DJ JUAN COON PRESENTS GENE GROOVE ALLEN Perspective on Let It Breathe

I know for me I see things so simple now and through this simple flow I find
creativity in real simple things, simple words, even simple events. I don’t want to
sound redundant, but I walk in faith and all the things that I write about, rap
about, think about when it comes to my music comes from him.

When you’re in your creative mode I’m not going to say lonely but by going
through your processes and doing the things that nowadays artists need to do
can be so time consuming. Your family & friends sometimes must take a
backseat to meetings, postings, song writing, show practicing, traveling back and
forth to the studio. When I was younger in my group Groove B Chill, we all had
tunnel vision. Get the job completed, the songs done, practice completed no
matter what the cost. This didn’t sit to well with my girlfriend at the time who is
now my wife, and we ended up separating for almost 10 years (another story
within itself lol). It makes your family, friends and others think that you don’t want
to be bothered. it can be very, very lonely because you begin to see things
through tunnel vision so to speak, and you tend to not be engaged with your
loved ones and even when you are physically in the presence of your loved ones,
I’ve been told that I’m not really there (OK, I’m thinking about social media post,
how I need to start that 3 rd chorus on the new song, or how much time do I have
before I need to start thinking about another song). What I had to do was
purposely set up moments with my family, with my friends and made sure that I
kept my phone in the other room. I also try to schedule things I need to do and or
tasks to complete when it comes to my music to do it from 5AM – 7AM and then
once everyone goes to bed from 9:30PM – 11: PM. This allows me to put focus
on loved ones when they are up and around and still leaves me time to be the
artist I need to be.

I love spending time with my family and working out in some sort of way and that
seems to be my true passions that fuel me, guides me, gives me ideas,
incentives as well as gives me my WUSAAAAAH when I need it. Working out
helps me as I remember songs that I love to listen to, and I’ll hear a beat or a
theme and that helps me dig a little deeper into my own songs I’m creating

Before my 1 st record deal with Tommy Boy records with the Rock Squad I was
going to be a Police Officer in Suffolk County NY (that wasn’t my thing, so I

declined the job). By the time I got signed with my group Groove B Chill I was
working as a mental hygiene therapy aide at some of the Psychiatric Centers on
Long Island. This was taking care of the mentally challenged population for a few years. I
became a Licensed Practical Nurse, a Series 7/63 Financial Advisor, a bank
manager, a business banker and a commercial lender for small businesses.
Growing up I slung chicken at Churches Fried Chicken, Hamburgers at Jack in
The Box and security guard to construction sites at night on the highways.

I think the scariest moment while pursuing our careers that brought us to the
movie screen was while we were filming “House Party” the original. The Hudlin
brothers had brought us out to LA, and we were put up in an apartment in the
Crenshaw area. Now we, being from NY, was wearing our Shirt Kings from
Queens varsity jackets which were black/gold representing our record label
Uptown Records. Well, we were walking back from the supermarket getting food
to cook and this smoked out 225 and the window in the back was slightly rolled
down. We could see that there was a rifle barrel staring us in the face and the
driver shouted, “WHAT SET ARE YOU???”, “WHAT SET ARE YOU???” We
immediately shouted - “We are NY rappers/actors and filming, we’re just regular
guys, please don’t shoot”. The guy in the back said we “They ain’t down with a
set!!!” and they sped off. We immediately ran like lightening to our apartment,
called NY to the Uptown office and screamed that they better find us a spot
before we DIE!!! Real story.

I think artist bring beauty, awareness, love, education, entertainment to the world
that we live in. Now, I also believe that we can bring negative viewpoints,
undesirable images, and a whole bag of things that society doesn’t need. This is
where an individual has to make their choices of who they are, how they want to

be viewed and what they want to be known for after they have gone (body of
work).

I’m so glad you asked that. So, in the movie “House Party” the original, I was
seen dancing like a guy out of control who bumped the girl into the wall shelf, and
then dancing with Kid of Kid n Play who fell out in the kitchen, during the dance
battle scene. Although that movie was almost 30 years ago, people still ask,
“GROOVE, can you still move like you did in the movie”. My goal in the dance
song, HYPE man genre is to dance like Chris Brown, Usher as I entertain the
audiences inviting people on stage or in the arena and dancing with them,
engaging them and giving them a show that they were truly part of.

My definitions have so much changed from when I first started in this business to
now. I told my producer that although I have been here before, I thank him
because I have never been here before. I mean by saying, when I was signed to
Uptown, we did things as a group, made decisions as a group and did great
things. But now I’m able to define my own voice, create my own flow as well as
do things as an artist that we didn’t do or have the chance to do. So, for me, my
success is being here, looking at my creative growth, viewing the fans’ reactions
to my music, to my words. I measure this by the smiles on people’s faces, looking
at my immediate family and seeing how they feel about my journey and when I
close my eyes at night and really reflect and give thanks for where I am at this
very moment on this ride.

That’s so simple – dance, sing and have fun

I don’t know about the strangest place, but I do a lot of driving from Maryland to
New York, Connecticut and I will think about flows and lyrics and start playing
with words based on what my topic is, and I literally penned one of my singles
“Do You Wanna” while driving back and forth any given weekend. I’ll say a line
like - “drink up, I got you covered…no, I need to get that flow to be off the
beat…drink up, I got you all covered now…OK, so “now” will be my rhyme
line to end each sentence” …that’s usually my creative process in the car.

I have two – Elvis Presley & Michael Jackson

1) Elvis Presley – when I was growing up, I would run home from school to
watch on channel 7 ABC New York and watch “Elvis Presley Week”. I loved
they way he aroused his audience and his music that I still will mimic today
(although deep rooted in our ancestry of music and sound) made me want to
perform as well. “Jailhouse Rock”, “Love Me Tender”, “Hound Dog” …classics
to me.
2) Michael Jackson – I saw the Jackson 5 at Westbury Music Fair when I was
about 11/12 years old. That was when I knew I wanted to be a performer

because that audience including me was dancing and singing in the aisle.
When he began to evolve and change and be the MJ, we know of today his
craft of performance can be equaled by no other. No disrespect to Usher,
Chris Brown but that guy right there took the mold, recast it, and then broke
it…

I truly believe that sculpting from stone is not just a gift but such a creative
journey – you’re possibly taking your own ideas of the form your creating and
molding, chopping, chipping away to create a piece of work that can now be
viewed forever. The ability to just do that to me is so creative, so gifted

Micheal Angelo Sistine Chapel Ceiling – to do that kind of artwork and be so
precise at the same time – the art is breathtaking

That is truly the 800-pound gorilla in the room question. So, we have known for a
long time that the music business is a BUSINESS, and it doesn’t take kindly to
artist who don’t know that…Everyday it appears that the music business will find
a way to take more from the artist than they should – now coming from an
investment background if I invest in your creativity – my ROI should reflect that. If
I am offering, you a contract to create music and pay for everything I am now the
owner of that piece of music. But it should be considered that an artist can either
buy it back, get % back from the day it was released – almost like a pre-penalty
payment 25% back after 5 years; 50% back after 7 years and so forth. Also,
whoever came up with streaming should fix their numbers so the wealth is
equally shared with the artist versus what it is now.

I have 3 in this order – Do shows around the world, perform at the Grammys; be
nominated for a Grammy.

You know what’s so funny, if you asked me this same question 20-30 years ago, I
would’ve answered that I wanted to be famous, make lots of money. That was my
Groove B Chill days when I was on Uptown MCA with Heavy D & the Boyz
etc…Now my main reason is to show my daughter that no matter what never
give up on your dreams…I also think that my motivation is that I want to really do
some wonderful things with my family and through success via my music I can do
that for them. Other than that, I just want to have fun.

Where do you want me to start? The first thing is that you must believe in
yourself and surround yourself with people who believe in you. This journey has
brought out the good and the bad in people who some want to see you succeed,
others want to see you fail. I’ve also learned that whatever your niche of music is,
some people will not get it, or understand it – THAT’S OK, it’s not for them. This
is when your belief in what you’re doing kicks in. The biggest lesson I learned,
well not learned but understood is that GOD will bring you through to your
desires at his time and whatever you thought about doing in your own timeline
may not be what GOD has already aligned for you. I knew I wanted to do another
solo music project – but I didn’t know what type, what sound, what genre, what
production…NOTHING…then through my journey I was reintroduced to Juan
Coon and the rest was as they say history. Also, everybody may say they believe
in you but YOU have to put in the work. When we were being managed by Andre
Harrell @ Uptown Records, he really didn’t know how to market us (Groove B
Chill) and we should have taken the reins ourselves to get shows, get introduced
to vendors, club owners, promoters versus waiting for them to do it.

Doug E Fresh; Fatman Scoop (RIP because we worked together); Will Traxx

We were doing a show in Beaufort, SC when we first came out for my friend’s
family Daryl “Chill” Mitchell. We were paid $1,500.00 after the show and we
decided to go to the hotel and have a party. Well, we went to the store, and I was
driving a rental car with out of state plates. We pulled out of the store parking lot
and of course we were the talk of the town – New Yorkers in the area. Well, I
didn’t turn my lights on and I was pulled over by the police. Unfortunately, I didn’t
know my license was suspended in NY for a gap in insurance. I got arrested
ASAP and they took me to the local jail. Now, I’m not about that life, and when I
went in, they took my clothes, had me strip butter-ball naked, made me bend
over and spread my cheeks (WOW) and there I was in a bunk with a few others
for the night. For breakfast they served us apple sauce, cereal and milk. For
lunch a bologna sandwich. I was arraigned the following day, and the Judge said
he would release me but fine me for $1,499.00…So on top of being in jail
overnight with people who were held for child support, petty larceny, and stealing
fruit – they took all the money I had…

Interestingly enough, I have done voice overs for major corporations in my
career. Proctor & Gamble, Coca-Cola, Post Cereal to name a few, and I had
finished a Pringles Potato chip that started running on TV nationally. So, every
hour or so my voice would be rapping “POP THE PRINGLES”. My mother before
she retired from the state hospital system would work the 12-7 shift, and she
called me saying – “baby, I was at the job folding clothes for the residents and I
started hearing your voice…I thought I was crazy because I didn’t see you and
then realized that it was you on the chip commercial on tv”. Well, that tickled me
to death, and she said you sounded so good. When we do the things that our
parents love or agree with or admonish it serves the soul so well.

So, when my group Rock Squad disbanded due to each member wanting to go
their separate ways, I said to myself that I wanted to do another record with a
group. Guided by a higher power, through my school security job (another one of
my employee skills) I met Belal “B-Successful” Miller and Daryl “Chill” Mitchell. I
had 3 goals – record again, go to the “Soul Train” awards and be in a movie.
When our song was finally recorded on A&M records “Hip Hop Music” and DJ
Red Alert played on the midday mix, I knew that life would never be the same. It
made me feel so good because my early days of Hip-Hop was indoctrinated with
my friends and I in high school hanging out with the Zulu Nation in the Bronx –
Afrika BamBaataa, DJ Jazzy Jay and DJ Red Alert, Mr. Biggs, Pow Wow…this
was like full circle.

So, when my group Rock Squad disbanded due to each member wanting to go
their separate ways, I said to myself that I wanted to do another record with a
group. Guided by a higher power, through my school security job (another one of
my employee skills) I met Belal “B-Successful” Miller and Daryl “Chill” Mitchell. I
had 3 goals – record again, go to the “Soul Train” awards and be in a movie.
When our song was finally recorded on A&M records “Hip Hop Music” and DJ
Red Alert played on the midday mix, I knew that life would never be the same. It
made me feel so good because my early days of Hip-Hop was indoctrinated with
my friends and I in high school hanging out with the Zulu Nation in the Bronx –
Afrika BamBaataa, DJ Jazzy Jay and DJ Red Alert, Mr. Biggs, Pow Wow…this
was like full circle.

My favorite way for me is live performances. There is nothing better than to get
that immediate participation and the energy from your audience. You can feel it
and they can feel you (or not). This is an incredible way to gauge yourself and
your music with your audiences’ reactions to what you do on stage. Nothing
beats that kind of barometer.

I love Busta Rhymes – his flow, his energy, his ability to maneuver through this
music landscape for so long is incredible. To just sit and listen to his gems about
the things he’s doing and how he navigates would be a real thing for me.

Because of my idea of how I want to perform and execute my shows, I’ve relied
heavily on treadmill jogging/running to build my stamina as well as my ability to
perform my songs while dancing, moving and entertaining. You must remember,
when I was with Groove B Chill, I had a partner that helped me manage the
stage and give the audience 2 people versus 1 on the stage. So being aware of
what the audience is coming to see, you want to be physically prepared to be all
over the stage while giving them something to remember. It’s a different flow
when you’re in your late 20’s early 30’s to being in your prime time (don’t have to
tell my age LOL).

Entertaining, approachable, sincere

That’s so simple – upbeat dance tune that will make you sing and have fun

I’m in a 150-200 seat theater with a stage that struts out so the audience can
also be surrounding the front and sides; We start with a few songs that bring
people back to when they were younger and dancing and having fun was the
only thing that they had on their minds at the time; I have a few other artist that
have different styles of music – afro-beats; neo-soul; conscious rap/poetry and
I’m hosting the show while performing some of own songs.

Stevie Wonder – a prolific artist with a catalogue for the soul – from love, to pain,
to parenthood, to revolutionary
Biggie Smalls – changed the rap game forever and lyrics were way beyond the
pack
Jackson 5/Micheal Jackson – You know why LOL

To be 100% transparent, my current list of songs I’m doing are my favorite and
the reason is you may sometimes doubt yourself in the ability to create. I’ve been
away from doing music for some time and going into a studio after so many years
can be frightening. But to get in there, create a sound, create a flow and listen to
it and say “hey, I got something of value to say”. “Let it breathe” is an example of
that. I LOVE that song because I had ideas, but didn’t know how to put it on
paper and put it together. Working with my producer, guiding my steps, it was
absolutely amazing and that feeling sticks with me.

Think legendary, soulful and innovative. Think about music that spans multiple
genres, including soul, R&B, funk & pop. Think songwriter, singer, multi-
instrumentalist known for powerful vocals, skills on the harmonica, keyboards
and other instruments. Think of socially conscious virtuoso which songs address
racism, poverty, love – and now think of a musician who does all this…and blind
since birth = Stevie Wonder

I have to say that my themes are solely based on my experiences when I was
traveling with my group Groove B Chill and the parties and antics we would do or
be part of that creates where I’m at with my HYPE man – dance song niche. We
have been to celebrity basketball games where the hotel was jammed packed
with fans and we would just entertain the masses by jokes, engaging banter as
well as lots of drinks…So many clubs that as a group and including our little crew
so to speak where we would set up, get on the dance floor and takeover the
party. Also, my themes are based on my own individual likes/dislikes when it
comes to those type of events and moments – I love pretty toes, so in some of

my songs I rap about that. I love to have a good sift of whiskey, so I rap about the
bar being stocked with top shelf. How many people know that alcohol can be
your “courage juice” when it comes to asking someone to dance with you…But
I’m also a gentleman because of the way I was raised by my mother & father –
so my voice will never be disrespectful to female or male…I’m just not built like
that.

So, my perfect tour would be to go out with Full Force, Kid N Play, and Salt N
Pepa…I love the synergy with these people when it comes to Bow Legged Lou,
Paul Anthony and Bee Fine, and Kid N Play they are my friends to the end so to
tour with them would be a pleasure. I have always had a thing for Salt N Pepa
since they first dropped “My Mic Sounds Nice” and to do a tour with them would
be like icing on my cake.

I remember when I first started to record, I focused on word play, and synonyms
of sorts to be witty and catchy. That’s not my strengths and I soon realized that
from the only 2 records we sold as Groove B Chill…My strengths is my belief in
what I do, my personality to make people feel good and happy around me
because of my energy and the fact that when people see me smile they know I’m
sincere and want to have fun. So, I think when you find your strengths and put
your journey and trust in your higher power you can’t go wrong ��

I would say “Dance/Electronic”; “Hip-Hop Rap”, “Spoken Word” maybe even
“Pop”

I saw the Jackson 5 at Westbury Music Fair when I was about 11/12 years old.
That was when I knew I wanted to be a performer because that audience
including me was dancing and singing in the aisle.

OK, so my father only listened to WCBS FM NY…this was entirely a soft rock
and pop type station. So, I knew and sang the songs of the Eagles, Aerosmith,
ABBA, Christopher Cross, Elton John and Kiki Dee…to this day I have a diverse
taste in music…when I found this incredible station by accident WBLS I almost
lost my MIND…it was R&B and it made me feel something for real and this was
at the age of 8/9. I can still remember the group the Archies singing “Sugar
Sugar” or the Monkees singing “I’m a believer” …I also watched the Monkees TV
series LOL.

My background plays immensely into “Let it breathe” as well as my whole EP that
I’m working on. I love to dance, I love to engage, I love to get in the middle of the
crowd and we all party…” Let it breathe” speaks about the different dances we
use to do and still do. It talks about how to just dance like no one’s watching
because we all get hung up about how we look, or what other people think,
Including me. Well, no more, and that’s what I represent. Just do the damn thing
and have fun.

I am a OG Hip Hop artist that has been in the entertainment business for over 30 years. I started as a rapper signed to Tommy Boy Records with the Rock Squad, and then signed to Uptown MCA with my group Groove B Chill. Through that connection we were given the opportunity to star in the iconic classic teen movie - "House Party 1&2". Now I still rap, but the focus is dance, hype type songs compared to a Fatman Scoop, Doug E Fresh, DJ Kool...

I am a man who is son of GOD, son of Edward Eugene Allen & Myrtle Allen,
husband to Michelle Allen and father to Travis Manaseri, Nicole Wilkins & Nina
Michelle Allen. I am a man returning to his passion, returning to his thirst to
create and perform for the masses. I am a man who is looking to not only create
good music, create good memories for my fans, and friends, and family but I
want to help others trying to be the next whatever – whether it’s a janitor who
wants to be the next principal or the next neighbor who want to run for congress.
My mantra has been “WE ARE THE PURPOSE”. My purpose is to listen, assist
and help those who need it because until now – there was no one who wanted to
help me…TFN – The Total Faith Network took a chance on an individual who
was working on finding himself. I was depressed, lost, unhappy with who I was
and what I had become. I finally looked in the mirror (because prior I was blaming
everybody and their mama on why I wasn’t…why I wasn’t on TV/Film, why I
wasn’t recording music). I finally ran out of excuses and did the MJ thing –
started with the man in the mirror. What I do now is not what I will do tomorrow
for I continue to evolve…