“We were just kids going to school during a dark period in time where we lived, a place called Happy Valley. This place was newly established - no history to claim. New houses, new streets, new stores, and a new High School that had just been built not yet a full year by the time we started attending. Needless to say, the place was uninteresting, unblemished, uninspiring, severely uncultured. Nothing was happening at the time and most kids just didn't know what to do or who to be. It was the latest expanse in a series of sprawling outreach of suburbs -  the the great American expansion, to be sure

None of the kids had an original identity. They all emulated whatever they saw on T.V. So, by chance, Punk music was the popular trend at the time - by that I mean Pop-Punk ... Early millennium, TRL, “Take Off Your Pants & Jacket”  type of punk. The music in its very essence was lighthearted, fun, and just a big practical joke - Which is fine. But for me - I guess I didn’t really have much of a sense of humor - but I needed something more serious. More significant. Something with a little more substance. I could never get down with it.

But as for everyone else I knew, well they dressed and acted like a funny punk. Skinny white kids with clown shoes and perfectly messy hair. I was friends with all of them, in fact I was never an outcast. I always had a lot of friends in school. The cool kids and the nerds - whatever they represented I didn’t see it. I saw them as individuals and was kind to everyone. But as for the punk kids, they just didn’t know any better. They too were generally good kids. But I was hungry for something else because none of that was really me. Yet I didn’t know what to look for. I remember getting into a few things and having it quickly fade. Although I was searching for an indentity it wouldn’t take long for an identity to find me.

The first time we heard hip-hop was The Fugee's "Ready Or Not" which was introduced by a buddy's older brother one evening we traveled into Portland.

Particularly, the drums, hitting me in my chest.... just that sound... and how they were saying words in a rhythm on top the beat. I grew up on music with my dad being in a classic rock band, so that music was all that I ever knew. But hearing hip hop for the first time through a song like that, it as the strangest sounding thing - so completely different from anything that I knew before. It was life changing. It sounded so cool. And It was a moment I'll never forget" says Verne.

We pretty much knew at that moment, we had found something we can do that would make us different. Not many of our friends had much exposure to that artform. We exploited it. We brought it into our suburb - Happy Valley. Things soon began to change from then on out.”