One listen to the tongue-twisting rhymes of Ak'Sent, and you may notice, this is not your ordinary newcomer. For one thing, this fresh-faced MC is a she. And another reason: she's 20 years old. But as anyone who gets to know Ak'Sent (Krystle Johnson) soon discovers, there's much more to this unassumingly petite girl than meets the eye. Sure, the LA native has an impressive resume for her age - dance training with Debbie Allen and Lula Washington, stints in several R&B-based girl groups - but it's her fierce flow which truly shines. "I feel like rap is something that's in you," says Ak'Sent. "It's a natural thing that can't be taught. Someone can learn how to sing, but rapping is from the soul." Because of her sheer determination to do things on her own, something the half-African-American, half-Latina Ak'Sent had grown accustomed to having lost her father to gang life and her mother to welfare, she was given room to grow and experiment in the studio, both vocally and musically. "I told myself, I'm not going to sound like everybody else," she says. "I'm not just another female rapper. I want to set a tone." To help her find the sound she was looking for her 1st Lp "International", Ak'Sent teamed up with several new producers, Jukebox, The Jugganauts, Kookie, & Gregg P. Also contributing on the project was the legendary DJ Quik, who blessed Ak'Sent with his production skills on the aggressive vibe on " 1 " Other producers included mega producers Scott Storch, JR Rotem (50 Cent, Lil Kim, Rhianna), Sam Sneed (Dr Dre, Ice Cube, Snoop), and DJ Khalil whose recent productions have appeared on Jay Z, Game, 50 Cent, Jim Jones and Dr Dre's forthcoming lp. Never one to rest Aksent kept it moving for Lp 2 entitlted "Gem-In-I". Once again enlisting her crew of producers Jukebox, DJ Khalil, Big City, and Gregg P, she has crafted an album which reflects a more grown and sexier side of her and has many Hip Hop critics dubbing her "THE Next Female MC to carry the torch". Watch for her new single and video "Losing Control" from her forthcoming album"Gem-In-I" coming soon.
