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Hailing from the Pittsburgh outskirt of McKeesport in Pennsylvania, Hip Hop pioneer RUGGID REAL (James Long) has been hitting the ground running since he began finding his musical niche at age 16.
After his first couple years of writing, rhyming, and developing his persona as a solidified artist, he was ready to start taking the stage by storm. He began performing local shows at many venues, events, and quickly became noticed for his insatiable talent which thrusted him into the thick of the scene; leading him to several collaborations and successful local projects that helped get his name out even more throughout the circuit. RUGGID’s influences range from yesterday and today’s Hip Hop heavyweights such as DMX, LL Cool J, Method Man, Red Man, Common, Run-DMC, KRS One, and many others.
Already a teen Rapper on the Rise, it was around this time when RUGGID REAL linked up with some other local emcees in the scene and went on to form a group, collectively Recording and Performing together over the next decade. However, after several attempts of moving the group in a successful direction, causing the collective to remain at a standstill, RUGGID decided to part ways with the group and set the groundwork to rise up as a solo artist.
