Duke Montana was born in
Rome to an American father and Italian mother. In the early years of his life he lived in
Santa Ana, Los Angeles. In the early 1990s, when he was fourteen, Montana founded his first hip-hop collective, Power Mc's, together with the producer
Ice One and Julie P. with which he released the Power to the People LP. He also collaborated with important members of the American rap scene including
Onyx,
Ice-T,
Wu-Tang Clan and starred in the film Le amiche del cuore, directed by
Michele Placido, playing the role of himself.[3] During those years he spent his life between
Corpus Christii,
London and finally
Los Angeles. There he performed in many live concerts until 2000, when he finally settled in Italy.
Career
In 2008 Duke Montana took part in the album Ministero dell'Inferno (2010), including collaborations with Italian rappers such as
Club Dogo,
Marracash,
Fabri Fibra, and
Noyz Narcos. During these years he performed in many concerts all around Italy and
Switzerland. In 2011 he gave birth to the project "Black Bandana Click".
In 2011, Montana released the album Grind Music II, self-produced and distributed by
Edel Music. In the same year he published his further album, Stay Gold, produced by Sick Luke. It included collaboration with the American hip-hop group Onyx ("Bloodsport"), Club Dogo ("Carta Viola"), Fabri Fibra ("Alphabet Killers"), and other mainstream and underground rappers.[4] In 2012, he recorded the track "Smashin' (Italian Remix)" featuring Onyx and
The Beatnuts. Currently he is the president of Golden Age Biz, his personal label, which has a partnership with
Sony BMG for distribution and
Live Nation Entertainment for his live tours. It also deals with the production of Black Barz and other emerging underground rappers. On 15 July 2012, Montana opened the first and the only Italian date of the American rapper
Wiz Khalifa, in Milan, together with
Fedez.[5]
Cinema
1992 – Le amiche del cuore directed by Michele Placido.