IAMISEE began rhyming at thirteen years old in basements around Wilmington, Delaware as one half of the duo, Grace & Divine –named for Philadelphia’s infamous Father Divine and Daddy Grace. Divine (IAM), backed by the beats of a then unknown Scott Storch, had a prodigious flow and a charismatic presence on the mic that quickly got him noticed. Within a year he had left school, his family, and his home outside of Philadelphia to move to Queens, New York and begin work on a project with Ruffhouse Records. This was not an uncommon occurrence in the early nineties era of experimentation as record labels were clamoring to find a formula within the new urban genre and as a result Hip Hop saw its greatest major distribution of diversified and innovative styles. However, it would not last. As the mid-nineties approached Congress pushed through a Telecommunications Act that allowed duopolies multi-station ownership in a given market. By 1996 garish and overly indulgent fantasies on wax backed by third-party loophole payola spit in the face of FCC policy and saturated the industry with chart-topping singles and record sales numbers for mediocre albums. Labels found their formula and stations found their cash cow. Divine (IAM), like many of peers considered as ‘abstract’, ‘backpack rappers’, or ‘too artistic to be adaptable’, endured backlash in the way of soured contracts and lost friendships. When the deal with Ruffhouse fell through Divine found himself as a solo artist and chose the name, IAMISEE- I am what I see. It would prove to be a prophetic moniker as he took his place in a then unknown elite of artists forced back down into the basements from whence they came; from their hunger, commitment to artistic integrity, and spite for their cross-over counterparts in the mainstream, they formed The Underground. True to his name IAM’s reputation as a solo artist grew because his lyrics evolved to focus intensely on expressing the complex demise of Hip Hop culture and society as a whole, while still plainly reflecting the joy and the struggle of everyday life. The rise of the independent artists could be tracked in correlation to innovations in technology and the sophistication of home recording and -though labels like Rawkus Records were coming into their heyday- IAMISEE invested in his own equipment and released two albums with no label backing. He also rhymed on stage alongside Talib Kweli, The Roots, Common, Hezekiah and many of his reputable peers before the turn of the century marked the peak of The Underground’s success in the traditional industry model. The tide was turning again and this time IAM, observing what was happening around him, firmly planted his heels on the shore while others were swept up in its momentum. Since 2001, IAMISEE has continued to build his home-studio and has become equally respected as a producer and graphic designer. He has contributed four more albums to the culture and more specifically to Philadelphia’s Hip Hop community. The albums are mostly self-produced, engineered, and all feature his original artwork. IAM recognized the restructuring of the industry before many which allowed him to survive as an independent artist. He kept his ear to the street, his heart in the music, his loyalty to his community, and his vision on the horizon. He secured his own merchandising, digital distribution (in seventy online stores as of 05/2007), oversees all his online operations and physical sales, and works closely with independent companies such as Soul Air Records, 800 lb. Guerrilla Marketing and (formerly) Creep Records which handle his promotion. IAMISEE’s commitment has paid off with international exposure (receiving spins in France, Germany, Russia, and the UK to date), an online fan base of 20,000, and upcoming collaborations with notable artists such as MadLib. IAM is what he sees. And he clearly sees the future of Hip Hop.