TITO MONTOYA IV

Keeping The Beat Alive

Interview by David R. Navarro

Caught up with Emcee and Music Promoter, Tito Montoya IV aka Krazet33 The Emcee.

David R. Navarro: Tell us a little bit about yourself?

Tito Montoya IV: My name is Tito, I go by Krazet33 The Emcee. I’m a fast rapping connoisseur of Hip Hop. One of those rare Hip Hop heads that does it for the love of music. I’m a mix of Twista, Busta Rhymes, and the East Coast lyricism. I beatbox, produce, and sing as well as do my own graphic design and promos.

I double as a local Hip Hop promoter in Denver, Colorado and have brought out acts such as X-Raided, Mr. Pookie, The Luniz, Eternal of the Wu Tang Killa Beez, Michael 5000 Watts, Mad Squablz, and many more. I’m set to bring out master lyricist Locksmith, soon. Got connections to the East Coast, West Coast and all in between as far as promoter pull for mainstream artists. Sky is the limit, I do it for my people.

DN: How long have you been a performing artist?

TM: I’ve been a performing artist since I was able to get into a venue. I’m 30, now. So, it’s been a good 12 years .. I’ve been promoting for 11 years.

DN: What made you decide to be serious about music?

TM: I started taking music seriously as a teenager. My uncle and family kinda raised me to be into the music scene. My dad used to have me write 20 words out the dictionary, 20 times each and put them in sentences to show that I understood what the word means. That went on from about 1st grade to 5th grade. At age 15, I wrote my first flow and the rest is history. Now, I like to put on boom bap beats and have people throw me words to rap about to hone my freestyle skills.

DN: Who has had the most influence on your music career and why?

TM: Honestly, coming from Colorado, I’ve had so much influence from a plethora of artists from all sides of the game. I’ve idolized all the lyricists like Eminem, Big Pun, Biggie, 2Pac, Mos Def, Andre 3000, Black thought, Wu-Tang Clan, and so many more. I was in love with the whole westside connection movement, as well as the screwed up click movement with DJ screws people like zro and Trae. Swishahouse movement with artists like Chamillionaire, Paul Wall, Mike Jones, etc. I think I’ve pulled influence from everywhere and I wouldn’t have it any other way .. from the old-school 80’s era with the Guru, Grand Master Flash, Kurtis Blow, Big Daddy Kane, Rakim to the Motown oldies and R&B.

Tito Montoya IV with The Luniz in Denver.

DN: What would you say is the #1 key to success in the music industry?

TM: Marketing, marketing, marketing, and networking with the right people that have the same dream and goals as yourself. Nowadays the industry isn’t going to try and give you anytime of day, unless you’ve taken yourself to places without them and have a solid marketing strategy as well as quality music ready to be released and published through either ASCAP or BMI. With that being said you want to be a well rounded artist from the jump and don’t worry about getting a record deal go for a publishing deal those are a lot more beneficial.

DN: Talk about the biggest failure you’ve had. What did you learn from it?

TM: I think the biggest failure I’ve had in this music game was trusting the wrong people to back me up, like I would back them up. It’s the reason why I became a promoter and artist .. I rather create opportunities that I wish I would’ve had when I was naive to the game and what it takes to make things happen. Ask anyone around me, I make sure everyone doubles up on their investments when it comes to shows and I promote the hell out of my events, because I understand it takes a community to make things happen.

DN: What advice can you give other individuals who want to follow in your footsteps?

TM: The best thing you can do is always work on perfecting your craft and take time to network, but stay humble and cautious. There’s a lot of snakes in the industry that will be there when your getting recognition and will leave u by yourself when your down and out .. don’t get discouraged if your people don’t believe in you, it starts when you believe in yourself. You can achieve whatever you put your mind to if you only take the time to practice, practice, practice till you get it down.

DN: What does a typical day in your week look like?

TM: I’m always so busy, lol. I am a landscaping contractor and jack of all trades as well as an artist and promoter .. my week consists of bids, grabbing materials for jobs, managing my employees, managing the projects. In my down time, I’m producing new beats, writing 2-3 songs at a time, because I have ADHD and it’s just how I work best. I network with as many artists as possible, especially when I have a show coming up to book the artists and find vendors for shows as well as new venues to potentially do business with .. it’s all about the grind .. because you have to put in the work to reap the rewards.

DN: What keeps you going when things get tough in the business?

TM: My people, it’s all about my people that have been around since the beginning and leaving my sons a legacy, a dream they can follow because they have seen their Dad work relentlessly.

DN: What’s next for you? New music? Shows?

TM: I have new music that can be streamed coming soon as well as a catalog of 50+ songs I’ve worked on over the years. I’m working on doing a all analog performance where I can build beats live with my beatboxing and looper station as well as with my Roland mc505 groovebox. I have a more unique performance to bring to the table .. as far as shows.

DN: Please list your website and/or your social media platforms.

TM: You can find me just about anywhere under the name Krazet33 or Krazet33 The Emcee.

SoundCloud.com/Krazet33 Reverbnation.com/Krazet33

YouTube, Spotify, iTunes Music, Deezer, DatPiff, etc. I have distrokid for distribution .. Social networks like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok at: @therealkrazet33

DN: What’s your all time favorite song/artist?

TM: Honestly, as far as artists go, one of my all time favorites is Big Pun. He was definitely ahead of his time and his lyricism was on point. I’ve often been compared to him as Denver’s Big Pun.

DN: Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you?

TM: I have started a underground Hip Hop website that acts as a voice of the people and will be covering all of Denver, Colorado and more as time goes on. I make custom t-shirts with my airbrush and I can get features to artists from any of the national artists that I named above.

Personal contact is: Tito Montoya IV, 720-436-4030 drgreenthumbshandymanservice@gmail.com