Lyricist lounge all-star Wordsworth returns with 'Mirror Music'

NEW YORK (Wordsworth Website) - After making a career of freestyles, battles, and guest star throw-downs, Wordsworth is stepping out on his own with his long-awaited first solo endeavor, this fall's Mirror Music. The first single "Gotta Pay," produced by acclaimed underground producer Oddisee and described by HipHopCongress.com as "Wordsworth at his finest," hit radio and stores June 29, 2004.

The new album shows a growth in Wordsworth's patented swagger; the wordsmith does more than just brag on the new album – he gives personal insight and spits narratives that reflect everyday life without glorifying street living. Mirror Music appeals to anyone who appreciates a true sure flow. "Nothing good to say keep silent/Cause the things that I wouldn't want to say you keep rhyming/Keep firing, I seek like a missile heat guided/And I'm so hot I'm a be on top cause heat rises," Wordsworth rhymes on first single "Gotta Pay," urging MCs that "Y'all don't need to dumb it down, y'all dudes is dumb already."

Throughout his storied career, Wordsworth has never dumbed it down. A college graduate who wrote all his papers in rhyme, Wordsworth first hit the scene at the famed Lyricist Lounge showcases, where he and partner Punchline impressed host Q-Tip so much he invited them to spit on "Rock Rock, Y'All," for A Tribe Called Quest's 1998 album The Love Movement. The duo then went on to drop unforgettable verses on Black Star's "Twice Inna Lifetime," eventually releasing their own album, Punch 'N' Words.

With the underground long buzzing, the world at large was introduced to Wordsworth when he co-created, -scripted, and -starred in MTV's groundbreaking sketch comedy series, The Lyricist Lounge Show, in 2000. The show featured a mix of scripted and improv sketches, most memorably showcasing Wordsworth and Mos Def freestyling on a ledge, with Wordsworth rhyming Mos Def out of jumping.

With the show over and the amicable dissolution of Punch and Words, Wordsworth has kept the buzz alive by performing on mix tapes and radio shows throughout the country and writing for television. Now, finally, he's dropping his own CD, Mirror Music, slated for a September release on up-and-coming indie label Halftooth Records (www.halftooth.com). Wordsworth's single "Gotta Pay" is available for sale worldwide, at records stores and online, and will contain the b-side "Trust," produced by Dox 1.