Born in New Orleans, hip hop artist Max Minelli, 27, has been around. As a child, he moved to California then moved back to Louisiana. He lived with his mom and with his dad and with his grandmother. This alone shows that Minelli has had a world of experiences and has gone through some of life's many struggles.

However, Minelli did not let his past get him down. In fact, he transforms his struggles into an art form in order to let people know that they are not alone in their fight.

"The main things I like to talk about deal with the struggles that people go through," Minelli said. "A lot of rappers try to seem as if they are super human, but that's not reality. People always want to know reality, to hear that somebody else goes through the same struggles. You find comfort in that."

Basing his music on truth, Minelli has done quite well on the music scene. He started out with a group called Concentration Camp in the early '90s, but after C-Loc, a member of the group and CEO of the label, was incarcerated, Minelli went solo. Now signed with the Koch Entertainment label based in New York, Minelli has landed gigs all over the Southern states, from Texas to Florida, and has released eight albums.

No matter where he plays or where his music and life take him, Minelli will always hold his roots close to his heart.

"I will always have a place in Louisiana. There's no place like home," he said.

Despite this attachment, Minelli recognizes that there is no telling where his music career will take him. It may be Houston or Atlanta or anywhere else.

"Houston is kind of like my second home," Minelli said. "We do a lot of recording there. So I could see myself there ñ or maybe Atlanta, where the scene is more relevant."

Minelli knows that wherever his path takes him, he wants to "do this for my people," as expressed in the lyrics states in his song "You Gotta Love Me."He has no upcoming tours and considers himself to have a solid fan base. Minelli said he thinks he falls somewhere between unknown and famous.

"I'm like a middle ground between unknown and the ultimate," he said.

But Minelli knows he wants to reach out to a wider audience and find a little more security in the profession.

"You always want to go to the next level and expand your audience," he said. "I've been eating off rapping for the last 13 or 14 years, but it's stressful, because this business is an up and down thing. Sometimes you're on again, off again, and you got responsibilities and bills and kids."

Minelli said he considers Autumn, his 2-year-old daughter, his greatest accomplishment.

"She's my angel," he said.

Minelli said he does not wish to give anyone the impression that rapping is a life filled with luxuries, fancy cars and gold necklaces. He wants future aspiring rappers to know that it is stressful and hard work.

"A lot of people think it's like a big party, but it's not. If I can give you my stress, you would be surprised," he said.

Minelli emphasized that in order to succeed, passion is as necessary an element as dedication.

"You should rap because you love it. Don't just do it because it's a fad, or don't do it because you want to be famous, or don't do it because you think you can make some quick money off of it. Do it because you love it," he said.

His love for what he does is obvious. However, Minelli attributes his success to something more than love: speaking the truth.

"I feel like the truth is always going to be the truth," he said. "Music became a way to get all of frustration out, and I kind of feel like I became a voice for people who don't have an outlet. One thing I learned is whatever kind of energy you put out there, whatever kind of words you speak, people listen to that and pay attention to that."

When you listen to Minelli, you get Minelli. The good, the bad, the truth.

For more information, please visit his MySpace page.