HAVE NOT JONES Imagine, if you will, that a new Rob Zombie horror film was just released and you decided to sit down and watch it. It follows the backstory of a kid that grows into a typical Rob Zombie character - a hell-raising outcast with a hillbilly accent, who seems to be surrounded by chaos and violence everywhere he goes, pissed off at the world from years of abuse and isolation. After being cast aside and labeled a “problem child” at an early age, he was taken in by the degenerates of society, which the movie uses to show how he got his name, Have Not Jones. But it also shows the side that no one expects: how this “degenerate with a heart of gold” turned his life around and decided to share his story and spread positivity using music, in hopes it will help others going through the same struggles he did - The Have Nots. Think Michael Myers meets Texas Chainsaw Massacre, reimagined by Rob Zombie, but at the end of the movie, he busts out of the screen to holler at you about positivity and unity. The title says it all: “The Rise of Have Not Jones”. Have Not Jones is a multifaceted rapper, producer, and podcast host with an eccentric style that draws inspiration from old school hip-hop, hardcore music, and a dash of country. His work combines aggressive lyrics with an unexpectedly positive message in a way that is sometimes reminiscent of if a Rob Zombie character listened to a shitload of Tupac and then became a motivational speaker. It is the result of surviving abuse, poverty, and struggle to come out on top with a "fuck you" attitude and trying to uplift others going through the same things. Have Not Jones was born on May 31st, 1988, in a tiny one-stoplight town called Springville, on the outskirts of Birmingham, Alabama. As a teenager, he was heavily involved in Birmingham’s hardcore scene, performing at shows as the vocalist for a band, and listened to Tupac religiously from a young age. Years of his life were spent in and out of jails and rehabs, living on the streets, selling drugs and struggling with alcoholism. In recent years, he has changed his attitude and started turning his life around, trying to use his music to encourage others to do the same. Thief on a Tree We are the sick and diseased The lame and the weak The homeless in the streets Prisoner locked in chains you said couldn’t change For years after his hardcore band split up, he continued to write but stopped making music, until a talent show at a Christian rehab inspired him to write Thief on a Tree, which is what first sparked the idea that he wanted to try to learn how to rap. Since then, he’s made rapid progress during some of the worst situations imaginable through intense dedication and sheer willpower, including: ● learning how to record his own music and do all the audio engineering out of a makeshift closet studio; ● starting 2 highly successful podcasts after being invited to host a bi-weekly radio show on freedomkradio.net, which are now known for being refreshingly original and exciting in both the dialogue and his editing (Shot-Out Have Nots in Hip-Hop and Have Nots Underground, available to listen everywhere: Spotify, Apple, Soundcloud, etc.); ● interviewing known artists in the underground music scene on Shot-Out Have Nots in Hip-Hop; ● using his knowledge in graphic design to make creative promotional material for the artists he interviews and his own current projects; ● starting a clothing line called POS Apparel; And too many others to list here. After running a 5-star tree business that he climbs for all day, he comes home exhausted from doing tree work.... And then immediately starts working on his music or podcast, writing at least one new song and promoting his projects for hours every day - including many days when he didn’t even have a home to come back to. As of now, he’s getting ready to start touring later this year, working on finishing a new album titled Morior Invictus ("death before defeat"); expanding his podcasts, Shot-Out Have Nots in Hip-Hop and Have Nots Underground; better establishing his clothing line, POS Apparel; and setting up a radio station where his podcasts will be played, along with other shows and segments hosted by guests.