Jensen Karp
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Hot Karl, born Jensen-Gerard Karp, is an American rapper. He does not claim to possess "street cred" or to be from rough backgrounds—he was raised in Calabasas, California[1]—but rather is drawn to hip-hop as an artform independent of its socioeconomic roots. Karl is often compared to MC Paul Barman and MC Serch, two other Jewish rap artists with relatively similar lyrical styles and suburban roots. Karl engaged in rap battling and freestyle at USC, during which time he took up the Hot Karl pseudonym.
Karl later entered the famous Roll Call freestyle competition on Los Angeles radio station Power 106, where he lasted a record 45 days on air to become the show's all-time champion.[2] Karl began collaboration with Limp Bizkit's DJ Lethal, creating a demo exhibiting his satirical style and tightly-wound rhymes. He eventually signed with Interscope Records, where he recorded what was to be his debut CD, Your Housekeeper Hates You, which included guest appearances by Redman, Kanye West, Will.i.Am, DJ Quik, Fabolous, Mýa, Sugar Ray, Celph Titled, DJ Clue and MC Serch. However, Interscope informed Karl that his CD could not be commercially released due to scheduling conflicts and he decided to leave Interscope.
Karl signed with EMI Music Publishing. [citation needed] and ended up releasing his debut CD, now titled "The Great Escape" on Headless Heroes Records. His music was featured in the video game NBA Live 2003 a game in which he was also a hidden character. His song, "Back/Forth," was also featured in the 2009 movie "It's Complicated." Jensen-Gerard Karp has went on to open Gallery1988:LA and Gallery1988:SF, two popular pop-art focused galleries in California, as well as co-write the book, "Just Can't Get Enough" for Abrams Books with Matthew Robinson. Gallery1988:LA is well known for its Kevin Smith-hosted annual show, "Crazy 4 Cult," where 100 artists reinterpret classic cult movies in their own style. Karp is also the brand manager and designer for Pete Wentz's Clandestine Industries. His marketing company, Tyson/Givens Design & Marketing recently created the LOST Underground Art Project (DamonCarltonAndAPolarBear.com) for the ABC television show's final season, a campaign noted by Entertainment Weekly as one of the most creative and unique fan outreach attempts of all time.
References
- ^ Leeds, Jeff (2002-11-11). "No Rap on Eminem: He Gets His Shot, His Opportunity, and Doesn't Let It Slip: Record labels trying to duplicate Eminem's cross-racial success are finding it difficult to make a connection with rap audiences". Los Angeles Times. p. A1.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Stirling, Stephen (2006-01-09). "Hot Karl: The Great Escape". PopMatters. Retrieved 2008-06-25.
http://www.undergroundhiphop.com/audio/detail.asp?ID=9127 - "Blao" single, original mix.