Local Music Profile: Rapper Kap Rizzy

Rapper Kap Rizzy, whose birth name is Nathaniel Brown, grew up in the Tidewater Park area of Norfolk. "I didn't get a chance to do a childhood because I had a lot of responsibilities in front of me," he said.

At age 10, while growing up in a single-parent home, he took on the father-figure role and looked after his younger brother. Now 31, he credits that experience with making him wiser and building the confidence for him to make things happen for himself.

He practiced rapping as a stress reliever. "We call these things ciphers. It's when a group of guys get together and somebody makes a beat on the table and starts freestyling," he said.

It was then that he met Purnell Salter, now manager and CEO of Lockout Entertainment and Collabo Records. "He believed in what I was doing. That's all it takes is one person to believe in you in order to make yourself successful."

Kap Rizzy, who now lives in Virginia Beach, released his first CD, "Street Scholla," in 2004. With help from local "mom and pop stores," he said, he was able to get his name out and sell his sound.

Kap Rizzy worked with local band Trendsetters before releasing his second solo effort, "K.A.P," in March. The title represents confidence, spelled with a K, and pride. Both albums are available at Amazon, iTunes and CD Baby.

Touring three weeks each month with stops as far west as California and as far south as Georgia, Kap Rizzy is happy to bring his show home to Portsmouth. "I am overwhelmed to be given the opportunity to do this show. This is a chance to show my hometown what I've been taking state to state," he said.