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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 26, 2018)
‘City of Roses’ Happy Kwanzaa Happy New Year! Volume XLVII • Number 52 & www.portlandobserver.com Wednesday • December 26, 2018 Established in 1970 Committed to Cultural Diversity photo by D anny p eterson /t he p ortlanD o bserver Roy Moore, aka 3rd Twin (center), a home-grown rapper from Portland, makes a dramatic comeback after struggling with addiction, depression and traumatic events related to gang involvement and opioid abuse. With “Honesty,” his latest single, he has touched the lives of many who have gone through similar trials and tribulations. Also pictured from the Falcon Art Community building on North Albina Avenue are 3rd Twin Producer Na’eem Hall (left), video producer Juston Gaddis and video direc- tors Jacob and Arnold Pander (right). Transcended by ‘Honesty’ Homegrown rapper escapes perils of drugs, gangs by D anny p eterson t he p ortlanD o bserver As an addict and gang member, rapper 3rd Twin was in dire straits. His brother had died of an overdose, his friend had been killed inches away from him, and his alcohol and prescription pill abuse was causing his life to spiral even more out of control. Though he once had been one of Portland’s most prolific underground rappers, he had drifted apart from music for years. He contemplated sui- cide one day, in his sister’s garage, but instead of putting barrel to temple, he decided to release a different kind of projectile, in the form of rapping about the dark place he found himself in. “I was still hurting. That song was a cry for help. I was deep into my addiction and that was a therapeutic thing that I did on accident,” the rapper, whose off-stage name is Roy Moore, told the Portland Observer. He recorded his partially improvised rap in late 2013, which he dubbed “Honesty,” and Moore’s nephew posted the video onto Facebook. One of Moore’s best friends, Na’eem Hall, whom he’d known since high school, saw the video and began en- couraging Moore to do more music. Hall was so inspired by the song that he started a record company, Thorn City Syndicate, and they began recording together. From there, the song “Honesty” lead to a professionally produced version, featuring Grammy-winning producer Tiger Roberts, a journey back into sobriety, and an award winning and dream-like music video that is currently screening at film festivals all over the world. “That song honesty was the catalyst to me changing my life,” Moore, 38, said. Moore was on the fast track to stardom when he first began his career as a rapper as a pre-teen. But opioid ad- diction and personal tragedies knocked the Portland-na- tive off his success track. Now, a 20 year veteran of the craft, Moore is taking the positivity formed from his new found sobriety to the streets through youth outreach and hip-hop. C ontinueD on p age 4