Forget gangster rap. A new generation is leading L.A. hip-hop towards a brighter future defined more by the city's sunny skies than its criminal underbelly. The Dr. Dre figure overseeing this transformation is Polyester the Saint.
Born in Los Angeles CA, USA Christian St. James Cleveland, Polyester the Saint grew up knee deep in music. His grandfather was the late Rev. James Cleveland, the father of modern gospel music, and his uncle is Jeffrey Daniels of Shalamar and Soul Train fame. His own father, Andre Cleveland, was a producer and promoter whose parties in the 1990s gave a young Poly the opportunity to rub elbows with everyone from Snoop to Usher while still in his teens. A drummer since the age of 5, his plan initially was to become a touring musician. But his life changed when a close friend of his father's—none other than Stevie Wonder—gave him a Yamaha keyboard for Christmas at age 13. The producer, rapper, singer and multi-instrumentalist was the driving force (along with co-producer Lazy Lou) behind 2009's LAUSD Presents: Curly Tops & Nautica Jackets Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.