Young Doe

Early years

Charles McClure was born on April 1, 1980 and raised in Denver, Colorado. He wrote his first rap song at age ten, and soon after caught the attention of local record label Heartless Records, who recorded his first track. In 1992 he won his first trophy at a freestyle battle, competing against other rappers all six years older. Under the name Young Doe or Charles Truth he released his first mix tape, Street Hustler, at age fifteen. Finished by 1994, it was never released as a CD for retail. In 1996, he and another rapper 'Analiza Slim started a group with other rappers via written letters while in juvenile detention, and he, Colfax Cac, Innerstate Ike, Hawkman, Analiza Slim, and Scrilla-D formed the group M.N.L.D (Mob.Niggaz.Livin.Decent). Many of the members would remain Young Doe's long-term collaborators. With Young Doe producing most of their tracks, they released their first album Street Starz Affiliated in 1998, with the album garnering some attention on the underground.

2007-10: First albums and writings

Young Doe's first solo album was titled Somethin' Terrible, followed by a DVD/CD titled Broken Home. He soon helped found Elite Entertainment Group, becoming CEO of an organization along with Xavier Davis aka Boozilla. they have worked with a number of well-known independent artists. Young Doe's mixtape I'm So Fresh with world famous Core Dj Dj Ktone was released in 2007, and on September 2, 2008 Young Doe released his debut solo album "Product of the Eighties" presented by C-Bo, and published through C-Bo's label West Coast Mafia Records.

In early 2009 he released his single "I Can Do It To," with a music video released as well. On September 28, 2009, he released the album The Secret, which was dedicated to his friend and fellow rapper Colfax Cac, who had been killed in 2005. The first promo single for the album, "We Don't Do That," featured Oakland rapper Keak Da Sneak and was released in August 2009. He was a featured artist on the song "Playin' My Part" by Messy Marv in late 2009, which was included on Marv's album Draped Up and Chipped Out, Vol. 4. In late 2010, he also was a featured artist on a track on Marv's album The Shooting Range.

In 2010, at the inaugural 5280 Urban Music Awards held in Denver, Colorado, his album Charles Truth was shortlisted along with two other artists for Complete Project of the Year (Rap). Also that year, his music video for "Drop Top" was shortlisted for Video of the Year. "Droptop," which also features Chalie Boy from Texas, depicts a love triangle, with Denver Westword writing in October 2010 that "Young Doe... plays his part well, too, as the foil in this love triangle. Pretty dramatic, really, but the visual translation matches the lyrics and tone of this song about a clandestine love affair perfectly." In 2011 Young Doe released three solo albums, including the Best Of..., Rollin Stone, and Ventilate.

In 2010 he published his first novel, titled Welcome to the Maze. The novel follows Raekwon's story as a hustler and rapper. As Charles Truth he has also written a number of articles for publications such as Fly Magazine and Ozone Magazine.

2011-12: Collaborative albums

Throughout 2011 and 2012 he worked with a number of other artists, releasing several full-length albums in short order. Released in February 2011, the Philthy Rich track "Let the Money In" features Young Doe as a guest artist, and was included on the album Trip'n 4 Life. Also in 2011 he was a guest on a track by Dem Hoodstarz. On June 21, 2011, he and J. Stalin released their collaborative album Diesel Therapy. On AM to the PM, a collaborative album he released on April 17, 2012 with Messy Marv, he produced the tracks "Deez Niggaz Talkin" featuring Boozilla, "Lompoc" featuring Pelee Yellowstone, and "Champagne In The Air" featuring Philthy Rich. Mo Heat produced most of the other tracks. Most of the releases were published through Elite Entertainment, which has also released albums by Young Doe's collaborators, such as Analiza Slim, Pelee Yellowstone, Jimathez, and Innerstate Ike.

On July 20, 2012, the track "Cannabis Club (Remix)" off J. Stalin's Memoirs of a Curb Server was released, with Young Doe as one of several featured artists. At the 2012 5280 Urban Music Awards, Young Doe won the True to Life Artist Award, and was also nominated for their Town Reputable Award.

2013-14: Recent albums and singles

In July 2013 he released the track "No Homies," which also featured J. Stalin, Jadakiss, and Taj Mahal. Wrote Denver Westword, "the high production value of the track, coupled with the fact that Doe is working with two other rising stars gives the Montbello MC's shine an even sharper glare." A month later he released "Muthaf*@kn Right,"with Denver Westword giving the single a positive review and stating that "the song manages to be inspiring and street at the same time."

In October 2013 he released a music video, "Starvation," which Denver Westword wrote "Young Doe captures the vividness of the daily struggle on this somber yet defiant street anthem. The realistic anecdotes of his rhymes are compelling, as he describes the sociol-economic problems in the streets... Newcomer Waze drops a raspy last verse, adding a level of street appeal to an already strong track." Young Doe's single "Street Crying," a collaboration with Messy Marv, was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2013 5280 Urban Music Awards.

2013 saw the release of his album Street Hustler 2, and in early 2014 he released the album Ventilate 2 on April 1, 2014. After re-leasing I'm So Fresh as a digital download, in 2014 he released a number of singles on Elite Entertainment, with features by Trae The Truth, J. Stalin, Young Fate, Zoe Santana, Philthy Rich, Hawkman, and others. in May 2014 he also released a music video for his track "Livin' Life Fast."

Publishing history