SOPRANO Hop in the backseat of the “Cadillac” and take a ride through Park Place or Lambert’s Point, two of Norfolk’s well known poverty stricken and drug infested neighborhoods. Based upon this environment you probably would expect to hear a bunch of drug story, shoot outs and jail tales but that’s not the case for this 23 year-old elementary P.E. teacher/football coach (Coach “E”). Iman Islam a.k.a. Soprano is the youngest of four siblings (1 brother, 2 sisters) raised by a single mother (Rasheeda). Soprano always envisioned a better life for himself and his family unlike the one his father lived or the life he lived everyday. At the young age of 6, his mother saw potential signs of stardom. She formed a rap and dance group with her four children. For four years she would write songs for them to perform at various venues but things just stayed on a hobby level. After the group stopped performing Soprano changed his focus to athletics. Years later at age 13, he started to write his own rhymes and found the passion of the pen. At this time his brother, cousin and a couple of their friends had formed a group called the 8th Regiment. From rocking school talent shows and local events. Da Regiment was making noise in the 7 cities. All of that ended when his brother and friend ended up in a legal bind. As a result of the chaos, his mother did what any other mother would do, banned Soprano from hanging out with the group. Once again his confidence and morale took a blow and he turned back to his first love, sports. As a three-sport standout in High School (Football, Wrestling, Track & Field) he stayed out of trouble and that made it possible for him to attend college at Chowan College in Murfreesboro, N.C. He played football for a short period until he was forced to come back home to Norfolk because of financial hardship. Upon his return he would write songs and raps foreseeing his chance to fulfill his childhood dream of being a rap artist. So in the beginning of 2005, Soprano, Fareed Islam and their cousin Carlos Lindsey formed Drumline Entertainment and decided that he would be the first artist to release an album off their label. Soprano hit the studio in June 2005 and started on his debut album “Now or Never” which is an album that will reach every hip-hop dimension you can imagine. With commercial club hits like: “Cadillac” and “In Da Club”; hood songs like: “My City”, and “Stuntin”, his personal favorite “My Life” (which paints a picture of his family’s struggles), or pole dancing anthems like: “Girl” or “Wit It”, he will capture the minds of the audience. With his January 24, 2006 release, everybody that listens will definitely understand that because of his hardwork, boldness, humor and dedication SOPRANO is going to be a household name in the industry.