Chicago’s J. D Walker Exclusive interview!

So, where are you from and what's it like in your hometown?

Im From the Westside of Chicago. 5 -10 minutes from Downtown in a neighborhood known as the 5th City community. My neighborhood is like a project without the buildings stacked ontop of each other but everybody knows each other and their families. So it is a pretty close nit community which covers a 2-3 city block radius in each direction. It was hard but there was alot of love at a time where the entire neighborhood raised the kids.

What inspired you to develop your craft as a music artist?

I started crafting my music talent the original way. The creation of hip hop where graffiti, breakdancing, pop locking and djing led to Mcs aka rappers.

Has the lifestyle of being a musician influenced your personal life in any way? If so would you care to shed light on your experience?

I would have to say it did because where im from, it is such a real life survival mode type of city to where people are not striving to be someonebor something that they cannot feel, touch, or see with their own eyes that something is authentic. And what i mean by that is, it was hard to be one of the first guys pushing Gangsta rap in a hood where nobody knew any rappers personally. So that was looked upon as just some new york or Cali type of vibe. Not Chicago. So i had to consistently make songs, posters, and copies of my music and give them to the big enfluencers in my neighborhood. Because if you didnt impress the street hustlers, players, and the pimps that you had a nice gift of gab, then nobody was gon take you serious at all. So back to your question, i definitely had to get more serious with thenlife i was living so these guys could see that i was real about what i was rapping about and that is what made them pay attention to me.

Who are some of the notable people that pushed you along your artistic path?

Well, mostly my family and cousins. They were some of the first people that i use to let hear my music and they saw that i was real good at it so they would give me money for studio time or take me shopping to make sure i always looked like i was somebody and not looking broke or starving. But yeah, i would say my family believed in me from the very beginning. But i also think that had something to do with the fact that i was a popular and talented athlete in school with multiple scholarship opportunities so they knew i knew that i could do whatever i put my heart into.

So tell us about your latest project…

Well, im just dropping singles right now im working on releasing singles every 90 days along with videos just to flood the market with my music while at the same time increasing my video visuals which ive been lacking in for years. So my latest 3 singles is "Pass Da Plate" , "So Devine" and "Ice In My Veins". Please check those songs out!

So what we can expect from you in the near future?

You can expect to see alot of video visuals on me on youtube and these other video sites because ive worked so hard and so long to build up an amazing catalog of over 2-300 songs that now im just excited to put them out 1 by 1 and let the people get a insight of my life and my life views.

Besides art, what other things do you find interesting?

The biggest and most exciting journey that ive been on lately besides the music is my clothing and shoe brand. Ive had them both for a little over 5 years now. My Fashion brand is called Bag Guy Apparel. It is an online dropshipping Fashion/ home decor brand for the entire family. You can check it out at bag-guyapparel.com . My Shoe line that ive accumulated over 60 pairs of men and women fashion shoes through a company out of Italy, where they personally hand make each and every pair of shoe that i design themselves. So when you purchaes a pair of "WALKAZ" aka Jdwalker Shoe Empire, your shoe will be handmade to order personally for your feet. Im in the process of getting the site up for that and ive been working on that for years but most people order the shoes from me personally through my social media sites.

Do you feel that the industry has lost its potency due to the social media uprise?

No. I think that the industry is in a perfect state of progress. And i know alot of people not gon like what i say because they feel like their not hearing what they like. But i seen this coming over 20 years ago. The reason they label me as the Godfather of the Chicago Gangsta Rap scene is because wasnt any rappers coming out of Chicago, from the streets, rapping about what we was doing and what was going on in our neighborhoods before me. Point blank period! And i did it all, up until this day, like Young Dolph, R.I.P. to that King, Independently! Because on the Westside of Chicago, the only music people was playing and hearing in clubs before they heard me was House Music. So back to your question, when youve been in this game and looking at everybpart of this business from an independent frame of mind, younwould see that this game is slowly but surely progressing the way it was designed to be in the beginning. The reason it took so long to get hear is because so many artist were so thirsty to get on that they sold their soul and their rights to keep the labels rich and that made the label be able to control who was gon make it or not. So after years of Prince, Michael Jackson, Patti Label, Master P, Rapalot, Young Dolph and others started standing up and saying we aint bout to do all this work just to turn everything over to a label who aint did not but rig the system so they can leech off us and suck us dry just so they can make the lion share of the profits?? From the very beginning of me putting out my music, i understood this concept and i never strayef away from it. So that is why the industry now is seeing these artist are now making crazy amounts of money because they have more control by being independent but its still a small fraction of what it should be. Independent has always been the way to go. Especially for us and our people who has been robbed of everything that we have done and created in this world. Never compromise your worth!

If you could do any other venture what would it be?

I would invest in major real estate and allow everyone of color to invest from all over the world to create affordable housing for everyone. Much money as this world makes and has, in 2024, no one anywhere should be homeless.

Any last remarks?

I want to thank you guys for interviewing me and allowing me to get my image, music and lifestyle to the masses. I believe that the world can only become a better place by supporting the right individuals who has proven to be dedicated to the uplifting and progress of the people sincerely.

https://open.spotify.com/user/1290861168?si=2zpSDQn7SEO6yEETGJ5Zrw

https://audiomack.com/jdwalkerchicago