Rocko (born Rodney Hill, Jr.) is an American rapper from Atlanta, Georgia. Signed to So So Def/Island Urban Music through his own Rocky Road Records imprint, Rocko's first single, "Umma Do Me", was released in late 2007. An album, Self-Made, will be released on March 18, 2008. Outside of his music career, Rocko is the husband of R&B singer Monica, with whom he has two children.
Rocko immediately reached out to all the key people who he had built relationships with throughout his years in the music business. He recorded songs with Rick Ross, and Jim Jones and occasionally leaked a song or two to test his product. “Once I realized that people were feeling me I just went out and hit the streets real hard,” says the resourceful MC who recorded his hit “Umma Do Me” in August of ‘06. “I just started emailing the record out and going through different markets and promoting. We would be passing out CDs and posters and going out partying and making sure they played my song. The buzz just started to grow and before I knew it ‘Umma Do Me’ was at like 300 spins.”
In October, Shakir Stewart, the senior vice president of A&R at Def Jam, contacted Rocko and persuaded him to fly to New York City to meet with the head of the famed label. “At that time I was in the process of closing a deal somewhere else but Shakir was like, ‘Roc, you gotta come up here, LA Reid wants to meet with you,’” he remembers. “My first time meeting with Def Jam we closed the deal the same day. There were no negotiations. They had their mind made up. I couldn’t even leave the building.”
Rocko’s debut album Self Made is now slated to drop in the first quarter of 2008. Inspired by his tireless drive and self sufficient know how, Rocko’s LP is filled with tracks that inspire listeners to follow in his footsteps. Songs like the motivational “This Morning” and “Tomorrow” are all about manifesting your own destiny, while another standout cut, “Shoot Me Down” focuses on overcoming whatever obstacles arise along the way. With the majority of the production handled by Drumma Boi (Young Jeezy, Juvenile, Yung Joc, etc.), Self Made is sure to knock heads nationwide.
With a tireless work ethic, Rocko will continue to build a future through his love of creating music. “I’m a workaholic,” says Rocko. “For the next few years I’m going to go hard and I’m gonna keep it turned up to the max until I get to where I feel like I wanna be.” Spoken like a true star.
Source: http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Rocko-Biography/EF57DCAFFC9C66D1482577FA00146D6A
