Webb was born Christian Di'ante Webb and grew up in NW Roanoke, VA. He studied business management and culinary arts before dropping out of college to pursue a career in music. How did you discover that you had a passion for music? I didn't, I actually never wanted to be a rapper or a musician. I initially started writing poetry but in my neighborhood it wasn't the cool thing to write poems, so I just keep it to myself for awhile. but one of my grade school teachers use to catch me writing all the time and convinced me to enter a poetry contest. i didn't win but i placed good enough to have it publish in a little magazine which got me hyped up enough to share my poems, but my brother motivated me to turn them into raps and told me that how you get the women. You are not the first and certainly will not be the last artist to admit that they wrote poetry in grade school but wasn't as vocal about their craft because of how others might view them, I think I remember J.Cole recalling a similar account. The music industry is constantly changing day by day and music styles/ genres are continuously being created, recycled and re-sculptured, how would you describe your style/genre? "I don't think I have one, it changes depending on my mood, or the project. My flow is off, I barely have a rhyme sale and I'm constantly all over the place. but if i had to choose a style, I would say I have more of an onld school, new school mix with a little UP-South twist on it. A 540 sound" is how he descried it. The music industry is an filled with many trials and tribulations with many obstacles and hurdles to overcome. In your opinion, what has been the biggest challenge for you so far? I would say my biggest challenge is coming out of an area/city the size of mine. Roanoke is not considered for its music in the major market so getting the loyal fan base built and being heard is a major challenge. There are no major labels or outlets here so you truly have to grind. Also staying independent is extremely hard, you have to have a plan and people around you that really want to work and who truly want to see you succeed. It's also an expensive industry...it takes money to make money, and who you know is everything. Aside from the challenges what has been one of your greatest accomplishments as an artist? I don't think I have one yet. The day I decided to pursue music, I set no limits. I have accomplished things in this industry in the true definition of the word but in my eyes I haven't had a great moment, but i would say bringing a lot of acknowledgement to the greater 540 area not just Roanoke, I've been lucky enough to work with and get support from artist/fans across the 540. I have major people in the industry asking about the Noke. You obviously are no stranger to hard work understanding about getting out and grinding to make things happen. What motivates you to do well in this industry? I've always had an urge to rep my city; I want to be able to put Noke City/ 540 music on the map on a major scale. The 540 is the inspiration behind majority of my music. I just want my city to make it. One of my favorite lines i ever wrote was "If you got big dreams you can't chase em if you're sleep". You spoke about having a plan and people around you who truly want to see you succeed. What other artist or acts are your associated with that help to bring this plan to life? Freedie P, Cnote, Spazz, Price YP, Mac Soull OZP Entertainment, Legionaire/Catune ENT. Besides music I have been seeing you promoting your own clothing. What made you start putting together your own clothing line? I always wanted to do a lot of things, music is my passion but I would rather be a mogul. I'm a tru workaholic. I figured I'd rather rock my own sh*t instead of jocking styles. Design it and do me plus I ain't tatted up so I had to find another way to express myself, ha. I can understand that fully, I had similar thoughts when we decided to add a clothing side to The YOUniverCITY. We know that your mixtape Lucid Dreams is dropping December 21st. Do you have any other big events or plans coming up in the future? My winter line will be available starting New Years, My EP"" January 21st, song writing and co-producing a R&B mixtape that will come out in February 2014, and I'll be touring Spring/ Summer 2014. A workaholic is right. It looks like the New Year is going to be a busy one for you. Do you have a website or way that people can follow you and stay connect to what you are doing? Yea, I'm all over social media. We should have my website up and running by Mid-January but until then, FB, Twitter, IG all @Webb540.
One thing is for certain Webb has not even begun to scratch the surface with what he plans to accomplish and we are looking foreword to seeing the success of his music and clothing line in the New Year. Make sure yall stay updated on his upcoming projects and be sure to get his Lucid Dreams dropping Saturday December 21st!
