"Born Cameron Giles, the Harlem-raised rapper started out playing basketball with neighborhood homie Mason "Mase" Betha. Together, they gained fame on playground courts against future pro players like Minnesota Timberwolves' Stephon Marbury and Washington Wizards' God Shammgod. But b-ball wasn't their only skill; Giles and Betha also made a name for themselves among underground rap fans as Killer Cam and Murder Mase - the top draft picks of Harlem's rap renaissance. After Mase joined Bad Boy, he made sure his man Cam met the right people. "He took me to B.I.G.'s house, and B.I.G. - God blesss the dead - was working on Life After Death; so he had mad beats in his house. I rhymed to every beat he put on. That was my audition." Although B.I.G. never had the opportunity to sign Cam himself, his partner, Lance "Un" Rivera, made Cam'ron his first signee to Untertainment Records." Check the visuals to the smash single "Horse & Carriage"... cont'd below...
"Cam'ron's singles, like "Pull It" (featuring DMX) and "Horse & Carriage" (featuring Mase), and "Magnum," the first release off the Woo Soundtrack (Untertainment), show off his unvarnished, almost spoken-word delivery and easygoing flow. A star player on a team of talented new MCs (Canibus, Big Punisher, DMX) expected to blow up this year. Cam's ready to take home the trophy with his album, Confessions of Fire, due in June. Like the third-team All-American point guard he was in high school, Cam knows how to change up his style to divert the opposition. "I could get on a song with Mystikal if I wanted to. That's the difference in my album. Everybody hears me on hardcore songs, and that's my favorite because I love doing them. But I got Jermaine Dupri on my album; Usher's on my album. Certain people can't do songs with people like that. Even if I got three verses on a song, all three verses will sound different. It takes time, but that's what's got to be done so I can keep your attention." Clearly, it's only a matter of time before Cam has his own tour..."