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For some artists, it’s either the hood or the rap game, but for CTE member JW, sometimes a man from the streets can be a man of many things.

With a full ride scholarship to Auburn and even a draft pick of the Miami Dolphins, JW is versatile individual that seems to catch the eyes of everyone he comes across.  Already working with superstar rappers like Young Jeezy and Plies, JW hopes to spread his already buzzing sound from the south, all over the country. [More]

Hip-Hop Wired: Before you were a rap star you were a hood star, so what influenced the transition from coming from the streets to going to the booth?

JW: You say before I got into this rap thing I was a hood star, but I’ve been a major star my whole life. It’s not just about the streets and being out here and having street credibility, but I’ve always been blessed. I’ve always been that special person in whatever I was doing all the way back from elementary school to high school. From being in the streets and catching a dope charge, I was able to bounce back and stay focused. Earning my degree and being able to say I put on a NFL jersey for the Miami Dolphins, all while never working a 9-5 is a blessing. For me to be here I feel it was ordained, so now I’m just walking to to my destiny, better yet running into it.

Hip-Hop Wired: I know you got your own label Grade A Hustler and I know you’re signed with Universal, I want to congratulate you on that, tell me about how that process started and how you got it signed with Universal.

JW: First of all, shout out to Young Jeezy and CTE for blessing me with an opportunity. Jeezy reached out and my name was buzzing, so Sylvia Rome reached out to me from Universal through Jeezy and through Shaun Harris. They saw my grind, my numbers, and saw when you came to the A, you probably would hear 3-4 different songs of mine in the club., I had a hot mixtape in the street “Get It From the Muscle Vol 1,” followed by Vol 2, and now I just dropped Real N***a Radio Vol 3, Get It From the Muscle Vol 3.

Hip-Hop Wired: You just had the video shoot for the new single, tell us about the single that you worked on with Jeezy.

JW: The single is called “So Sad,” and right now its’ tearing up the streets in Florida. Plies had dropped a verse on it first, but Universal’s pushing just me and Jeezy’s version. Every show that I’ve been booked for, we’ve been using the song for a Ms. So Bad contest. Atlanta is picking up on it, and it’s getting played all the way in Cali and New York. We just shot the video at the Oakland Park Flea Market in Broward County. Everybody came out, and it was all over Twitter, Facebook, and Myspace.

Hip-Hop Wired: When can we expect a studio album from you and what kind of mindset you got going into it?

JW: My focus right now is to get the people going with my movement all over the world. So when I got the people I’m going to be doing nothing but dishing out that good music for them. Right now we’re just focused and working hard, I’m working with a lot of different producers. I’m going in with Cool and Dre, Jazzy Phae, and just a lot of different producers that’s been supporting the whole thing. My focus is to work and everything will line itself up together after that, hard work is smart work.

Hip-Hop Wired: Tell us about what you got going on right now with USDA and what kind of future projects we can expect from y’all.

JW: We got a whole compilation we’re going to drop, so that is coming real soon. We’ve been working with Slick Pulla, and we’re going to come back with that Cold Summer 2. We’ll get with Young soon and see what’s going to be the title on that album. We’re just knocking out tracks, including that “No Problem” on WorldStar that got some great results. We just threw those tracks out there and those videos, and just feeding the streets.

“We Party”

Hip-Hop Wired: For anybody that’s trying to get your past work or stay current with you, what’s the best way to link up with JW?

JW: Myspace.com/jwfullyfocus

Twitter.com/Jwgradeahustler