NEW YROK (Top40 Charts/ M Stars Entertainment) Hip hop artist Karolina Blue announced the release of 'Times Is Hard,' which is the second track from his debut album Street Educated. 'Times Is Hard' follows his debut single, 'Street Educated,' which was well received by critics and fans, and released on Karolina Blue's own label M-Stars Entertainment. Both tracks and the full EP are available at all major online retailers.
'Times Is Hard' begins slowly with an electronic guitar intro and then goes right into a hard groove mode. The bass, percussion, guitar riffs, and background harmonies are the perfect backdrop for the story Karolina Blue is conveying. Lyrically impressive from beginning to end, 'Times Is Hard' addresses the struggle of many black families that is all too common these days with a single mother raising several kids and struggling to make it through times that are almost impossible - not just hard. But he gives his mother props for the job she did with the hand she was dealt - something many more inner city youth should understand and be thankful for. 'Though times are hard/We'll make a way' 'It must be the norm/Black kids being poor/And some of them black kids don't have a mother to adore/Nor father in the house/So they're looking at the world/Seeing no way out/'. 'Times Is Hard' is definitely a solid, profound, and thought provoking track that is truly meaningful in today's society.
Karolina Blue (aka Shaun Maurice Armstrong) was born in Jamaica Queens, and was the eldest of five kids raised by a single mother, whom he watched struggle to provide for their family. Lacking a father figure, he turned to the streets and neighborhood hustlers. As many kids do, Karolina was interested in music and sports, picking up the saxophone at age 9, and playing in the school band at age 12. Financial considerations and bad living conditions caused his mother to make a very critical decision, which was to pack her family up and head to the south where she felt things would be better. They weren't, and Shaun was introduced to drugs by age 13 and selling by the time he was 17. Dreams of school began to fade as hustling became his primary subject. But with no real connection to his biological father still, Karolina Blue hit rock bottom hard and fast, and in 2003, he was sentenced to 5 years in New York State penitentiary, causing him to miss the birth of his son. As an outlet for his frustration and anger, he began to write music, but it wasn't until he met Giovonni Snow (a member of the South Jamaica Queens rap group called M-Stars) that things began to change in his life. The two became inseparable, writing countless songs and freestyles, and they made a pact to make music work for them. Once he was released from prison, Giovonni introduced Karolina Blue to the M-Stars - a group of talented rappers and singers. Shortly thereafter, Karolina enrolled at IAR (Institute of Audio Research). With the new talent surrounding him and his newly found knowledge and understanding of music as an artist and businessman, he formed the independent label M-Stars Entertainment and began performing at numerous spots around the city and Queens. Speaking about his music, he says, 'I just want the people to feel me; music is my outlet for my anger and emotions. I want to encourage and inspire people to fight through their trials and tribulations, and push themselves to become better as I'm learning to do every day.'
Street Educated can be purchased at the following online retailers: https://www.amazon.com/Street-Educated-Explicit/dp/B004JYQFHK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1312585708&sr=8-2
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/street-educated/id415041330
https://www.rhapsody.com/#/artist/karolina-blue/album/street-educated
https://www.emusic.com/listen/#/album/Karolina-Blue-Street-Educated-MP3-Download/12351951.html
https://www.last.fm/music/Karolina+Blue/Street+Educated
