Cormega - The Mad Rapper

Cory 'Cormega' McKay is the Mad Rapper.

Rap aficionados are introduced to the Madd Rapper as a skit on Notorious B.I.G.'s second LP, 1997's Life After Death. The artist [Deric Angelettie] has written several albums - yet has been unable to achieve commercial success. The rapper is baffled by the new found celebrity of Biggie Smalls, whose work is less 'John Blaze,' or of lesser quality than his own personal lyricism. The Madd Rapper becomes agitated with the female interviewer and challenges the host to question his provocative stance.

Enter Cormega. The Long Island City, Queens artist is revered within the underground set - yet his style has been largely dismissed from radio air play. Ironically, the Queensbridge Housing projects from which Cormega hails have been an effective breeding ground for such notable acts as Capone-n-Noreaga, Mobb Deep, and Nasir Jones.

Contrary to his high-pitched delivery, Mega's subject matter is indeed, sinister. His gritty message profiling the shadows of New York City reigns supreme over the dark melodies of the concrete jungle. Cormega performs with a calculated rage of a mid-level hustler that has been forced into a lifestyle of quick money, fast living, and the ever-present threat of total loss.

Cory McKay witnessed the murder of his own mother at the age of four and has directed his anger towards the street, recording booth, and all adversaries, real or imagined, ever since.

His vocabulary and depth pertaining to his alternative world is captivating. McKay's rap career is a consequence of his stepmother forcing a young Mega to read one book per week. The literature spawned a love of words and poetry that translated into rap. In spite of this woman's positive influence - the surrounding environs of shootouts, drug deals, and mayhem resulted in Cormega's forty-month incarceration bid at Riker's Island.

Nas' classic 1994 debut album, Illmatic introduced Cory McKay to the world with One Love, a masterful track featuring a letter penned to the jailed Mega. 

Upon his 1995 release, McKay's voice is heard on Nas' Affirmative Action. The track introduced The Firm, an All-Star rap group of Nas, Foxy Brown, AZ, and Cormega. Cory McKay was signed to Def Jam and recorded The Testament, shortly thereafter. Contract disputes and creative disagreements led to Mega being unceremoniously dumped from The Firm - replaced by Nature at the behest of Nas' manager, Steve Stoute. The Testament was shelved indefinitely, and the happenings incited a long standing feud with Nas, the most successful rap artist hailing from Queens, NY. 

In 2000, Cormega, having already established his street credibility as a budding gangster, engaged the underground, mix-tape circuit - earning respect with a microphone, as opposed to a semi-automatic. McKay then established Legal Hustle Records - releasing four albums and one DVD under the label. His 2001 debut effort, The Realness achieved a Billboard 200 position of twenty-fourth, and his 2002 sophomore recording The True Meaning was designated as The Underground album of the Year by Source Magazine.

 

Cormega openly wrestles with the ironies of a Queens culture of thuggery. The words illustrate this man of ironies - expressing remorse for the dealing of narcotics that exacerbate the failures of its users, and destroy the lives of the innocent - while reconciling his behavior as a direct consequence of his rugged environment. McKay struggles with the pain of accepting a street lifestyle that led to the murder of his own mother, debating whether he is in fact, destined for Hell on The Saga, track number four of The Realness. 

Mega brazenly attacks the career paths of commercial, radio friendly rappers that wax poetic about a street code of which they lack knowledge. Nasir Jones is often the implicit and obvious target of this Master of Ceremony's [MC's] scathing diction.

Cormega presents himself as a trusted ally and street tough whose persona and early affiliation with Nas acted to launch the impressive career of his fellow Queensbridge resident. Mega is dismayed and outraged by the lack of respect that he has been awarded - ridiculing the slight monetary gesture of the rich and famous Nas on True Meaning's Love in Love Out following his release from prison:

'You gave me $100 when I came home.'

Cory McKay's calculated discourse of inner-city turmoil risks degenerating into the haunting poetry of a woman scorned - the obsession over a detached target. Cormega articulates that the rift is the consequence of an innate jealousy resonating from Nas towards himself. The MC intimates that a street badge of courage is more valuable to a man than international acclaim, a beautiful wife, Kelis, and certified status as one of the greatest rappers of all time.

Conclusions

1. Raw talent is nothing without execution. The landscape is littered with geniuses that lacked the organization and business savvy to properly exploit their own skills.

2. Smart diversification is all-important. Notorious B.I.G. capitalized upon a formula that combined radio-friendly music written for women, club hoppers, and suburbanites; along with a catalogue of street anthems, which effectively maintained a level of respect within his core base. Cormega, The Mad Rapper dismissed said strategy, and concentrated his vocals upon crack dealing, gun fire, and violence. Although his efforts have been recognized by a relatively small group of followers, he has been unable to capture a large fandom with such subject matter. 

3. Do not rely upon the strength of another for your own success.