Every Sunday morning, millions of
people wake up and head to church to hear a preacher praising a higher being. Now,
the streets have their own preacher to listen to. Born Martin Estevez (pronounced Mar-teen) to Columbian and White parents,
but given the rap name “Preach” by a friend because he “spoke like a preacher whenever he was passionate
about something”, Preach’s voice and lyrics evoke emotions for the masses.
Though constantly on the move as
an adolescent, Preach has always called the city he was born in, Richmond, CA, home.
Raised between the values of a strong Latin family and the rough streets of Richmond,
Preach attained the balance needed to survive in a city that is notorious for crime and hustling. He grew up making the common mistakes of the young and misguided, but always managed to stay focused on
two things; his love for money, and most of all, his love for music.
Preach turned to his love for music
and money to follow a career path that would set his mind free from the everyday struggle of the streets. He started rapping at age 12.
At 18, he decided to take rap seriously
and focus on his dream. He signed his first deal with an independent label out
of Oakland, Ca. Straight Hits Entertainment.
In 2003, Preach instantly generated a buzz
from the “Bay Area Playas 5” compilation when his first single, “Bad Misses,” debuted on Wild 94.9,
th most popular radio station in San Francisco.
The song quickly started to gain momentum and was featured on the stations Top 7 requested songs of the day for an
entire month. “Bad Misses” also received spins in Miami, Hawaii,
Texas, and other states.
After a few years with Straight Hits,
Preach decided to part ways with the label and is now concentrating on his debut album, “From AM to PM,” on his
own Preach On It Entertainment.
“From AM to PM,” features
what Preach likes to call “pain, rain, and gain.” It’s everything you would expect from a street savvy veteran;
conscious issues, pimping, partying, and hustling. With production from some of the hottest up-and-coming producers like Cho
Boogie, Cloud 9, the Network, Omen, Gennessee, Maxwel Smart, Ricky “R&B” Brown, and Bay Area veterans like
EA-Ski and Sam Bostic, “From AM to PM,” is destined to be a sure fire hit.
For Preach, the title of the album serves a double meaning. It fits the
everyday hustle that he is on, and symbolizes the difference between day and night or the two sides to his life; good and
bad, street and business.
Comparing himself to no other rapper,
Preach is a one of a kind lyricist with his own versatile, smooth, clever, and witty style.
His style shines through on his first underground single, “2nd 2 None,” produced by Cho Boogie. The concept of the ground breaking single sums up what Preach is all about: being real, a leader, motivated,
confident, intelligent, outspoken, a teacher, a hustler, and of course a pimp.
In his 26 years of life, Preach has
over come many obstacles. All the while he has managed to stay focused on his
dreams and is well on his way to making a name for himself in the music industry – Preach on playa.
“Life is what you make of it. You can’t expect for things to just happen unless you make them happen! If you don’t have goals and determination, it’s easy to lose focus and
waste your life away doing nothing.” - Preach
