Crucifix

Born in Atlanta Georgia, raised in Central and East Africa, Cameron Cruce spent much of his early childhood bouncing from continent to continent, soaking in a wide influence of music, language and culture. By the time he was eighteen, he was native to fifteen different countries, fluent in three languages and understood first hand the harsh reality of living face to face with the third world. But it was his unveiling passion for music that would soon take center stage in his life. At the age of twelve his family moved to Congo where he first began teaching himself to play the piano, writing and producing his very first music. He quickly discovered the power of pouring out his heart into song and within a year found himself recording his first album from the comfort of his bedroom. Making his own tapes with little more than a tape recorder and a keyboard, then designing the covers by hand he began to build a following, selling his music at school and on the dusty streets of Congo and Rwanda.
But his life would soon take an abrupt and devastating turn. In April of 1994, the country of Rwanda would break out into one of the worst genocides in history, leaving over a million dead in its wake. Cruce and his family found themselves on the front lines… a broken road of burning cars and mangled corpses the only path between them and safety. With nothing but a Bible in their hands and a prayer in their hearts the family pushed through the chaos, escaping with their lives under a hail of gunfire. Slipping through roadblocks of machete wielding mobs and back roads through dark mountains, the family finally made it safely into the country of Burundi, and began building a new life for themselves in Kenya East Africa. But the images and memories from Rwanda would forever make a lasting imprint on the life and music of Cruce... and in time, music itself would become the only outlet to save him from the silent hurt that was slowly beginning to swell inside.
At the age of sixteen his family returned to the States and for the first time in his life Cruce felt lost and out of place. The images of death that continued to tear at his mind were a burden no one could share, and he quickly found himself pulling away from the world around him. He launched himself into a vicious downward spiral of drugs, gangs and violence, and by the time he was eighteen was homeless and strung out on the streets of Southside Atlanta. It was there, on the roach ridden floors of a filthy crack-house he began writing what would become his first album; A cry from the deepest part of his soul, at the darkest place in his life to the God that had once delivered him from bloodshed of Rwanda. So he began the slow and arduous climb back up towards redemption. Within a year he was married with his first child, working full-time as a maintenance man, fighting to feed both his family and his undying dream for music.
By 2005 he finally completed and released his first fully independent album, “My Life’s Prayer” under the name BabyBlue. The controversial double disc debut took the Atlanta Underground by storm. Boasting 28 songs and two 32 page booklets, his image, delivery and powerful visual presentation set him apart from his peers who were fighting to dominate the Underground Mixtape scene. His audience slowly began to grow, branding his name and sealing his unique and fluid signature sound. Mixing fast-fire Southern Hip-Hop with smooth Rock vocals, a touch of Soul and no holds barred lyrical content, he began to set a new standard for cross-genre music. A year later, in 2006 he was hired on as co-producer, editor and musical mind behind the shocking Atlanta Underground film “Crackheads Gone Wild” and suddenly found himself diving into the world of film. A newfound passion that would soon become one of the biggest and most valuable assets of his career.
But 2007 was the year that everything changed for Cruce. After seven years of trying to juggle family, drugs, music and faith he reached his breaking point, and gave his life fully to Jesus Christ. He changed his name to Crucifix, to serve as a daily reminder that the man he once was would return to claim him if he failed to get up each morning put him to death. With a newfound faith he began to mark a new path forward… one of hope. In 2009 his life story was published in the book “Your Own Jesus” by the multi-platinum, Grammy, Dove and American Music Award winning band Casting Crowns. In 2010 the story went international as “Your Own Jesus” was translated into its second language for release in Europe. By July he released his follow up album, “Cruce Signati”, featuring Southern HipHop legends Sean P of Youngbloodz, Goodie Mob and members of Outkast's Dungeon Family. The first single and music video, "Down 2 Die" (Feat. Sean P) quickly became an underground anthem in the 1%er biker community, hitting radio for the first time and Crucifix began his first tours throughout the southeast.