Today we’d like to introduce you to Paper Chaser.
Hi Paper, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
The story of Paper Chaser begins in the Bay Area specifically San Jose, CA. His mother had him when she was only 16 years old and was a single mother. Early in his life his mother moved him to East Palo Alto and they had a hard time making end meet so they used to have to sleep in the back seat of their car find ways to get food to eat. Early in his childhood his mother found a boyfriend that became physically abusive. After a few years of enduring this abuse his mother decided she had to get away from this boyfriend so she moved to San Diego, CA so she could get shelter at St. Vincent de Paul and YWCA Women’s Shelter for people experiencing domestic violence. After months of living in shelters his mother finally got their first apartment in the Golden Hills area not too far from downtown and that’s where Paper Chaser started his love for hip-hop music. As a kid his mother would give him an allowance which he would use to buy hip-hop CD’s such as LL Cool J, N.W.A, Eazy-E, EPMD, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Tha Dogg Pound, Wu-Tang Clan, D.J. Quik, Redman, and more. Paper Chaser found himself being a connoisseur of lyrics such as wordplay, cadence, metaphors, similes, punchlines, flow, and delivery. After years of listening to so much hip-hop Paper Chaser decided to write his own verse at 11 years old. He thought it was completely wack so he never wrote another one until he was 14 years old and this time all of his friends agreed that this one was much better. From that day on he was convinced that he was going to make it as a rapper and later on in his teenage years he helped form a group called The Fedaralz. During this time he was going by the moniker “Destro” which was a nickname he got from a G.I. Joe character. While in this group he did countless battle rap tournaments and also went on multiple tours traveling the country. After about 10 years of being in a group Paper Chaser decided to try doing a solo album and he found out he could not use the moniker “Destro” so he had to come up with an alternative artist name. During this time he was also selling drugs to survive using the name “Paper Chaser” but he thought this was too basic and over-used so he came up with “D-Boy P. Chase” which stood for “D-Boy the Paper Chaser”. If you would like to hear some of his previous projects under the alias D-Boy P. Chase please search the name on Youtube or Google and you’ll see plenty of dope West Coast hip-hop. Paper Chaser dropped his first project “Minor Setback for a Major Comeback” under this alias back in 2019. After that he released his classic sophomore album “San Diego Hall of Fame” on June 19th of 2021. Once again on June 19th of 2023 (to represent his area code 6-1-9) he released another project called “Welcome To The Salty D”. Now he just dropped his new album “The West Coast Never Sounded Like This” on 1-1-24. To follow Paper Chaser on all social media sites see all the information below:
Links
Facebook Artist Page
facebook.com/PaperChaserSDMusicPage
Instagram Page
instagram.com/paperchasersd
Soundcloud Page
soundcloud.com/paperchasersd
Twitter Page
twitter.com/PaperChaserSD
TikTok
tiktok.com/@paperchasersd
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It most definitely has not been a smooth road, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s a struggle when you’re an independent rap artist coming out of San Diego, CA because we don’t have the same infrastructure that cities like Los Angeles, New York, Atlanta, or the entire Bay Area has. Since we don’t have the same type of local hip-hop following we often have to go out of town to create a buzz or to gain supporters in our own city. Also, when you’re independent you have to do everything by yourself. From looking for and purchasing beats from producers, to booking and paying for studio time, to coming up with and paying for artwork, to paying directors to film and edit your videos. You also have to navigate and create a social media following as well so there’s a whole lot of obstacles and challenges that you face beyond just being able to rap good.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
If I was going to identify what I specialize in I would have to say being a lyricist. Being from the West Coast that’s somewhat of a rarity because in the past majority of the West Coast music was focused on the realities of the neighborhoods we’re from and problems we have to deal with daily. I still do the same thing for the most part but I put my own twist on it and use a lot of wordplay to make witty metaphors or double entendres. I think that’s what separates me from other San Diego or West Coast artists in general and I’m most proud of sticking to what I love and not selling out to try to become famous being someone I’m not.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
Back when I was little and my Mom and I had just moved to San Diego, CA we used to take her little radio and go onto the fire escape and play the few cassette tapes we had. Our favorite was by Zapp “Computer Love” and we would play that song over and over and over. Lol! We were both in a new place and didn’t know anybody here so it was like our way of bonding and adapting to our new surroundings together.
Pricing:
- Paper Chaser “The West Coast Never Sounded Like This” (physical copy) $10
- Paper Chaser “Welcome To The Salty D” (physical copy) $10
- Paper Chaser “San Diego Hall of Fame” (physical copy) $10
- Paper Chaser “Paintings On A Digital Canvas” (physical copy) $10
- Paper Chaser “Minor Setback For A Major Comeback” (physical copy) $10
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paperchasersd/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PaperChaserSDMusicPage/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/PaperChaserSD
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/@PaperChaserMusic
- soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/paperchasersd
- Other: tiktok.com/@paperchasersd
Image Credits
“The West Coast Never Sounded Like This” album cover by: Kahraezink “Paintings On A Digital Canvas” album cover by: Kahraezink “Welcome To The Salty D” album cover by: Kahraezink “San Diego Hall of Fame” album cover by: D.J. Fingaz “Minor Setback For A Major Comeback” cover by: Chi Bully Photos / photo shoots by: Joey Dixon
