Some people search their whole lives for their true calling. Some never find it. But, that wasn’t the case for Darrell Gause — better known in the music industry as Disco Black. Disco grew up in Harlem, the son of a West-Indian woman who introduced him to an eclectic mix of music. Her collection included everything from folk and soft rock to soul and R&B. Disco soaked all of it up and spent most of his childhood singing wherever he went. Before long, Disco set his mind to making his own music. Inspired by artists like DMX & Jay-Z he went into the studio at the age of 14 and began working on both sides of the glass. Disco’s ability to rap, sing and produce got him noticed quickly. Before long, he was playing venues across New York City – even opening for Cam’ron as a special guest. This isn’t to say that life has been easy. Disco has certainly known tough times. As a youth, he bounced between foster homes, which often left him feeling angry and aggressive. Years later, he’d do a stint at The Ray Brook Federal Correctional Institution. Ironically, it was Tracy Chapman’s music that helped him through it all. “Her music calmed my soul,” Disco explains. Today, Disco uses his past trials as fuel for songwriting. But even here, he refuses to be pigeonholed. The songs he writes are just as often inspired by the stories of others as they are by his own experiences. “Music is embedded in me,” he says. “I would have found something to make songs about no matter what my life was like.”