NASHVILLE, TN — It’s not too many high school seniors who will be handed a diploma in one hand and the keys to a very promising and exciting hip hop music career in the other. That is the situation for recording artist rapper/songwriter Rique (pronounced Reek). As soon as this the 18-year-oid hip hop phenom walks across the stage with his diploma from Cane Ridge High, he will almost immediately hit the road to promote his latest music titled “Wreaking Havoc.” “We’re going to go to different cities, and we’re going to work with some of the hottest artists in these cities when we arrive,” says Rique aka Caleb Jenkins. According to the Rique, he’s waiting to release a plethora of new material. “I’m waiting to release a new project that will have at least 20 or 30 songs,” he shares.
Jasper Howard (‘Jazz Tha Coach) founder of J Real Entertainment, discovered the young teen during a local hip hop show, and almost immediately signed him to his production company. “I was just so impressed by his talents, since he was so young. He has a cutting-edge style. His writing is on point and he’s good on stage,” says Jenkins, whose company is mentoring the teen, as he charts his way to hip hop stardom.
Rique may be young but he’s already racked up a rather impressive string of mixed tapes: ‘A Godbrothers,’ ‘The Comeback I’ and ‘The Comeback II.’ Some of his latest work can be found at the J. Real Entertainment site https://www.jrealent.com/
Rique was on his way to Atlanta earlier this week but as he made his way to the ATL, he answered 5 Questions for the Tribune.
TRIBUNE: Did you really start writing and spitting raps in the fifth grade? RIQUE: “Yeah. Fifth grade. And people can go and see how real it is. I got three to four mixtapes on www.datpiff.com from period from 2010 to 2012.”
TRIBUNE: Didn’t you write a song called “Wrist” when you were very young? RIQUE: “I did. It’s a pretty catchy song. When Jazz (Jasper Howard) first heard it, he loved it. That song is what brought us together. We just clicked.”
TRIBUNE: What is the song about? RIQUE: “Wrist watches! I used to do a lot of ‘trap music.’ So, Hey, why not do something’s that universal? Everybody wears watches, so why not have everybody lifting their wrists up and say, ‘Man, look at this bling on my wrist,’ you know?
TRIBUNE: What is the hip hop scene like in Nashville as compared to other cities these days? RIQUE: Man, one thing that Nashville has got more than any city and that’s talent. We got a lot of hip hop talent here. I think if everybody just learns how to love the talents and work with each other, it’ll get them a long way. So, all the hatred and stuff, it’s just gotta be thrown out the window. Everybody needs to work together, because that’s the only way. Nashville’s got so much talent, too many rappers for it not to be one that’s already out there on the national scene.”
Tribune: What is the hip hop scene like in Nashville as compared to other cities? RIQUE: Man, one thing that Nashville has got more than any city and that’s talent. We got a lot of hip hop talent here. I think if everybody just learns how to love the talents and work with each other, it’ll get them a long way. So, all the hatred and stuff, it’s just gotta be thrown out the window. Everybody needs to work together, because that’s the only way. Nashville’s got so much talent, too many rappers for it not to be one that’s already out there on the national scene.
TRIBUNE: So, are there any local rappers that you look up to and kind of want to mentor with? RIQUE: “I don’t really listen to the local music like that, but when I have, I really like the music of 615 Exclusive. That cat, he got a lot of exposure, and I been seeing him work since I was a little kid doing this. I was in middle school watching him. I also like Bree’s music too. Both of them got some come up stuff. They’ve got so much potential but they’re still not where they supposed to be. So, me and Jazz, J Real, we trying to show the world that somebody from Nashville that’s in hip hop can be pushed through the door to the big national success.”
Follow Rique at: www.officialrique.com Instagram Eyeamrique, and Facebook is Caleb Jenkins.
