“I’m willing to be blunt and honest about anything in a song. That’s what I want to set me apart,” said twenty-one year old Matthew Sutton, better known by his stage name 810 (pronounced eight-ten). He’s a native Baltimorean who dreams big, with mic in hand he hopes to rock the nation with his easy to relate to music.

810 has been rapping since the youthful age of eleven, “It’s been a while,” he laughs. During high school, he would rap recreationally for fellow classmates; they saw the talent 810 had for structuring elaborately placed rhymes within his raps, and encouraged him to pursue a serious career through rapping. “It [Rap] was the best thing I feel that I’m good at. It was like two plus two for me,” he said. 810 added, the support he received during that time confirmed his decision to become a rapper.

The name “810” is derived from Sutton’s birthday: August 10, 1989. He chose that moniker because he feels other rappers have a tendency to fall into trends when deciding their names. For example, rap superstar Lil Wayne stood among others who used and still currently use the highly informal “lil” surname: Lil Zane, Lil Romeo, and Lil Mama. “I wanted something to set me apart,” 810 said.

810 spoke briefly about his sources of inspiration, he mentioned the artists Nas, Jay-Z, Lupe Fiasco, and Tupac. He continued, “Tupac had the most [influence] because his words were always so impactful. He taught me to always have feeling in my music.” He also said that much of Tupac’s music revolved around how he said things rather than what he said. “I think that feeling brings people to the music.” Another source of inspiration for 810 is life. He said that there are situations in life everyone can relate to because they are common experiences. He tries to incorporate those experiences into his music to appeal to a wide audience. His song “Pay Day” has a fast upbeat tempo that gives off a celebratory vibe, and his lyrics talk about rising up from poverty and earning a good living.

The music industry is hard to break into for any aspiring artist, and 810 is no exception to that fact. “It’s been tough, I’m just learning how things work now…there’s a lot of business and politics behind the music,” he explained. He compared reaching stardom to a glass ceiling, he said that one can see where he or she wants to be, yet be incapable of breaking through to the top. It is a cantankerous process, but 810 remains optimistic, “It’s been good though, I gotta keep up relentlessly, can’t let my foot up off the gas.”.

810’s music can be heard through his Myspace and Twitter pages: www.myspacemusic.com/810musik and www.twitter.com/810musik. He has an upcoming mixtape that will be released on November 12, “Glass Half Full.” In closing, 810 shares his advice for anyone who has a dream, “…stay true to yourself, don’t give up on whatever you pursue in your life.”