New York, NY. (Top40 Charts/ MONSTA Magazine) - Platinum Hip Hop artist
The Game exclusively reveals in the premiere issue of MONSTA Magazine his decision to drop pursuits of a Los Angeles Superior Court trial related to felony gun charges filed against him and is preparing for a 120-day prison sentence. The premiere issue of MONSTA hits newsstands on February 12, 2008.
While maintaining his innocence related to the charges, The Game tells MONSTA:
"The crazy part about this is that I've had guns before in my life. But this time I didn't have a gun. And because one person said I had a gun and coaxed his homies into saying that I had a gun, I'm in a predicament where I'm asking 'do I want to spend another million dollars to fight this trial so who knows what jury's gonna come in and say I'm guilty? Or do I want to save my money, go sit down for four months and accept this felony they're trying to give me for no reason?"
In the exclusive cover story, The Game also reveals specific pre and post prison plans including details around his next album which can only be found in the forthcoming premiere issue of MONSTA.
Created by David Mays and Ray "Benzino" Scott, MONSTA comes twenty years after creating the groundbreaking publication The Source - which GQ magazine recently recognized as one of the "27 Things That Changed Men's Lives" in the past 50 years - and just months after receiving the Media Industry Newsletter award for their creation of Hip Hop Weekly, the first celebrity weekly magazine for the Hip Hop Generation.
MONSTA is an authentic and relevant chronicle of the Hip Hop Generation, documenting its consistent impact on mainstream society and popular culture. It is a striking oversized magazine (10" x 12" large format) that is packed with provocative stories and photographs. The magazine reports from the front lines, delivering a first-hand point of view on the people, the issues and the lifestyle interests that really matter to the Hip Hop Generation. Each issue of the magazine combines in-depth news reports, poignant interviews, documentary-style profiles and insightful commentary with stunning original and exclusive art and photography - creating one intense, engaging and thought-provoking package.
Displaying its prowess for investigative journalism early on, MONSTA's premiere issue also includes:
*An insightful article on the murder of NFL player Sean Taylor including exclusive interviews with Sean Taylor's family and the family of his alleged murderers.
*An in-depth feature on The Black Mafia Family (BMF) that goes deeper than any other media outlet has ever been allowed to go including interviews with key BMF members, the trial judge and others.
"MONSTA represents the culmination of our 20 years of experience in this field, and is a cornerstone of our vision for the next 20 years. MONSTA will not only have an immediate impact when it hits the market next month, it is a magazine that will have a lasting impact for years to come," said David Mays, Co-Founder and Publisher of MONSTA.
The MONSTA World Premiere Issue brings together a formidable roster of top journalists, including Carlito Rodriguez (former editor-in-chief of The Source), Dasun Allah (former editor-in-chief of The Source), Chi Modu (chief photographer at The Source from 1990 - 1997), Cavario H. (founder of Don Diva magazine), Michael "Ice-Blue" Harris (former Music Editor at The Source), NY Times best-selling author Karrine Steffans and renowned author and Georgetown University professor Michael Eric Dyson, among others.
"The launch of MONSTA is really exciting because we have been working with a group of people who have lived hip hop and covered hip hop for years, and now they are coming together for the same goal," said Ray Benzino, co-founder and Chief Brand Executive of MONSTA. "We are introducing a new format for a hip hop magazine which will be defined by being independent and political, and by providing in-depth coverage of whoever is a 'monsta' in this industry."
With MONSTA Magazine, the trailblazing Mays and Scott arrive full circle to ignite a new journalistic spark and inspire another generation of readers and future journalists with this new media property. MONSTA debuts at a time when existing monthly hip hop magazines are struggling under corporate ownership and the pressure to produce engaging, relevant print content in the digital age. "The Hip Hop Generation is an intelligent, thoughtful group of young adults who will read and appreciate a quality, journalistic product like MONSTA," added Mays. "Over the 18 years we ran The Source, the fact that we were independent and lived the culture were the things that always set us apart from any competitors. Today's generation expects and deserves a sophisticated magazine that speaks to them. MONSTA will fill this void."
