, and talent managers–and even though the competition was fierce, by unanimous decision, the winner was rapper Johnnie Mae. Her song, “Go Hard”, is featured in the trailer for Glitz, which will be posted throughout the internet in 2011.

Johnnie Mae

And so, here is my interview with Johnnie Mae: