Before The Mack’N Biz began, two college freshman Andy McNamara and AJ Baltazar met while pledging Sigma Nu Fraternity at UCSD in the spring of 2007. The two quickly became friends, bonding over shared times and similar interests. In the following fall they began to talk about recording some raps and by winter 2008, they had recorded a few songs. Over the next spring and summer they continued to develop their skills on the microphone, but it was only as Andy Mack was boarding a plane in late August to study abroad, that the duo decided on the name “The Mack’N Biz.” The name seemed especially appropriate considering the wordplay on their nicknames (“Andy Mack” and “AJ Biz”), as well as their prowess in the business of macking. Upon Andy’s return in winter 2009, The Mack’N Biz began recording on a more frequent basis. On June 13th, the hit song “All I Wanna Do” was originally recorded, but frustrations over further songs began to strain Andy and A.J.’s personal and professional relationship. However, when fall quarter began at UCSD the two quickly reconnected through an unexpected party bust. The cops decided to break up a back-to-school party before The Mack’N Biz could perform a short three-song set. After the police left, the duo and their crew continued the night at Andy’s crib to the beats of The Mack’N Biz. After seeing the general joy and enthusiasm that their music put on their friends’ faces, The Mack’N Biz decided to get serious about rapping. Since then, they have spent countless hours recording and have seen a great improvement in their lyricism and swagger. Their first mixtape, Skateboards and Boatshoes, has proved to be a solid foundation and an important stepping stone for future projects. They have plans to release several more mixtapes before graduation in June, and for as long as they can, The Mack’N Biz will continue to work hard to keep delivering free music on a weekly basis that inspires people and parties.
About
Biz
I was born in 1987 in Long Beach California. My grandpa came here illegally from Mexico in the 50s, started a business, and my family has been handling biz pretty much ever since. I grew up in a suburb of LA, moved to Orange County, and eventually wound up in San Diego for junior high and high school. I started skateboarding when I was 10, but I liked it way too much and stopped caring about school, not to mention I thought I was big shit with the hottest girlfriend in 7th grade (hell ya I held her hand and we even hugged once). So ya.. I ended up flunking the seventh grade. My parents were pissed and thought I had a.d.d. and shit but mate, I’m smart as fuck.
Anyway I ended up going to this military boarding school called Army Navy Academy when I was 12 years old. And that was the end of skateboarding, going to school with girls, TV, video games, and pretty much doing what I wanted to do. But wouldn’t you know it, it actually ended up being a good thing because I got my school shit together and got into college. Not to mention by the time I was a senior at army navy academy I was pretty much doing what I wanted when I wanted. It was there that I first started recording music and playing the guitar. Senior year, my friends and I wrote a song for my super hot Spanish teacher. She loved it so much it made her cry. It was around then I realized the power of music and how much I like writing and recording songs. I’ve been doing it ever since.
And when I finally got to college, freedom slapped me in the face like a roundhouse kick from Chuck Norris. I started studying music, recording all the time, partying all the time, blazing all the time. I joined Sigma Nu fraternity at the end of my freshman year at UCSD. That’s where I met Andy Mack and the majority of the dudes I kick it with from day to day. Not to mention that’s pretty much how the Mack’N Biz was formed. Crazy ass white boy Andy Mack needed someone to record his rap flows. Of course I was down. And as it turns out, I realized that I’m a bit of a spitta myself. The rest is history that aint even written yet. And I have no idea where it’ll all end up but I do know that there is nothing stopping us but us. Sky is the limit…
Mack
I was born Andrew Haines McNamara on June 13, 1988 in the small town of La Canada, CA. I am the middle of three children with an older brother Ryan, 25, and younger sister Stephanie, 19. As a child, I enjoyed sports, especially baseball and basketball, and spent most of my time either playing those sports or video games. My love of rap began early in seventh grade, when every day my older brother would drive me to school bumping the latest rap hits, most memorably “Southern Hospitality” by Ludacris and “Changes” by Tupac. Through high school, my interest in rap grew, and I was soon known as a rap connoisseur among the student body.
Once I arrived on the campus of UC-San Diego, it didn’t take long to meet my future business partner, A.J. Biz. We quickly bonded over a shared sense of humor and mutual friends but never had any intentions of becoming rappers together. Then in the summer of 2007, I was privileged enough to be allowed onto the “Everybody” music video set, where I met Kanye West and chatted with him for several hours on everything from his favorite song he had ever made, to the thoughts and ideas behind the “Stronger” music video. That opportunity sparked the beginning of my journey to become a rapper, because after that I began to write raps and also began to develop the dream that I could become the white Kanye West.
When we returned to school in the fall, A.J. and I decided to record some songs just for kicks, but after making a few we realized that the songs were actually decent and decided to continue the partnership. Then in fall 2008 I studied abroad in Milan, Italy, and I decided that as crazy as it is, I wanted to make rapping my profession and I communicated this with A.J. When I returned, we began to record songs more regularly and my love of writing raps continued to grow, often writing for several hours at a time. Since those early days of The Mack’N Biz, my swagger and lyrical content have come a long way and still improve on a daily basis. I know there is a long road ahead of us and a lot of hard work must be done to get to where we want to go, but we are confident in the abilities and uniqueness of The Mack’N Biz. Holla!