Houston’s Jamal HD is still only for the rest of the world

Jamal HD at the 2011 Kahbang Music Festival

Houston native and current above ground everywhere else and underground in Houston Rap Artist Jamal HD is in the studio of his good friend and producer V-DRO listening to a track titled “dreams” that is scheduled to be one of the selections on his third mixtape “HDMI”. He is only one third of the way thru with the track before he stops the track and in a disgruntle manner tells V-Dro that it will not make the cut. “The track it’s too plain, just not feeling it” it utters over the objection of V-Dro who clearly believes in the song strength.

Jamal HD, real name Jamal Jones wants HDMI to be as he put it “big enough for Houston to finally accept me. It’s been difficult to make it in my home town.” HD who earlier this year shot a music video in New York City’s Time Square and performed at the 2011 Kahbang Music Festival in Bangor, Maine understands the difficulty with breaking in big time in the fourth largest city in the nation. “If you can make it hear you can make it anywhere else.”

Jamal understands that with this being his third effort it is important to be able to gain new followers in a genre that is already flooded with artist.

“Im doing HDMI to leave a great impression on an already growing following. I get messages on Twitter from people in Europe and it makes me see the responsibility I have to my fans. Since I’m still new to a lot of people I want to make sure that all this production introduces my style and feel on timeless generated sounds. I see HDMI of being the start of where my career will be heading sound wise. “

Jamal who released his first mixtape Sin-thu-sis in  2010 and followed that months later with his largely successful  “The Mixtape with the Kung Fu Grip” is hoping that his latest effort will be this glass ceiling breaker that he is hoping for.

“I picked the title (HDMI) two months ago after a show in Houston.  Me and my manager Jordan were getting a bite to eat at Timmy Chan’s when he discussed me using some of my unreleased tracks from The Mixtape with a Kung Fu Grip for a mash up. Without thinking I came up with HDMI.”

HDMI in electronic world is a digital audio/video connector cable used to connect devices as a alternative to analog connection cable of yester year. It provides better quality sound and video.

“ I felt this project could be a great impression on a already growing following. I want this to be more defined than my last efforts. Sense I'm still new to a lot of people I made sure almost all production was sampled based to something people already know.”

Jamal who is sometimes referred to the shorten stage name “HD”, is at odds with whether he should have a heavy promotion for his particular sound in Houston. “I have a huge fan base up north and oversees, but breaking in here in my back yard has been depressing” he laughs.  “My first tape (Sin-thu-sis) was really liked in the UK and The Mixtape with the Kung Fu Grip was a big success up north and in the UK. I am just ready for Houston and Texas to embrace me on this one.”

Read here about what Re-Up Spot said about Jamal HD latest mixtape here

Jamal can be followed on Twitter: @jamalwuzhere