Twenty-five years in the making. The concept of the Listening Session has been ingrained in the heart and mind of a Maryland emcee (by way of Cincinnati) who was first introduced to hip hop in the early 1980s. Verses has dropped a CD for the listener, by a listener. Throughout Listening Session you can hear the influences that classic hip hop had on Verses. Listening Session is a record molded to grab the listener’s attention with classic hip hop and a sound message. Verses purposely stretched himself on this record, choosing various unorthodox beats to rhyme over. He takes the listener from the hole in the wall open-mic coffee house, to the club, to the street corner cypha. Verses’ lyrical tactics, combined with strong production from Tony Stone has fashioned a record that will mold the listener’s ears with messages of faith (Fatherless Child), fun (Funky Dividends), and focus (We Do It, featuring Tony Stone and Mark J). One highlight of Listening Session is the reflective “Cassette Tapes & Roller Skates”, in which he and emcees Cult-Free and Verbs, reminisce on the classic days of hip hop. As Verses states, “When we did our raps we sport 3 stripes / checkered fat laces, keep’em clean and white / rock fake leathers, be like Run & D / pants a little tight but not to our knees / somebody get the cardboard cuz I got a brand new move we can rock at the rink tonight.” The song causes the listener to compare the times of old to those in which we live now. Verses is joined by several artists making guest appearances sprinkled throughout the CD. Each collaboration is special in its own right, but none more defined than the duet, “Love Jawns” with his wife (and up and coming artist) Chloë. The song is a reflection of their love for one another through their relationship and common bond – Jesus Christ. Also, they were truly fed up with the lack of true love songs on mainstream radio. “Everyone’s talking about how their man did them wrong or how many women they can have on the side”, says Verses. “We just felt that there weren’t enough songs that represented a Godly relationship.” On Listening Session, Verses seeks to convert the listeners into parishioners through insightful songs with a common theme. “I just wanted to make good music that would combat the negative connotations & portrayed stereotypes, and influences on today’s listener, especially the youth. If we don’t teach them and show them the right path, then who will step up to the plate?”